Members of Kien Cuong Cooperative, Phieng Khoai Commune, Yen Chau District harvest Tai Nung pears.

Phieng Khoai is a commune with the advantage of cool climate and fertile soil, suitable for pear trees to grow. From 1,000 Tai Nung pear trees successfully planted in Con Huot 1 village, up to now, the people in the commune have expanded and developed to over 70 hectares.

As the first household in Phieng Khoai commune to plant pear trees, Ms. Dinh Thi May, Con Huot 1 village, shared: In 2014, after visiting the pear growing model in Lao Cai, I decided to plant 1,000 Tai Nung pear trees. By mid-2018, the pear garden had its first harvest, every tree was full of fruit, big, round, juicy, reaching a yield of over 700 kg of fruit, selling price 40,000 VND/kg, earning nearly 30 million VND. Up to now, the family has expanded to 6 hectares, harvesting more than 30 tons of fruit each year, selling price 40,000-60,000 VND/kg depending on the type of fruit, earning about 600 million VND.

Realizing the high economic efficiency and good consumption market, since 2021, Ms. Dinh Thi May has cooperated with households in the area to expand the pear acreage and established Kien Cuong Cooperative. Currently, the Cooperative has 8 members, jointly planting nearly 70 hectares of pears according to VietGAP process. This year, the expected output is over 100 tons of fruit, with a total income of nearly 4 billion VND.

Members of Kien Cuong Cooperative, Phieng Khoai commune harvest Tai Nung pears.

Mr. Nguyen Trung Kien, a member of Kien Cuong Cooperative, shared: By joining the Cooperative, his family was instructed to install an energy-saving irrigation system, use organic fertilizers, biological products, care for and bag the fruit. Thanks to that, his family's pear products have beautiful appearance, rich sweetness and crunchiness; as soon as they are harvested, traders come to the garden to buy them. With 2 hectares of pears, the family is expected to harvest about 17 tons of fruit this year.

In Yen Son commune, previously, some households planted pear trees, but let the trees grow naturally, so although they bore a lot of fruit, the fruit was small, and the selling price was only 7,000-10,000 VND/kg. When pear trees were widely planted, the commune promoted and mobilized people to apply proper care and fruit wrapping measures, and now the fruit is large, beautiful, and sells for a higher price.

Mr. Nguyen Van Thai's family, Kim Son 1 village, Yen Son commune has 0.5 hectares of pear trees being harvested. Mr. Thai shared: Since 2018, the family has grafted, applied canopy creation and branching measures to help the trees grow well. Thanks to good implementation of technical measures, pest prevention, especially fruit wrapping, the pears are no longer sunburned or borer-eaten, and the yield has reached 6 tons. Since the beginning of the season, many traders have come to the garden to buy at 25,000-40,000 VND/kg. After deducting expenses, this year's pear crop has earned nearly 100 million VND.

Introduced to the highland and border communes of Yen Chau district not long ago, the area is not large, but in recent years pear trees are gradually asserting their position, opening up more economic development directions for farmers. Currently, the whole district has more than 130 hectares of pears, of which nearly 100 hectares are harvested, with an average yield of 10 tons of fruit/ha, bringing stable income to many families. Thanks to the guaranteed quality, Yen Chau pear products are easily consumed and are favored by consumers in and outside the province.

Yen Chau pear has a beautiful appearance due to the fruit being wrapped.

Mr. Le Huy Phong, Vice Chairman of Yen Chau District People's Committee, said: Identifying pears as potential crops, the district is focusing on building specialized production areas, focusing on applying high technology, supporting varieties, and finding consumption markets. The district directs specialized agencies and mobilizes people to expand pear growing areas in places with suitable conditions; apply safe production methods, prune, wrap fruit, use sturdy trellises to support branches to help trees grow healthily, convenient for care, harvesting...

With initial economic efficiency, Tai Nung pear products in Yen Chau district are being developed and proposed for recognition as meeting OCOP standards, contributing to poverty reduction and improving people's lives.

Article and photos: Thanh Huyen