According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the high-quality vegetable production model yields 400 million VND to 500 million VND (17,400-21,700 USD) per hectare each year. Flower production reaps up to 1.2 billion VND (52,200 USD) per hectare each year, while tea and coffee yield 250 million VND (10,870 USD) per hectare annually. The record productivity is helped by high technology aquaculture, with 8 billion VND to 9 billion VND (347,800-391,300 USD) per hectare a year.
Having more than 3,000sq.m of land, Tran Van Phuoc, a farmer in Da Nghich village, Lat commune, Lac Duong district, decided to invest in a greenhouse. However, he could not borrow the 560 million VND (24,400 USD) needed, as the loan limit was only 70 million VND without collateral.
Tran Van Tan, deputy head of the State Bank of Vietnam’s Credit Department, said that lending for hi-tech agriculture involved a lot of risks and lacked agricultural insurance policies.
The investment capital for hi-tech agriculture projects is enormous. In fact, in Lam Dong province, greenhouse investment is worth 1.3 billion VND to 3 billion VND (56,500-130,400 USD) per hectare. However, most of the products do not have stable markets, so investment efficiency remains limited, according to Tan.
Even hi-tech agriculture enterprises face challenges. According to the regulations, properties listed as high technology must be attached to land. However, green houses and net houses have not been granted property ownership rights on agricultural land, and so a limited number apply for mortgages.
The owners of small-scale high-tech farms, such as Hoi, who receive little support from local authorities, are struggling to find markets. Hoi must himself find companies to sell his products. “I signed a contract with Cau Dat Farm Company. Every week, they come to buy my plants, but the price is unstable,” he said.
“My farm is on agricultural land which lies in a forestry area. The path leading to my farm is so muddy that vehicles entering my farm can transport only two tonnes of vegetables and fruits at the most. This reduces production efficiency,” Hoi said, adding that farmers like him hoped the local authorities would help them upgrade the road to facilitate their farming.
Nguyen Van Son, Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said that the province had taken some land accumulation measures to support hi-tech farming.
After land clearance, the State acquires farmers’ land, builds infrastructure on the land and then lends it to enterprises. Another way is that enterprises implement their projects first. The local authorities will then approve the projects and assign land to domestic and foreign enterprises for rent within 20 to 50 years. Enterprises can even negotiate to purchase or hire farmers’ land. The State will support them with land compensation and land clearance.
The provincial authorities consider hi-tech agriculture as the key to develop the local economy and are always creating favourable conditions for this section, along with supportive policies from the Government.
According to the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, private farms and farming households play an important role in the development of local hi-tech agriculture, because these farms account for large production area and primary capital (86.2 percent of area and 64.5 percent of capital).
The province values the role of farmers and hopes to promote production and consumption by helping producers network with enterprises and cooperatives to stabilise markets, the department said.
Da Lat city and neighbouring zones will run a trial “green village” model. The policy will also waive the tax on imported equipment and materials, which Vietnam is unable to manufacture, to build green houses and net houses. Lam Dong province’s authorities are also paying attention to technology advancement, a key aspect.
