Steady prices and innovative farming methods have enormously increased the incomes of pineapple farmers in Tiền Giang Province’s Tân Phước District this year. VNA/VNS Photo Minh Trí

TIỀN GIANG – Pineapple farmers in Tiền Giang Province’s Tân Phước District have been earning high incomes thanks to innovative farming methods and steady prices.

First-grade pineapples are fetching the highest ever price of VNĐ11,000 (US$0.44) per kilogramme at the farm gate, while second- and third-grade ones sell at VNĐ8,000-9,000 (US$0.32-0.36).

A hectare thus fetches farmers profits of around VNĐ100 million (US$4,026), twice as much as they got last year.

Trần Văn Cường of the district's Hưng Thạnh Commune said he recently sold around 400 tonnes from his 20-hectare farm for VNĐ4 billion (US$161,250), making a 50 per cent profit.

Nguyễn Văn Diện, owner of a five-hectare pineapple farm in Mỹ Phước Town, said if prices remain steady he would make a profit of VNĐ500 million (US$20,140).

The chairman of the municipal People’s Committee, Trần Hoàng Phong, said pineapple plants are highly adaptive to their topography.

Authorities have prioritised introducing high-quality varieties to increase output and quality, he said.

This year alone the district has held training sessions to instruct over 3,200 farmers in how to apply intensive techniques, select quality seeds and renovate and rejuvenate farms.

Farmers have also been taught how to control their pineapple crops to ensure year-round supply, which helps keep prices steady and encourages large-scale production.

Diện said thanks to the techniques recommended by authorities, his farm has been yielding a very high 25 tonnes per hectare in recent years.

Phong said households in the area have started making products from pineapple, including candies, caramel sauce and drinks, providing thousands of jobs for locals and adding value to the fruit.

Tân Phước District has around 15,400 hectares of pineapple farming areas, with an annual output of 300,000 tonnes, the highest of any locality along the Tiền River.

It has set up specialised pineapple farming areas in several communes such as Hưng Thạnh, Mỹ Phước, Thạnh Mỹ, Thạnh Tân, and Tân Hòa Đông. – VNS