Tran Van Quang, a farmer in the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang,has increased his profit from rice farming by at least 18 percent sincehe began to apply a new farming model developed locally.
Some 88farmers in Vi Thanh commune, Vi Thuy district, had adopted the "3 down-3up" model to increase productivity, quality, and economic effectivenessand reduce the use of fertilisers and pesticides, he said.
Themodel, developed by the province's Agriculture and Fisheries ExtensionCentre, had enabled farmers like him to reduce seed usage by 30-40kg perhectare and nitrogenous fertilisers by 50-70kg and save 30 percent onpesticides compared to traditional farming methods, he said.
Onthe other hand, productivity had reached "an average of 6.1 tonnes perhectare compared with 5.8 tonnes in nearby fields that did not adopt inthe model," he added.
In Thanh Dong A Commune, KienGiang province, many rice farmers have adopted a technique called"alternate wetting and drying", or AWD, and benefited.
Do Ngoc Kim, one of them, said that the new farming method had helpedhis family reduce fertiliser and pesticide use while increasing riceyields by 10 percent and profits significantly.
Athis cooperative, where members had applied the new farming method on270ha a year ago, the figure had increased to 500ha now, he said.
Phan Huy Thong, Director of the National Agriculture Extension Centre,said with its more than 1.8 million hectares under rice, the deltacontributed more than half of the country's rice output and 92 percentof exports.
But farmers' incomes were very low due to high costsand unstable prices, he told a forum titled "Improving economicefficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in rice production inthe Mekong Delta" in Hau Giang on May 5.
The overuseof chemical fertilisers and burning straw after harvest followingtraditional farming methods caused greenhouse gas emissions, he said.
In 2000, CO2 emissions in Vietnam had been over 150million tonnes of which the agricultural sector accounted for 65.09million tonnes, with emissions from rice farming accounting for wellover half.
To reduce the emissions and improveeconomic efficiency in rice production, many new and advanced farmingmodels have been adopted in the country, especially the delta.
They include the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), "3 down-3 up",AWD, and the "1 must-5 decrease" (Must use certified seeds, reduce sowedseeds, crop protection chemicals, nitrogenous fertilisers, water use,and post-harvest losses).
Huynh Quang Tin of theMekong Delta Research Development Institute said after four years ofpiloting the AWD model in five places in the delta, productivity hadincreased by 10 percent and profits by 17 percent compared totraditional methods.
Furthermore, efficient irrigation methods helped effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions, he said.
Hoang Van Hong of the National Agriculture Extension Centre said lastyear the centre had implemented the "3 down-3 up" and SRI models in 13places in the delta.
This models helped farmers notonly save seeds, agricultural inputs, and irrigation costs, but alsomake optimal profits, improve soil quality and reduce green house gasemissions, he added.
Thong said despite theirbenefits, the new farming models were expanding very slowly sincefarmers were not provided with sufficient information, and this shouldbe improved.
The agricultural sector would considerexpanding the low-carbon farming model to produce high-quality rice tomeet consumer demands and make agriculture sustainable, he said.
Local authorities and farmers should consider their land conditions to adopt a suitable new farming method, he added.
Organised by the centre and the Hau Giang Department ofAgriculture and Rural Development, the forum attracted more than 400delegates, including 250 farmers from the delta.-VNA
Some 88farmers in Vi Thanh commune, Vi Thuy district, had adopted the "3 down-3up" model to increase productivity, quality, and economic effectivenessand reduce the use of fertilisers and pesticides, he said.
Themodel, developed by the province's Agriculture and Fisheries ExtensionCentre, had enabled farmers like him to reduce seed usage by 30-40kg perhectare and nitrogenous fertilisers by 50-70kg and save 30 percent onpesticides compared to traditional farming methods, he said.
Onthe other hand, productivity had reached "an average of 6.1 tonnes perhectare compared with 5.8 tonnes in nearby fields that did not adopt inthe model," he added.
In Thanh Dong A Commune, KienGiang province, many rice farmers have adopted a technique called"alternate wetting and drying", or AWD, and benefited.
Do Ngoc Kim, one of them, said that the new farming method had helpedhis family reduce fertiliser and pesticide use while increasing riceyields by 10 percent and profits significantly.
Athis cooperative, where members had applied the new farming method on270ha a year ago, the figure had increased to 500ha now, he said.
Phan Huy Thong, Director of the National Agriculture Extension Centre,said with its more than 1.8 million hectares under rice, the deltacontributed more than half of the country's rice output and 92 percentof exports.
But farmers' incomes were very low due to high costsand unstable prices, he told a forum titled "Improving economicefficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in rice production inthe Mekong Delta" in Hau Giang on May 5.
The overuseof chemical fertilisers and burning straw after harvest followingtraditional farming methods caused greenhouse gas emissions, he said.
In 2000, CO2 emissions in Vietnam had been over 150million tonnes of which the agricultural sector accounted for 65.09million tonnes, with emissions from rice farming accounting for wellover half.
To reduce the emissions and improveeconomic efficiency in rice production, many new and advanced farmingmodels have been adopted in the country, especially the delta.
They include the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), "3 down-3 up",AWD, and the "1 must-5 decrease" (Must use certified seeds, reduce sowedseeds, crop protection chemicals, nitrogenous fertilisers, water use,and post-harvest losses).
Huynh Quang Tin of theMekong Delta Research Development Institute said after four years ofpiloting the AWD model in five places in the delta, productivity hadincreased by 10 percent and profits by 17 percent compared totraditional methods.
Furthermore, efficient irrigation methods helped effectively reduce greenhouse gas emissions, he said.
Hoang Van Hong of the National Agriculture Extension Centre said lastyear the centre had implemented the "3 down-3 up" and SRI models in 13places in the delta.
This models helped farmers notonly save seeds, agricultural inputs, and irrigation costs, but alsomake optimal profits, improve soil quality and reduce green house gasemissions, he added.
Thong said despite theirbenefits, the new farming models were expanding very slowly sincefarmers were not provided with sufficient information, and this shouldbe improved.
The agricultural sector would considerexpanding the low-carbon farming model to produce high-quality rice tomeet consumer demands and make agriculture sustainable, he said.
Local authorities and farmers should consider their land conditions to adopt a suitable new farming method, he added.
Organised by the centre and the Hau Giang Department ofAgriculture and Rural Development, the forum attracted more than 400delegates, including 250 farmers from the delta.-VNA
