Promoting consuming linkages helps farmers feel secure in production

Stabilizing output

In the early days of its establishment, My Thanh Agricultural Cooperative (My Thanh Commune, Thu Thua District, Long An Province) encountered many difficulties in finding product output, and investment capital was limited. However, thanks to boldly applying scientific and technical advances and new technologies in production, the cooperative's products increasingly meet market requirements.

My Thanh Agricultural Cooperative (Thu Thua District) invests in machinery and equipment to continuously innovate technology and production lines to serve production and business

Director of My Thanh Agricultural Cooperative - Nguyen Quoc Cuong said: "To overcome difficulties, the cooperative innovates business methods, learns about market demand, and has a business plan suitable to current practical conditions. In addition, the cooperative also focuses on investing in purchasing machinery and equipment to continuously innovate technology and production lines to serve production and business. Up to now, the cooperative's products are present in many places inside and outside the province. On average, the cooperative supplies supermarkets and industrial kitchen chains with 1,500 tons of vegetables, tubers, and fruits of all kinds every year, with revenue reaching about 15 billion VND".

To introduce products to consumers, the cooperative promotes digital transformation, participates in introducing products on e-commerce sites, cooperates with intermediaries to continuously spread products far and wide. The cooperative has registered trademarks and traceability, and has its own labels for products.

Mr. Chau Van Xuan - a member of My Thanh Agricultural Cooperative, shared: “Previously, my family cultivated traditionally, so income and prices were unstable. Since joining the cooperative, we have been instructed on techniques, applying high technology in production such as automatic irrigation systems, using organic fertilizers so that products meet VietGAP standards. After harvesting, the cooperative supports the consumption of products. Quality products have higher selling prices, ensuring output as well as profits”.

After 6 years of construction and development, Cay Trom Agricultural Trade Service Cooperative (Hung Dien A commune, Vinh Hung district) has achieved positive results, promoting mechanization in production, applying science and technology in cultivation. The closed rice production process from services, inputs and output linkages, building a sustainable production process.

Cay Trom Agricultural Trade Service Cooperative (Vinh Hung District) invests in machinery and equipment for production to reduce costs

Director of Cay Trom Agricultural Trade Service Cooperative - Bui Van Tuan informed: "From a small, scattered, backward production area, the members unanimously built an electric pumping station, machinery and equipment for production. Up to now, the Cooperative has built a complete, modern, mechanized production process and especially a 100% safe, closed production process for members. Currently, the Cooperative has successfully built a closed production linkage model from input linkage to product consumption. Regarding input, the Cooperative links with companies (An Nong Group, Con Co Vang Group) and members; Cooperative (watering pumping services, land preparation, spraying pesticides, fertilizing and harvesting, etc); affiliated companies (capital, investment in matching seeds, fertilizers, drugs, fuels, etc, materials, etc) to ensure input and a production area of ​​nearly 500 hectares of high-quality rice. Regarding output, the cooperative cooperates with companies such as Olam Agri Vietnam Co., Ltd., Farm Angle Co., etc.

The need to change thinking

According to the Provincial Cooperative Union, there are currently 249 agricultural cooperatives in the province (40 cooperatives have stopped operating), with a total charter capital of more than 282 billion VND and 5,328 members. The cooperatives operate quite diversely, such as providing agricultural services (plowing land, pumping water, harvesting rice, etc); buying and selling agricultural materials and agricultural products; participating in production (safe vegetables, rice seeds, dragon fruit, lemon, taro, raising livestock and poultry). Most cooperatives help members with seeds, crops, agricultural materials, etc, in the form of joint purchase, joint sale, sharing production techniques, linking production, preliminary processing and product consumption.

The province has 209 agricultural cooperatives in operation (Photo: Phuoc Hoa Safe Vegetable Cooperative (Phuoc Van Commune, Can Duoc District))

Vice Chairman of the Provincial Cooperative Union - Tran Quoc Toan said: "In the past time, the Provincial Cooperative Union has proactively worked with the sectors to advise the Provincial Party Committee and the Provincial People's Committee to issue many policies and incentives related to the collective economic sector; support and advise on preferential policies for the collective economic sector and cooperatives in many forms; propagate and mobilize households and cooperative groups to establish new-style cooperatives and cooperative unions, protect the rights and legitimate interests of members, provide services, invest in science and technology, market information, connect supply and demand between cooperatives and cooperatives, cooperatives with enterprises in and outside the province and international organizations in providing input services and consuming products, providing legal support and solutions for collective economic development".

In recent time, the production and consumption linkage model between enterprises, cooperatives and farmers has achieved positive results. However, the model still have many limitations such as the rate of households participating in production linkages is low compared to the general production level. The linkage between farmers, enterprises and distributors is still loose. The reason is that the scale of production linkages according to the value chain is small and not concentrated. The activities of cooperatives and enterprises in the production and consumption chain are still passive, with the mindset of waiting for direct support from the State, and there is no clear strategy or specific direction.

According to Mr. Tran Quoc Toan, to promote the linkage between enterprises, cooperatives and farmers in the production and consumption of agricultural products, in the coming time, the Provincial Cooperative Union will continue to coordinate with localities to organize and promote joint ventures and linkages between enterprises and cooperatives to produce and consume products according to the value chain; connect enterprises and farmers in purchasing, distributing and consuming output products through cooperation contracts between enterprises and new-style cooperatives, aiming to build a sustainable agricultural value chain, overcoming the situation of being forced to lower prices by traders in localities./.

By Trung Kien - Translated by Q. Thien

Source: https://baolongan.vn/day-manh-lien-ket-giup-nong-dan-an-tam-san-xuat-a186602.html