Cassava harvest has opened in Cam Lam District...
Cassava harvest has opened in Cam Lam District. This year, cassava goes for good price, three-fold increase compared with last year. However, due to low rainfall, farmers do not have a high yield.
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| Cassava roots are cut and sliced in Cam Lam. |
High price
Farmer Nguyen Dinh Mai, Nghia Dong said, “I have just harvested from 5,000m2 out of 2ha of cassava, collecting 800kg of dry cassava (an average productivity of 8 tons of dried cassava/ha). In spite of low output, farmers make a good profit. It costs VND3,600/kg of dried cassava and VND1,450/kg of fresh cassava, three-fold increase compared with last year (VND550/kg of fresh cassava, VND1,700/kg of dried cassava in 2009). Harvesting used to be the most labor-intensive activity, but in the recent 3 years, cassava root slicers have helped me to reduce workload.” Besides cultivation, he also trades in cassava bought from other farmers.
A cassava farmer named Nguyen Bay in Nghia Dong Village, has just earned VND12 million from fresh cassava root crops, VND1,400/kg, with a productivity of 14-18tons/ha.
Poor yield
Farmer Khanh, Cam Duc Township, said in spite of high price, this crop has a low productivity, 700 - 800kg of dried cassava root/ perch, a decrease of 30%. Due to low rainfall, cassava do not develop well, thus producing small roots. It has a poor yield, not exceeding 25 tons of fresh cassava.
A cassava season often runs for 10-11 months from the third month to the second month of the follwing year of lunar calendar. The harvest time lasts for about 2 months.
Many farmers in Cam Lam grow cassava as it does not require much effort. It can grow on poor soils. However, a favorable weather can bring its output to 10-12 tons of dried cassava/ha or 30 - 36 tons of fresh cassava/ha. New varieties such as KM-94 and KM-95 have helped to improve the productivity over the past years.
N.T
