Production meets VietGAP, Edor longan is ready for the outside world

Good harvest, good prices, all thanks to VietGAP

Never before farmers in Xuyen Moc district, Ba Ria - Vung Tau province have felt as excited as entering this year's longan harvest. They just had both a good crop and a good price, and the local longan growing area was granted a production certification. Since early morning, growers eagerly gathered to prepare to witness the certification of VietGAP for their Edor longan growing area.

After more than 2 years of implementing the VietGAP longan production process following the organic direction, the Edor Longan Cooperative Group in Phu Quy hamlet (Hoa Hiep commune, Xuyen Moc district) becomes the first cooperation group in the project "Building an organic production model of VietGAP longan in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province" to achieve VietGAP production certificate.

“Today, we are able to witness the awarding ceremony of this certificate to the Cooperation Group, so the locals are very happy. I have faith that from this point, the local longan will reach far and be exported to more countries,” said Nguyen Van Tuy, a member of the Edor Longan Cooperative Group in Phu Quy hamlet.

With the selection of varieties and the application of science and technology, plus the experience of many years of intensive farming, now many longan growers in the cooperative group can proactively choose the appropriate flowering and fruiting time. The successful application of treatment techniques for early fruiting longan not only helps to increase yield, reduce risks, and prolong harvest time but also results in very high economic efficiency.

“The cost of organic fertilizers has decreased by more than 20% compared to the traditional production using inorganic fertilizers in the past. The yield has also increased by 10%, with the average selling price of VND 25-28,000/kg, hence an increase in profits for the people," said Pham The Phong, leader of Edor Longan Cooperative Group.

The path to export is wide open

In order to improve the quality and economic value of longan and contribute to sustainable development in the organic direction according to the high-tech agriculture development policy of Ba Ria - Vung Tau, the project "Building an organic production model of VietGAP longan in Ba Ria - Vung Tau province" has been supported and implemented by the Institute of Agricultural Science for Southern Vietnam (IAS) for 3 years, from 2021 to present.

MSc Chu Trung Kien, Head of Plant Protection Department (IAS), Project Manager, said, “We have built 20 ha of organic VietGAP longan in Dat Do and Xuyen Moc districts. In which, 10 ha of Edor longan in Xuyen Moc district has been deployed from the basic stage of organic construction to the application of information technology in product traceability and geographical indications”.

To add to the model, IAS also provides cooperative groups with technical advice and support in terms of seed supply. Legumes such as wild peanuts and three-leaf rattleweed are chosen to plant in and around the longan garden to help cover and renovate soil. They also work as a source of green manure.

"After Edor longan production cooperative group is granted the VietGAP certificate, the Institute of Agricultural Science for Southern Vietnam will continue to support the cooperative group to build the traceability code and logo to meet export requirements. The project will at the same time help contact exporting enterprises to expand output for the cooperative group’s longan products," said MSc Chu Trung Kien.

Tran Duy Tam Thanh, Deputy Director of Ba Ria - Vung Tau Department of Science and Technology, said that domestic and foreign market demands are increasingly strict on safe and organic agro-products, so improving the quality and economic value of longan and contributing to the sustainable development of longan is the province’s policy of agricultural development in parallel with high technology application. After the success of the Edor Longan Cooperative Group in Phu Quy Hamlet, Ba Ria - Vung Tau will continue to support localities in replicating this model.