Tea production takes root in Phongsaly
Tea production takes root in Phongsaly
Phongsaly has become a major tea production base a decade after the provincial authorities began promoting investment in the crop.
According to a report from the Phongsaly Planning and Investment Department, the total area under tea cultivation in the province reached about 2,000 hectares last year. The government and the province have been promoting investment in tea as an alternative cash crop.
Most of the tea is grown in Phongsaly district on an area of 1,362 hectares, in Bouneua district on 382 hectares, Samphan and Bountay districts have 220 hectares of tea plantations, and Yord-Ou district has 90 hectares under cultivation.
Phongsaly authorities began encouraging the cultivation of tea in 1999 to implement the government's policy on sustainable job creation and income generation for farmers, with the goal of putting a stop to slash and burn farming.
Benefiting from a favourable climate for the crop, the department's report shows that Phongsaly produced 200 tonnes of tea last year. Provincial authorities hope that tea production will continue to increase when farmers start to harvest new plantations.
At present, there are six tea processing plants in the province. The plants buy tea from local farmers and process it prior to export, mainly to China, which is the world's largest tea consumer.
The presence of the factories is creating confidence among Phongsaly tea growers about finding buyers for the crop.
Phongsaly Planning and Investment Department Director, Mr Thongsy Saosouly, said in an interview with the Socio-Economic newspaper last week that tea growers can earn more compared to slash and burn farmers.
He said one hectare of bushes produced 1.8 tonnes of tea a year, generating about three million kip, while farming one hectare using the slash and burn method yielded 1.4 tonnes of rice, bringing in just two million kip.
Another advantage of tea is that farmers do not need to shift their area of cultivation every few years, as is the practice in slash and burn cultivation. This saves farmers both time and money, and the establishment of permanent cultivation areas is also beneficial for forest conservation and environmental protection.
According to Mr Thongsy, 80 percent of the tea plantations belong to the farmers themselves, and growers have been able to earn enough to pay off bank loans.
The value of tea sold to China last year reached 600 million kip and is expected to increase in the next few years as farmers start harvesting newly established plantations.
Mr Thongsy said Phongsaly farmers also grow bananas, sugarcane, sweetcorn, pumpkin, watermelon and tomatoes both for export and domestic consumption.
vientiane times
