However, besides some effective operating models, there are still many cooperatives facing difficulties, operating at a standstill, and lacking long-term orientation.
Expected to promote local strengths, production linked to value chains, brand building, and pineapple product development in Cu Dram commune, in 2020, Cu Dram Pineapple Agricultural and Service Cooperative was established with 10 members, with an initial production area of 250 hectares, which has now increased to 500 hectares of pineapple.
In 2022, the Cooperative registered to use the Collective Trademark "Cu Dram - Krong Bong Pineapple" issued by the Department of Intellectual Property ( Ministry of Science and Technology ). Since then, the unit has actively implemented a pineapple production model that meets VietGAP standards.
Not only selling fresh pineapple, the unit also develops many processed products from pineapple such as: pineapple jam, pineapple wine, pineapple cake... At the same time, actively promoting and displaying products inside and outside the district, connecting to find stable output for the products.
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| Cu Dram Pineapple Agricultural and Service Cooperative (Krong Bong district) conducts inspection and measurement of sugar content of fresh pineapple products. |
However, after nearly 5 years of operation, the cooperative has not yet invested in machinery and equipment, built factories, expanded production scale... Members are not connected, still doing their own thing, products mainly depend on the purchasing power of traders, prices are unstable, and output is unstable.
Ms. Tran Thi Len, Director of Cu Dram Pineapple Agricultural and Service Cooperative, said that the biggest difficulty of the unit is that when members join the cooperative, they almost do not understand or grasp the cooperative model... Meanwhile, people join as a movement, so at first the activities were not profitable, some members were discouraged and sought other directions.
Along with that, the management team's capacity is limited, there is no dedicated leader to build plans and orient long-term, sustainable production. Therefore, for about 2 years now, the cooperative has had to temporarily stop processing specialized products, members produce individually, the unit almost exists in name only.
Meanwhile, the Ea Trul Agricultural Service Cooperative is also struggling with the problem of maintaining its operations. The cooperative was established in 2017, with 32 members, of which 70% are ethnic minorities. It operates in the fields of agricultural materials trading, waste collection and irrigation. In the beginning, the unit operated quite effectively, gained the trust of the people, and brought profits to its members.
However, from 2020 to now, the unit's agricultural materials business has encountered difficulties when traders have proactively sought out people, lent them money, agricultural materials... and during the harvest season, traders come to their homes to buy products. Because of this, traders have forced down prices of products, lent them capital at high interest rates, and agricultural input materials are not of guaranteed quality. Along with that, many ethnic minority households have limited awareness, so they are oppressed by traders, making their economic life still difficult.
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| Members of Cu Dram Pineapple Agricultural and Service Cooperative (Krong Bong district) still do their own thing. |
Although always wanting to accompany and support people in sustainable production, Ea Trul Agricultural Service Cooperative had to be helpless due to lack of investment capital, not being able to provide people with capital, agricultural materials, production services before the crop season... "When it was established, the Cooperative also had high expectations of developing into a local model, helping members who are ethnic minorities stabilize their income and improve their lives. But in reality, the Cooperative has to face many difficulties, especially capital sources and market competition. The agricultural materials trading and waste collection groups have all had to stop operating. Currently, only the grassroots irrigation group managing 3 irrigation works in the commune is still operating with the main task of dredging and repairing canals, ensuring water sources for irrigation for crops... For this reason, for many years, the Cooperative has only maintained its activities to "keep its name", Mr. Ngo Van Nam, Chairman of the Board of Directors and Director of Ea Trul Agricultural Service Cooperative shared.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Krong Bong district, the locality currently has 19 cooperatives, mainly agricultural cooperatives, of which 6 cooperatives are temporarily suspended. Many units are operating at a low level, not yet promoting the potential and advantages of the locality. The reasons are due to difficulties in market prices and product output; low charter capital, lack of investment in facilities; small-scale production, no long-term strategy; many cooperatives have typical products but operate individually, without the ability to consume output or increase product value through processing, packaging, and branding. Moreover, the management team has not been properly trained, and is still confused in management; cooperatives lack motivation for development; many cooperatives are established in a formal manner.
In order for cooperatives to be established not as a trend but based on actual needs, localities are re-evaluating the potential of products, focusing on developing large-scale specialized areas, and building value chains. This will stabilize output and increase product value, help people feel secure in working and producing, and contribute to the formation of more sustainable cooperatives.
Source: https://baodaklak.vn/kinh-te/202506/huyen-krong-bong-nhieu-hop-tac-xa-hoat-dong-cam-chung-5f11266/
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