There is a fruit that is selling more expensive than durian, Dak Lak farmers are happy but the drying warehouse owner is still worried about this.

Mr. Le Van Duc's family (Ea Tieu commune, Cu Kuin district) has about 2,000 areca trees from 5 to 7 years old. Mr. Duc said that areca is an easy-to-grow tree, requires little care and low fertilizer costs. In particular, this tree does not take up much land area, so people often intercrop it with perennial industrial crops. The areca harvest time is also divided into many periods, usually lasting 3 to 5 months, bringing growers a good and continuous source of income.

Last year, the price of areca nuts only fluctuated between 15,000 and 20,000 VND/kg. However, this year, the price of areca nuts increased from the beginning of the season (around June) to more than 40,000 VND/kg. Up to now, the price of areca nuts has increased to nearly 80,000 VND/kg (depending on the type).

The price of areca nuts has continuously reached "peaks" which has attracted traders from all over to Mr. Duc's family's areca nut garden to buy, even depositing money in advance, waiting for the harvest day to come and pick. Although the price is increasing sharply, his family is still in no hurry to accept deposits from traders, nor harvest young areca nuts to ensure productivity for the following crops.

“Areca nut prices are rising but there are no signs of cooling down. If areca nut prices remain stable until the end of the season, my family can make a profit of hundreds of millions of dong,” Mr. Duc said excitedly.

Traders buy areca nuts right in people's gardens.

Unable to hide his joy after selling a batch of areca nuts at a good price, Mr. Y Dlen Nie (Ea Tu commune, Buon Ma Thuot city) excitedly said that since the beginning of the season, traders have come to his house to buy 6-7 times, each time picking 2-3 quintals of fresh areca nuts. During the harvesting process, areca growers do not have to spend as much effort harvesting as other types of trees, because traders will come to buy the whole bunch, weigh the whole branch at a reasonable price. On average, each bunch of areca nuts weighs 7-10 kg and with the current price, people can earn millions of dong from each areca tree. In particular, young areca nuts with long, thin fruits are always preferred by traders and paid higher prices than large, round areca nuts.

“This year, the prices of agricultural products such as pepper, coffee, durian, etc. have all increased, making farmers like us extremely excited. Now that it is the areca season, prices have also increased sharply, so people are very hopeful for a bumper crop and more income to cover their living expenses,” said Mr. Y Dlen.

These days, along the national highways, the image of traders hurriedly purchasing areca nuts has become familiar. The heavy bunches of areca nuts are loaded onto motor vehicles, creating a bustling scene. Mr. Tran Thanh Tu (Hoa Thang commune, Buon Ma Thuot city) with more than 10 years of experience in the profession, has to travel dozens of kilometers every day, sneaking into every corner to search for and purchase fresh areca nuts to resell to warehouses and processing facilities.

Areca nut sorting job helps many female workers have extra income.

Mr. Tu said that areca picking is much harder than other jobs and has many potential risks. However, the salary from this job is worth the effort. Currently, fresh areca nuts are "hot" so business and trading have become easier and more favorable than in previous years. "During the areca nut season, I can buy from several dozen kilos, even up to 2-3 quintals of fresh areca nuts every day, earning a profit of several hundred thousand dong to millions of dong from picking areca nuts," Mr. Tu confided.

When areca nuts are in the main harvest season, the areca drying kilns in the province are constantly on fire, operating at full capacity. However, at the areca nut purchasing and processing facility of Ms. Hoang Thi Sao's family (Ea Bhok commune, Cu Kuin district), the buying and selling atmosphere is somewhat quieter than every year.

Ms. Sao said that last year's areca season, her facility purchased about 10 tons of fresh areca nuts every day. However, this year, due to the skyrocketing price of areca nuts, she does not have enough capital to both purchase and dry areca nuts to sell to traders like every year. In addition, the output of this fruit is completely dependent on the Chinese market. If this market "freezes", many areca nut kiln owners will face heavy debt. Therefore, this year's season, Ms. Sao's facility only accepts to dry areca nuts for Chinese traders to earn profit.

Ms. Sao shared that although she did not purchase areca nuts like every year, in order to keep up with the delivery schedule to traders, her facility still maintains jobs for dozens of local workers every day. Each person takes on a different job such as separating fresh areca nuts, sorting, transporting areca nuts to the drying oven... Depending on each job position, the income of workers is also different, averaging from 5 - 10 million VND per month, helping them have more expenses to cover their daily life.

Source: https://danviet.vn/co-thu-qua-dang-ban-dat-hon-sau-rieng-nong-dan-dak-lak-vui-ra-mat-nhung-chu-vua-say-van-lo-dieu-nay-20241012171344337.htm