End of low profit gardens
Me Linh Ecotourism Cooperative, Nam Ban Lam Ha Commune (Lam Dong) is working with the Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Nghe An University to open a connection route, transfer science and technology in production according to food safety standards, and build centers to "gather" agricultural products in each region, each area from the sea to the forest. Then distribute them to supermarkets, wholesale markets, centralized kitchens in schools, hospitals, resorts, restaurants, tourist hotels, industrial parks in the country and multiply the export market share. The goal of this journey is to continuously expand the value chain of high-tech agricultural production and consumption, contributing to the sustainable growth and development of the marine - forest economy in Lam Dong.
Visiting the 2,000 m2 glass lettuce greenhouse in Nam Ban Lam Ha commune, we noted the scale of investment in synchronous infrastructure, technological lines and supporting equipment with a total cost of nearly 2.5 billion VND. At this time in mid-July 2025, every day there are 7 workers in the greenhouse harvesting, pre-processing and "gathering" to pack and transport to domestic supermarket systems to consume about 1,000 glass lettuce plants (weight 0.2 - 0.3 kg/plant).
This is the second batch of glass lettuce harvested (55 days/batch) in the new technology greenhouse in Nam Ban Lam Ha commune since its construction, installation and operation 6 months ago. Owner Trinh Van Viet shared: “On the 2,000 m2 land of old industrial crops, the yield and quality of the crops were very low, our family struggled for a long time until we met experts from the Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Nghe An University, who introduced hydroponic lettuce seeds from Europe. We were guided and gradually transferred the technical process from sowing, caring to harvesting and packaging. Along with that, Me Linh Eco- tourism Cooperative proactively signed a contract with our family, agreeing to "gather" and consume all hydroponic lettuce products harvested every day...".
According to Mr. Viet, with 4 years of experience working for a salary on farms in Lam Dong province combined with updating new technology transferred from the Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Nghe An University, the yield has increased by 30% compared to the conventional hydroponic process. In particular, with product quality meeting good agricultural practice standards, Mr. Viet's hydroponic lettuce in July 2025, Me Linh Ecotourism Cooperative purchased about 8,000 VND/plant (0.2 - 0.3 kg/plant). The profit calculated on the same land area each year can increase more than 3 times compared to the above mentioned inefficient long-term industrial crop cultivation.
According to Mr. Tran Ngoc Toan, Faculty of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Nghe An University, the process of growing hydroponic glass lettuce after more than half a year of converting to building greenhouses and high-tech equipment of Mr. Viet's household has basically met the operational requirements to achieve productivity and quality through each harvest day.
This process has begun to spread positively in the agricultural area of Nam Ban Lam Ha commune, in which the model is typical in Son Farm High-Tech Cooperative. Coming here, we experienced in each large, modern greenhouse space, the system of machinery operating drip irrigation equipment, air conditioning fans, sun-blocking nets, soil temperature regulation, multi-crop, multi-plant and "multi-age" habitats.
Multi-cropping according to the plan of "gathering" to go far away
At Nguyen Van Son's farm, a member of Son Farm High-Tech Cooperative, we took turns "talking" about each type of high-tech short-term crop, in a total area of more than 6,000 m2 of greenhouses converted from long-term industrial crops, which are considered "overdue" for cultivation since 2019. That is 3,000 m2 of broccoli, baby cauliflower, and cabbage rotation; 2,000 m2 of beef tomatoes, baby tomatoes; 1,000 m2 of recirculating hydroponic lettuce. All are produced according to the consumption plan to "gather", transport and supply according to the consumption contract in the national market of Me Linh Eco-tourism Cooperative. Farmer Nguyen Van Son said: “From March 2025 to now, all members of Son Farm High-Tech Cooperative have converted production processes, techniques and varieties according to the contract with Me Linh Eco-tourism Cooperative. As a result, 90-95% of vegetable and fruit output is “gathered” and then quickly distributed to consumers, increasing the value of profits by up to 20% compared to consumption times that depend on intermediaries in the market…”.
90-95% of vegetable and fruit output is "gathered" and quickly distributed to consumers, increasing the profit value by up to 20% compared to consumption times that depend on intermediaries in the market...
Mr. Nguyen Van Son - member of Son Farm High-Tech Cooperative
At the scale of Son Farm High-Tech Cooperative - Director Nguyen Van Son informed that the Cooperative was established at the end of March 2025 with 6 member households growing short-term vegetables on an area of nearly 4.5 hectares of greenhouses and 6 hectares outdoors, together harvesting products and "gathering" them at Me Linh Eco-tourism Cooperative before supplying them to the market.
According to Director Son's calculation, on a unit of 1,000 m2 of greenhouse area for growing hydroponic lettuce, tomatoes, sweet peppers, baby cucumbers according to the value chain from production to direct supply to the market chaired by Me Linh Ecotourism Cooperative, members of the Cooperative can recover all investment capital for greenhouses, equipment lines and internal infrastructure items within 18 - 24 months. Particularly for growing high-quality outdoor vegetables according to this "consolidation" chain of agricultural products, the income of Cooperative members is estimated at around 300 million VND/ha/year...
Lesson 2: When farmers know the profit in advance
Source: https://baolamdong.vn/tap-ket-nong-san-bien-rung-chia-khoa-nang-cao-gia-tri-nong-san-lam-dong-bai-1-chuyen-doi-de-hoi-tu-vuon-minh-384424.html
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