Foreign farmers pour investments in Da Lat
Da Lat, the ‘city of thousands of pine trees’, located 1,500 meters above sea level on Langbian Plateau, has attracted agriculture investors from Japan, Singapore and the Republic of Korea (RoK) who are growing vegetables, flowers and strawberries.
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In a glasshouse where carnations are grown, Takahiro Nunome, or Taka as called by locals, of Japan, guides Vietnamese farmers on how to prune flowers.
In mid-2016, Taka, 35, left Japan and arrived in Da Nhim commune in Lac Duong district, about 30 kilometers from Da Lat City, to grow flowers.
In the morning, he goes to the flower field to show farmers how to grow, take care of and harvest flowers. Despite the comfortable accommodation allocated to him, Taka usually stays in the camps with farmers.
According to Ha Thi Thu Thuy, assistant to Taka and production supervisor, with dedicated guides, 40 local workers have mastered techniques needed for flower production that meets Japanese standards.
Taka brought 70 varieties of carnations and daisies from the Netherlands, Spain, Columbia and Japan to Da Lat and carried out experimental cultivation before he chow the most suitable varieties for large-scale production.
Da Nhim Flower Farm puts out 200,000 carnation and daisy branches every month, 2/3 of which are shipped to Japan.
Taka said Da Lat and Lac Duong have wonderful climate for year-round flower and veggie cultivation. In Japan cultivation costs are four times higher than in Vietnam.
Bringing sea water to mountains to grow vegetables is what Low Kok Chiang, 70, a Singaporean farmer, is doing at an organic vegetable farm at the foot of Voi Mountain, 15 kilometers from Da Lat City.
The man and his wife from HCM City decided to stay in Da Lat and develop a vegetable farm when they fell in love with the land during a trip.
On the 2-hectare farm, they grow many vegetables, including wheatgrass, used to treat diabetes. To grow snowdrops, Low has to water plants with sea water brought from Phan Rang.
The plant, which is good for human health, is very expensive, about VND500,000 per kilogram. However, the supply is always short because of the low yield.
A farmer from the RoK, Son Sang-hyeon, 41, is running a farm in Da Nhim commune where he grows Korean strawberries.
All the equipment at the glasshouse was brought from the RoK. It has a sensor system recording temperature, humidity and an automatic ventilation system. Every day, his farm harvests 30-40 kilograms of strawberries.