Research on the sustainability of safe tea production model in Tan Cuong commune, Thai Nguyen city - 10

After buying this tea product, traders can flavor it themselves and then mix it with other types of tea and sell it at a price 50,000-100,000 VND/kg higher than the original price and use their own labels, such as: X, Tan Cuong Safe Tea. But in fact, whether it is completely from Tan Cuong or mixed with Dai Tu, Vo Nhai tea... no agency has verified that.

Every year, there are projects to support the development of safe tea production, but they mainly target households with tea hills larger than 2000m2 , while tea hills of other households with an area of less than 2000m2 are less concerned about the issue of supporting equipment such as metal containers for tea roasting and rolling machines. Representatives of households with small areas rarely participate directly in training courses, and the tea hills of these households are facing tea hills being damaged by pests and have little opportunity to contact agricultural extension officers. Therefore, these tea hills are at risk of being destroyed and the sand layer under the fertile soil layer taken to sell for 100,000,000 VND/acre.

A special issue that directly affects the quality of tea is that 100% of people interviewed are afraid of fake fertilizer and pesticide products.

Natural conditions

Environmental impact

Land resources

- Fertilizer

- Plant protection chemicals

- Alike

- Tea industry materials

Tea growers

Tea products

Labor (Planting, caring, harvesting, processing)

Water resources Climate resources Ecosystem

Fertilizer and chemical residues

pesticides in water, soil and tea products

Support policy

Mechanism for output

Engineering, technology

- Export

- Domestic consumption

Market

Figure 13: Safe tea production model in Tan Cuong commune, Thai Nguyen city

CONCLUSION, RECOMMENDATION

1. Conclusion

The agricultural ecosystem of the tea area of Tan Cuong commune, Thai Nguyen city plays a very important role in the lives of local people, creating the main income, improving family life, especially when households produce safe tea that will not affect the health of themselves and their descendants.

Although it provides higher and more stable productivity and is safe for human health and the environment, the safe tea production model in the study area is not really sustainable from a systemic perspective due to lack of equity and low autonomy. There is a significant gap in income and access to support programs between families with large tea plantations and families with small tea plantations.

Support programs, training courses on safe tea production and projects to develop the road system are opportunities to promote the inherent strengths of the system in terms of favorable natural conditions, long-standing production experience as well as the famous tea brand at home and abroad. Thereby, overcoming the weaknesses of the system in terms of inequality, unstable employment, lack of labor and capital and overcoming the challenges of unstable consumption markets, counterfeiting of labels and brands as well as the threat of destroying tea hills for sand mining.

2. Recommendations

Capital investment policy: apply preferential loan policies, diversify loan sources for tea development (investment in new planting, technological innovation, trade promotion and brand development). Local budget capital supports money for planting tea with new varieties and clearing old or low-yield tea areas for replacement planting, providing more support for families with small tea hills.

Build a number of closed tea farms from production, processing and consumption to apply agricultural and industrial extension models (equipment for mechanization in production) to form and develop famous tea and brands.

Build a number of closed farm models: production - processing - consumption (applying agricultural and industrial extension models) to build and exploit the full potential of experienced tea growers.

REFERENCES

1. Le Trong Cuc, A. Terry Rambor, 1990 , Northern midland and mountainous agricultural ecosystem

2. Le Trong Cuc (1995). Ecology and human ecology, Center for Natural Resources and Environment Research

3. Vu Cao Dam . Environmental Sociology

4. Nguyen Dinh Hoe, 2005, System approach in environmental research and development,

5. Vietnam Tea Association (2007), Tea World Magazine , issues 2007, 2008

6. Le Van Khoa et al. (1999) Agriculture and environment. Hanoi Education Publishing House

7. Nguyen Ngoc Kinh (1979). Tea plant textbook , Agriculture Publishing House, Hanoi

8. Do Ngoc Quy , 1997, Vietnamese tea trees, Agriculture Publishing House

9. Do Ngoc Quy (2003), Tea plants, production, processing, consumption , Nghe An Publishing House

10. Pham Binh Quyen . Agricultural ecosystem, National University Publishing House.

11. People's Committee of Thai Nguyen city . 2008. Report on the results of the implementation of the science and technology application project "Building a model for safe tea production and processing".

12. People's Committee of Thai Nguyen city 12/2009 . 2011. Summary report on planning of Tan Cuong tea growing area in Thai Nguyen city towards safety in the period 2008-2010 and until 2020.

12. People's Committee of Thai Nguyen city . 2011. Project on developing Tan Cuong specialty tea area in Thai Nguyen city, period 2011 - 2015

13. Institute of Agricultural Planning and Design. 2007. Report on the topic: Completing the database and procedures for protecting "Tan Cuong geographical indication" for Tan Cuong tea, Thai Nguyen province.

14. Barua. DN (1989), Science and Practice in Tea Culture , Calcutta – Jorhat, India, First Published, pp. 81 -82.

15. Conway Gordon R (1985) Agroecosytem analysis, IAR

16.. FAO (1967), A Practical Manual of Soil Microbiology Laboratory Methods , Rome.

17. International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) (March, 1997), Descriptors for Tea (Camellia Sinensis).

18. Do Huong , Reviving the tea industry from the tea tree itself . http://baodientu.chinhphu.vn . Access date: August 17, 2012.

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APPENDIX

Appendix 1: INFORMATION COLLECTION FORM ON SAFE TEA PRODUCTION SITUATION

VILLAGE INTERVIEW FORM ...................................................

Date ........ /........./2012 Voucher No.:

I- BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE HOUSEHOLD

1. Full name of household head: ................................. Ethnicity : .......................

2. How many people are there in the household? .................. people

II- INFORMATION ON HOUSEHOLD ECONOMIC SITUATION

3. In 2011, what type of household was the family classified as by the local government?

Rich Fair Average Poor

4. Household income sources:

Manufacturing industry

Output	Total amount	Note
Agriculture
Rice + crops
Animal husbandry
Tea
Forestry (planting) forest)
Other

Maybe you are interested!

III- INFORMATION ON SAFE TEA PRODUCTION SITUATION

5. Does your family produce safe tea? Yes No If yes:

a) How many years is the family's tea hill?.................................

b) When did safe tea production begin?

................................................................ .............

c) What is the total tea area? Of which, how much is the safe tea growing area?..........................................................................................

d) What kind of tea to grow?......................................................

e) Is it intercropped with any other plants? How is it intercropped? For what purpose?................................................................................................................. f) How much is the yield per month?................................

Name of tea