Farmers in Yen Chau earn high incomes from local crop varieties.

For generations, the renowned mango variety (round mango, also known as egg mango), grown exclusively in Yen Chau (Son La province), has maintained its delicious, sweet, and fragrant quality to this day. Previously, people only planted a few trees for family consumption and shade, but now the Thai ethnic community has also learned to cultivate it commercially. This ancient mango variety is now grown on a large scale.

The family of Mr. Quàng Văn Sưởi, from Mệt Sai village, Sặp Vạt commune, Yên Châu district (Sơn La province), is currently the largest mango grower in the village. When we visited, the family members were busily harvesting mangoes. Some went up the hill to pick fruit and bring it home, others sorted the fruit, and still others packed the goods... it was a very busy time.

Everything went smoothly. The Thai women carefully packed each basket of mangoes and loaded them onto trucks to be transported to Hanoi for delivery to supermarkets. Mr. Suoi moved back and forth around the house like a shuttle. He managed everything very efficiently. He was especially meticulous in the quality control process. Any mangoes that were misshapen or showed signs of insect damage were immediately discarded by the workers.

"Now that we've switched to producing goods from fresh mangoes, we have to be more precise and professional in every step. We don't want any complaints from customers," Mr. Suoi said, unable to hide his joy when talking about this year's mango harvest.

Farmers in Yen Chau district are in the mango harvesting season. Photo: Van Ngoc

According to Mr. Suoi, in the past, his family only planted a few dozen mango trees for personal consumption. During the harvest season, neighbors would pick the mangoes and take them to the district market to sell. Back then, mango harvesting only provided the family with a meager income. But since 2017, after becoming a member of the Xuan Tien Agricultural Cooperative (Sapp Vat commune, Yen Chau district), he has planted 500 round mango trees, covering the hillside behind his house. At that time, he only knew how to plant them, but he was still worried about who to sell the mangoes to because he had planted so many. Many crops had been switched to other crops in this area, but all had faced difficulties in finding buyers.

After five years of careful cultivation, the mango orchard has begun to yield its harvest. A joyous occasion has come to the mango growers, including Mr. Tran's family, as before the mango season, the Japanese organization JICA connected the mango growers with supermarket chains in Hanoi. The entire mango production of the cooperative has been purchased by these companies at a price of 30,000 VND per kilogram.

Never before have mangoes fetched such high prices as this year. Mr. Suoi's family is overjoyed. He estimates that each mango tree yields 70 to 80 kg, and at the current price, each tree brings in 2 million dong. This year, the mango orchard will bring his family billions of dong, not just a small amount.

Many farmers in Yen Chau district have a stable income from the local mango variety. Photo: Van Ngoc

For generations, the Thai people here have lived extremely hard lives. Only the most hardworking and dedicated families could afford to provide for their children's education. Now, thanks to boldly planting native mango trees on a large scale, many families are earning millions or even billions of dong.

They were overjoyed; in their lives as farmers, they never imagined they could earn hundreds of millions of dong from growing mangoes. Meeting the family of Mr. Ha Vien Lam, Deputy Director of Xuan Tien Agricultural Cooperative, one can truly feel the complete joy of these farmers.

Mr. Lam is of the Thai ethnic group, born and raised in Yen Chau, so he has experienced many hardships. In 2017, he boldly mobilized 25 households in the commune to participate in establishing a cooperative. At that time, the Yen Chau District People's Committee encouraged the people to plant the ancient mango variety on a large scale. Dozens of cooperative members diligently invested in seedlings, fertilizers, and care for 30 hectares of mango trees. This year, all members have welcomed their second mango harvest and reaped the sweet rewards. Mr. Lam, being directly involved in the work and selling the mangoes, deeply appreciates what the people have achieved and are continuing to achieve.

"Last year's mango harvest was tough; the authorities from the province to the district, and we had to scramble everywhere to sell the mangoes. At that time, the price was low, so the income wasn't much. This year, thanks to the JICA organization's connections, Sặp Vạt's mangoes are available in many supermarkets in Hanoi. They've bought the entire mango crop at 30,000 VND/kg. This is the first year mango growers have fully enjoyed the sweet mango harvest."

Yen Chau round mangoes have a distinctive and delicious flavor that cannot be found anywhere else. Photo: Van Ngoc

The fact that supermarkets in Hanoi choose to consume the entire mango output of the cooperative is also thanks to the members' persistent care of the trees using organic methods. Each year, the farmers increase the application of organic fertilizers, use biological pesticides, and are gradually eliminating pesticides from their orchards.

According to Mr. Lam, the biggest problem for mango growers here is irrigation water for their trees. The cooperative has also drilled many wells to ensure water supply for the trees. In addition, the cooperative also goes to each household to train and guide them on techniques for growing clean mangoes.

"Thanks to that, the quality of the mangoes is guaranteed. 'Now, whatever we do, we have to think of the consumer first. If our products are clean and delicious, they will buy from us in the long term,' Mr. Lam added."

According to Mr. Lam, the mango trees are now in their second year of harvesting. The yield will gradually increase after each harvest. By the tenth year, it's estimated that each tree will commonly produce several hundred kilograms of fruit. At that point, the prospect of Thai people earning billions of dong from mango cultivation will no longer be a distant dream.

Round mangoes from Yen Chau fetch high prices and are well-received by the market. Photo: Van Ngoc

Yen Chau focuses on sustainable fruit tree development.

Mr. Lu Van Cuong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Yen Chau district, informed: Yen Chau has a large area of ​​fruit trees, over 11,500 hectares, with many characteristic fruits of the region. Of these, over 3,280 hectares are mangoes, with a production of approximately 15,000 tons of fruit per year. The famous round mangoes have a distinctive fragrant, sweet, and rich flavor, and have been granted a Certificate of Registration for Geographical Indication and Brand Identity System by the Intellectual Property Office; the green-skinned "elephant" mangoes are fragrant, delicious, and stay fresh longer.

Yen Chau district is stepping up efforts to promote the Yen Chau mango brand. Photo: Van Ngoc

Along with the local round mango variety, Yen Chau is also one of the districts with a large area of ​​green-skinned elephant mangoes in Son La province, mainly concentrated in the communes of Chieng Hac, Tu Nang, Chieng Pan, Sapp Vat, and Chieng Sang; producing according to VietGAP standards on an area of ​​207.8 hectares; and managing 24 mango growing area codes serving export needs with an area of ​​384.3 hectares, meeting the requirements for markets such as Australia, the UK, and China… Thanks to good care and suitability to the local soil, the green-skinned elephant mangoes are large and uniform, and are highly valued by export businesses. Green-skinned elephant mangoes currently sell for between 3,000 and 10,000 VND/kg.

In Yen Chau district, there are over 3,280 hectares of mango orchards, producing approximately 15,000 tons of fruit per year. Photo: Thuan Viet

Mango trees have been closely associated with the people of Yen Chau for generations. The communes of Chieng Pan, Sapp Vat, and Vieng Lan are the areas with the most mango cultivation. In recent years, the Son La provincial government and the Yen Chau district government have paid great attention to the development of mango cultivation.

Numerous programs to promote and market Yen Chau mangoes have been implemented. Yen Chau mangoes have also completed the process of establishing a geographical indication. The tireless efforts of the government and the people are now bearing fruit. The renowned, delicious Yen Chau mango variety is gaining a foothold in the market and is well-received by consumers.

Van Ngoc - Pure Vietnamese