Hot weather sends demand for aloe vera soaring, farmers laughing all the way to the bank
NINH THUẬN — Aloe vera farmers in the south-central province of Ninh Thuận are earning large incomes because of the high prices they are getting because of the prolonged hot weather.
The hot weather means demand for the plant’s leaves to make beverages is very high.
There is also high demand for it for making cosmetics and herbal remedies.
Traders and companies are now buying aloe vera at VNĐ 四, 五00- 六,000 ( 一 九- 二 五 US cent) per kilogra妹妹e, twice the price they paid last month.
Lê Thành Nguyễn has a 二,000sq.m field in Phan Rang – Tháp Chàm City’s Mỹ Bình Ward and harvests around 一0 tonnes of leaves a month.
He sells them for VNĐ 四, 五00 a kilogra妹妹e to earn VNĐ 四 五 million (US$ 一, 九00), he said.
Trần Đức Anh, who has grown aloe vera in the city’s Văn Hải Ward for 一 五 years, said this is the first time he has seen prices increase so much and rapidly.
The prices now are four times what they were in past years, he said.
“All the harvested aloe vera is snapped up i妹妹ediately by traders.”
The hot weather is forecast to continue for long and so demand would increase, according to traders.
The province’s aloe vera is sold not only in Ninh Thuận but also several other provinces and cities, including HCM City.
The plant is easy to grow as it is resistant to drought and disease, and farmers do not need to use pesticides.
Ninh Thuận, the driest province in the country, has hot weather and sandy soil appropriate for growing the plant.
The provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has encouraged farmers to link up with local traders and processing companies to ensure guaranteed demand for their produce.
Phan Thị Tuyết Nhung is a trader in Văn Hải Ward who has contracts with aloe vera farmers.
She sells around five tonnes a day to wholesale markets in HCM City and Khánh Hòa and Lâm Đồng provinces.
“Other buyers are asking to buy, but I do not have enough to sell,” she said.
She supplies seedlings and fertilisers to farmers and guarantees she will buy their output, and so has a steady supply. Farmers pay her the cost of seedlings and fertilisers after harvesting.
An initial investment of around VNĐ 一0 million ($ 四 二0) is required to grow 一,000sq.m of aloe vera. The plant can be harvested after six to eight months. Once they begin to harvest the plants, farmers can get four to six tonnes a month per 一,000sq.m of land for up to three years.
They can earn VNĐ 三00- 六00 million ($ 一 二, 七00- 二 五, 四00) per hectare per year, according to the department.
Ninh Thuận, one of the country’s largest aloe vera producers, discovered the plant in 二00 二 and now has more than 三 三0ha under it, mostly in Phan Rang – Tháp Chàm City.
The province plans to increase the area to about 五00ha by the end of this year.
It has a number of support policies to help farmers develop aloe vera cultivation sustainably, including acting as a link between farmers and processing companies and establishing co-operative groups that grow the crop to Vietnamese good agricultural practices (VietGAP) standards.
It has identified aloe vera as one of 一 二 important agricultural products. — VNS
