The automatic drip irrigation is deployed for fruit-growing areas in Phieng Khoai. (Photo: Bich Thuy/VOV’s correspondent in Northwestern bureau)

Hoang Duc Long of Ai hamlet 2 in Phieng Khoai was among the plum growers honored this year at the commune’s first-ever plum festival. Long’s family has 2 hectares of plum trees, including 200 early-ripening trees, which yield 35 tons of fruit. With early-ripening plums selling for 3-5 USD per kilo (plums sell for about 1 USD per kilo during the regular season), Long’s family can earn between 15,000 and 19,000 USD a year.

Long is diversifying into other fruit crops such as crunchy persimmons, green-skinned persimmons, and pears to raise his income. His pear trees have yielded their first harvest of 700-800 kilos, and were sold at 1.3-1.5 USD per kilo. He told VOV, “My family plans to grow plums in line with VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards. We’re also going to grow other fruit trees like pears and persimmons to earn more."

Ai hamlet 2 has 102 households growing plums on 108 hectares. All of them use organic farming methods. In recent years, with local government support, many of them have installed automatic drip irrigation systems to save water, labor, and costs. Hoang Van Thich, the hamlet head, said, "We now tell the local farmers to farm organically and selectively thin out the fruits to make the remaining ones larger and better quality. By doing so Phieng Khoai plums can be sold both domestically and globally."

Phieng Khoai commune now has 3,000 hectares of fruit, if you include  mangoes, pears, longans, persimmons, and strawberries. In addition to giving farmers guidance on intensive and high-tech farming, local authorities are stepping up trade promotion, branding, and market access initiatives.

They have focused on building the Phieng Khoai plum brand, organizing plum-picking festivals, setting up produce booths at agricultural events, partnering with the postal service, businesses, and cooperatives to livestream sales. Local products have been promoted on social media, online trading platforms, and through 4,200 retail points nationwide.

The local administration and farmers have joined efforts to promote local farm produce and fruits. (Photo: Bich Thuy/VOV’s correspondent in Northwestern bureau)

According to Bui Van Quan, Deputy Head of Phieng Khoai’s Economic Infrastructure Department, "The local government has coordinated with technical agencies to organize classes for farmers on applying new technology, especially to pruning and pest control for higher economic values."

This year’s plum season is expected to earn the commune more than 83,000 USD and reduce the poverty rate to 17%. The commune is encouraging villagers to follow VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards to qualify their fruits as OCOP-certified products.