Increasing the Economic Value of Tea in Phu Hoi

Along with the excited atmosphere of the International Tea Festival’s preparation in the whole of the province, the local people in Phu Hoi Hamlet no. 2, Son Phu Commune (Dinh Hoa District) are utterly dedicating to the production of the safe tea products with the higher quality in order to participate in the Festival.

Going to Phu Hoi Hamlet no. 2 in these days, we felt like taking part in the enthusiastic production atmosphere on the tea terraced-fields. The safe tea products of Phu Hoi Hamlet no.2 under the standard of VietGap were packed and displayed at some events in the district, contributing practically to the response to the International Tea Festival in Thai Nguyen Province. Ms. Nguyen Thi Nguyet, the hamlet leader, led us around the green tea hills with semicircle-shaped which were going to be harvested. After one rainy week, the tea terraced-fields looked more vital and fresher. She said that there were 42 households in the hamlet which all had land to plant tea with the total area of more than 10 hectares, of which nearly 8 hectares were varieties of tea branch, such as: TRI 777, LDP1, Phuc Van Tien, etc.; and the productivity of the fresh tea buds achieved more than 90 quintals per hectare.

According to the elders, together with the reclamation and hamlet building process of the people in Thai Binh since 1960s, tea trees have covered the uncultivated land area, replacing the miscellaneous forest; and gradually become trees which help the people in Phu Hoi 2 eradicate poverty. However, like other areas in Dinh Hoa District, the tea products’s quality of Phu Hoi 2 is not highly appreciated because the midland field has started to be exhausted and the processing method has been backward. Mr. Do Duc Bien, the cell secretary of the hamlet, said: “After many discussions, we agreed that there must be a specific method which does not focus on the quantity but the improvement of the tea quality and trademark of Phu Hoi 2, beginning by replace and improve the exhausted land. In the annual resolution of the hamlet party cell, it is determined that the tea plant is the strong point and needs to be focused on investing.”

Being one of the pioneers in the tea variety improvement, the family of Ms. Ngo Thi Thom owns more than 2,000 square meters of LDP1 tea. From the difficult family, her family has become a well-to-do one with the spacious property and all comforts. She told: “My family harvested about 150 kilos to 170 kilos of the dried tea buds per crop. The average price of LDP1 tea is about VND 90,000 per kilo that is higher than the price of the midland tea about VND 20,000 to VND 30,000. Tea has become plants not just to eradicate poverty but to enrich”. In the period of 2005-2010, Phu Hoi 2 planted newly and replaced 1 hectare of tea every year. Especially in 2011, the hamlet made the target of planting newly and replacing 2 hectares of tea branch, thence the exhausted midland area was replaced basically. As the pioneer of the tea variety improvement, Phu Hoi 2 has many enterprises cultivating saplings and becomes the major agent supplying the tea branch in over Dinh Hoa District. With only three gardens cultivating saplings of three families of Mr. Tong Sy Tuan, Mr. Tong Sy Vinh and Mr. Dang Ngoc Suat, more than 2,500,000 plants are supplied every year. During more than 10 working years, Mr. Tong Sy Tuan has the biggest tea sapling cultivating garden in Dinh Hoa District with 1,400,000 saplings every year and the income of more than VND 300 million.

People in Phu Hoi Hamlet no. 2 renovated the process of the tea care and processing according to the safe method. As a result, the tea products of Phu Hoi 2 are gradually affirmed their quality and known by many people. The price of dried tea in Phu Hoi Hamlet no.2 is higher than other hamlets’ one from VND 10,000 to VND 15,000. In 2010, Huong Hoi Tea Artel was established with the participation of 19 households. Members of this artel were trained about the caring, producing process of the safe tea products under the VietGap standard. Ms. Nguyen Thi Nguyet, the hamlet and the artel leader, said: “Taking part in the production artel, people’s awareness of the pure and safe tea process is improved. We are taught the way to use the microbial fertilizer, spray insecticides in comply with the process, etc., and the method of picking and processing tea which has many differences from the last method. Last June, it is happy that the safe tea products with Huong Hoi brand were packed and displayed in many places. This is a good opportunity for Phu Hoi hamlet no. 2 to broadcast the tea trademark and develop farther.

Stepping up the tea variety change, investing in production and processing the pure and safe tea have made the economic value of tea plants increase and the dream of getting rich of many people in Phu Hoi Hamlet no.2 come true.