Ha Tinh City (Ha Tinh Province) currently has more than 120 ha of agricultural production area in the direction of concentration and accumulation. In it, there are 9 cooperatives, which play a central role, invest and organize production according to regulations and standards, to improve product quality, connect and gradually form an ecosystem, to use diversified agriculture, value, gradual production towards organic and sustainability.

According to Mr. Le Quang Hung, Chief of Economic Department (People’s Committee of Ha Tinh City), the application of science and technology with clear and transparent standards is an indispensable requirement for modern agriculture, which not only helps to improve product quality and value, but also also minimize risks from market fluctuations as well as weather and climate changes, gradual production towards green, ecological and organic agriculture.

Currently, Ha Tinh City People’s Committee supports 5 production areas in the development of VietGAP certification process, including: model of cows in cages; Beekeeping for Honey in Dong Mon Township; Shrimp Farming Project in 3 Phases, Application of Microbiological Technology in Thach Ha Township; Project on cultivation of lotus along the value chain related to tourism and a model of rice cultivation in Thach Trung municipality.

The “pumping” of this policy is aimed at stimulating local demand to build regional connection chains, implement the process of assigning planting area codes, and create conditions for products to have opportunities for international integration and market expansion; at the same time maximize the value of urban agriculture and realize the city’s goal of developing ecotourism-related manufacturing,” emphasized Mr. Hung.

About a year ago, the Thach Ha Commune Vegetable, Fruit and Vegetable Production Cooperative and General Services (Thach Ha Cooperative, Ha Tinh City) started a process to issue VietGAP certificates for products in the cultivation area. At that time, despite many difficulties due to the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, the cooperative was still determined to build its brand.

Mr. Nguyen Dang Manh, director of the cooperative, shared his opinion and since the early days of the company’s establishment, the members of the cooperative have decided to invest in production according to standards and regulations, towards organic production, in order to build a food system that is safe for the user, environmentally friendly and creates a high added value for each product.

With 1.2 ha of land, the cooperative has planned 5 production areas, invested in net houses to grow key products such as melons, pears, cucumbers, cantaloupe melons … and also produce, strictly following the production process VietGAP standards from logging, Nursing techniques, fertilization, timely spraying of pesticides with the right species, increasing the use of organic fertilizers, biological pesticides; All stages of production, harvesting, classification and packaging of the products ensure traceability.

Currently, the 6,000 m2 of the cooperative are covered with melons, 2,000 m2 with watermelons, 300 m2 with cucumbers… in the net house. On average, each type of crop produces 2-3 crops per year, plus rotation of some short-term vegetables, bringing in revenue (in 2022) of more than VND1.5 billion.

“In December 2022, our cantaloupe, cucumber and melon products were acquired by NHONHO Technology Co., Ltd. certified to meet VietGAP standards. This is also the first year that the cooperative’s products have been approved for export, with 12 tons of cantaloupe melon exported to the Korean market,” said Mr. Nguyen Dang Manh excitedly.

According to him, the cooperative’s products have been well received by the market, and in addition to supplying the agricultural chain Thanh Sen Mart, some customers have ordered large quantities to other provinces and countries in the region. The cooperative is testing 200m2 of grapes and 1,200m2 of male papaya trees to produce herbs to diversify crops, increase land use efficiency and open production direction along the value chain, and connect with farmers and cooperative groups to produce all kinds of products that organically apply VietGAP standards to meet the needs of large clients.

After the Cooperative for the Production of Vegetables, Fruits and General Services in Thach Ha Municipality, Ha Tinh City has another Cooperative Binh Minh (Quyet Tien Village, Dong Mon Commune), which has received the relevant certificate from the Good Vietnam National Certification Company VietGAP (cultivation area is 1.02 ha) and Thanh Sen Youth Cooperative (Dong Mon Municipality) have been certified as organic conversion by NHONHO Technology Co., Ltd for products such as turnip, turnip, carrot, sweet potato, potato, melon, watermelon and tomato, cabbage, spinach, green asparagus) on an area of ​​4.3 ha.

Dang Van Cuong, director of the Thanh Sen Youth Cooperative, confirmed that organic farming is much more difficult and expensive than other forms of production. The first is to strictly follow the transition process from testing the quality of soil and water sources; Cultivation process, production log to track the growth rate of each plant. The maintenance process, 100% of the area uses micro fertilizer and nanotechnology to improve the soil and kill bacteria…

However, production to standards and regulations will help producers leverage the strengths of urban agriculture, build brands to bring high-quality products to market, and provide products for tourism.