Cacao: Promising Crop in the Mekong Delta

At present, Ben Tre province has some 3,500 ha cacao trees grown together with coconut trees and other fruit trees and Tien Giang province also has 1,300 ha of this model. Recently, Phong Dien district of Can Tho city planted cacao trees in orchards. Many farmers pin high hopes on this new variety because merchants promise to buy fruits. Phong Dien district has a natural area of 11,000 ha, including 6,000 ha of gardens and 4,000 ha of rice-fields. Previously, cacao trees used to be planted in Phong Dien but no enterprises insured to buy cacao fruits. Thus, farmers were hesitant to adopt this kind of tree.

 

To encourage farmers to adopt the new crop, the Phong Dien Agriculture and Rural Development Department cooperated with Cargill Vietnam Co. Ltd to organise a talk with farmers on growing cacao trees in orchards. Cargill Vietnam Co. Ltd, an affiliate of US-based Cargill Group, is the purchaser of cacao beans for export processing. Currently, Cargill has five cacao processing factories in the world. The largest facility is located in the Netherlands, with an annual capacity of 225,000 tonnes. In Vietnam, Cargill has a factory in Bien Hoa 2 Industrial Park, which started operations in 2005. The company has two centres, one in Buon Ma Thuot city of Dak Lak province and another in Ben Tre province, to purchase cacao beans in Dong Nai, Ba Ria - Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Tien Giang and Vinh Long provinces. The firm plans to open a new one in Can Tho city. The Ben Tre province-based centre is now collecting around 20 tonnes of cacao seeds a month.

Apart from purchasing centres, Cargill also develops purchasing establishments. For instance, an establishment owned by Mr Nguyen Hoang Phuong in Chau Thanh district, Ben Tre province purchases some 3 tonnes of dried cacao seeds and 50 tonnes of fresh fruits a month. Mr Nguyen Hoang Phuong guarantees to buy all products in the district. He also sells cacao seedlings in instalments under which farmers need only to pay 60 per cent of the seedling value and the remaining 40 per cent can be settled within 30 months.

 

Previously, Phong Dien district also supplied 2,035 cacao seedlings to eight households in Truong Long commune. Farmers also needed to pay 40 per cent. Expectedly, they will initially plant cacao on 10 ha. However, according to many farmers, they mainly worry about the consumption market.

 

Presently, cacao trees are grown in many provinces in Mekong Delta. The productivity is 2 - 3 times higher than other regions in the world. Four-year-old trees can yield 1 - 1.5 tonnes per hectare a year. They can bear 2 tonnes per hectare when they are five years old. Then, growers can earn VND35 million per hectare. Meanwhile, the demand for cacao in the world is increasing sharply, with the current consumption of some 3 million tonnes a year. Cacao is sold at VND19,000 per kilo over the past 25 years. Since early 2008, the price of cacao is VND28,000 - 35,000 per kilo. However, Vietnam mainly exports raw cacao although the quality is premium. The grafted cacao trees have high productivity and resist diseases. Fermented cacao seeds have higher quality than unfermented ones when they are dried.

 

According to the allocation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Can Tho city can develop up to 1,500 ha of cacao by 2020. Previously, cacao were planted in Can Tho but then felled down due to the absence of consumption markets and low selling prices. Additionally, farmers lacked knowledge about cacao cultivation and cacao varieties; thus, their trees were unproductive and susceptible to diseases. On the other hand, cacao is an industrial crop and it must be planted on a large scale to supply processing factories.

 

According to the Can Tho Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, cacao trees are usually suffered rotten fruits and bugs. Therefore, the crop selection is very important. At present, there are two methods to grow cacao: growing cacao trees together with coconut trees or other fruit trees and sole cacao. In fact, the combined cultivation is more effective in Ben Tre and Tien Giang provinces while sole cacao cultivation is ineffective. Mr Ha Anh Dung, Director of Can Tho Agricultural Promotion Centre, said: Cacao growing is more profitable when the tree lives with other fruit trees. Ben Tre Province is very successful in this model. Hence, relevant bodies need to have plans to support farmers.