Why are people not interested in planting large timber forests?

Officers of the Nhu Thanh Forest Protection Department and forest owners inspected a large area of timber forest.

These days, the price of raw acacia in the province is still high, many farming households are excitedly waiting for the day of exploitation. However, many families due to difficult economic conditions have been forced to sell young acacia to have money to cover their living expenses. Talking about the model of planting large timber forests, many farmers frankly said that if they plant for 5-7 years, they can still wait, but if it takes more than 10 years, what will they eat? Currently, each hectare of large timber forest is supported by the State with 15 million VND, but for poor households, especially those in mountainous areas who only rely on the forest and have no other source of income, the planting time and the level of support from the policy are considered not guaranteed.

Ms. Ha Thi B. in Dong Luong commune shared: “My family was also encouraged by forestry officials to switch to growing large timber. But due to difficult circumstances, we had to borrow money from the bank to be able to grow. Now that the price is high, we are forced to harvest early to sell. Waiting a few more years for the harvest cycle means we don’t know what to eat, and the risk is high!” Similarly, Mr. Nguyen Trong Th., a forest owner in Nhu Xuan commune, said: “Planting forests with a 5-7 year cycle is already difficult, just looking forward to the day of harvesting, to have more income. If people extend it for another 4-5 years, it will be difficult to manage capital and maintain daily life”. Mr. Th. suggested: “There must be support from the State with policies and guarantee mechanisms; or businesses must have links, ensuring stable consumption, then people will feel secure to participate”.

In fact, many households with productive forest land are poor or near-poor, so it is very difficult to maintain a long production cycle of large timber forests, while still having to shoulder living expenses and repay debts. In the case of Ms. Vi Thi H.'s family in Van Phu commune, due to pressure on income, she was forced to sell young acacia trees to traders to make ends meet, unable to pursue the large timber planting model. Not only farmers, but businesses also face many difficulties, because the large timber raw material area often fluctuates. Mr. Le Chi Lieu, manager of Nhu Xuan Wood Processing Factory, said: “The factory needs about 50,000 tons of acacia each year to process wood chips for export, but the local raw material area is shrinking. Partly because of unhealthy competition from spontaneous purchasing facilities, partly because many households have a “quick fix” mentality, selling to whoever buys at a high price. This makes it difficult to find a common voice between people and processing enterprises. As a result, the forestry value chain is difficult to sustain, enterprises lack a stable supply source, and people do not have a solid foundation to switch to growing large timber forests."

According to Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Huy, Head of Lang Chanh Forest Protection Department, there are currently about 9,000 hectares of acacia in the area under the management of the department, however, the area of large timber forests from this crop is very small. In 2025, the unit registered more than 320 hectares of large timber forests with the province, mainly tissue-cultured acacia, but the rate of participating households was very low. Similarly, Mr. Lai The Chien, Head of Nhu Thanh Forest Protection Department, said: The development of intensive planting models using tissue-cultured varieties combined with short-term crops has brought positive signals. If considering the income from large timber forests, it reaches an average of 250 - 300 million VND/ha in a 7 - 10 year cycle, 2 - 3 times higher than small timber forests. In addition, large timber forests also contribute to improving the environment, preventing erosion, and improving the quality of life for people in mountainous areas. However, the above figure is still very limited compared to the potential and available space. Developing large timber forests is facing many difficulties, not only in the locality but also in the whole province. Currently, large timber forests are mainly concentrated in the forest area managed by the State.

Statistics show that the area of large timber forests in the province is stable at about 56,000 hectares, concentrated in old mountainous districts such as Nhu Xuan, Nhu Thanh, Thuong Xuan, Lang Chanh, Cam Thuy... The main tree species include Australian acacia, tung, xoan ta, lat hoa, green lim; of which more than 30 thousand hectares of forest have achieved FSC certification, linked to the production chain between forest owners and enterprises. To truly encourage people to participate in planting large timber forests, many experts believe that a more breakthrough mechanism in support policies is needed. In addition to the budget capital, it is necessary to diversify resources from programs, projects and socialization. At the same time, there is a mechanism to bind responsibilities to both forest owners and enterprises, to ensure sustainable linkages in the value chain. The provincial Forest Protection Department is also promoting the construction and expansion of forestry cooperative models, accelerating the granting of FSC certification, and linking processing with export. At the same time, the forestry industry is focusing on developing suitable tree varieties, tissue culture varieties, and forming large, concentrated wood material areas with high competitiveness.

It can be affirmed that only when the interests of forest growers, processing enterprises and the State are in harmony, the large timber forest model will truly become a sustainable direction, both increasing income for people and creating a breakthrough for the Thanh Hoa forestry industry.

Article and photos: Dinh Giang

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/vi-sao-nguoi-dan-chua-man-ma-voi-trong-rung-go-lon-260691.htm