Vegetable and flower production in the central highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
ISSN 2588-1299
VJAS 2020; 3(4): 771-783
Vietnam Journal
of Agricultural
Sciences
Vegetable and Flower Production in the
Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current
Status and Perspective Strategies
Vu Quynh Hoa1, Ngo Minh Hai2, Nguyen Duc Huy1, Tran Van
Quang1, Ninh Thi Phip1, Bui The Khuynh1, Bui Ngoc Tan1, Vu
Thanh Hai1, Nguyen Duc Khanh1, Nguyen Anh Duc1, Pham
Tuan Anh1, Nguyen Van Loc1 & Tran Duc Vien3
1Faculty of Agronomy, Vietnam National University of Agriculture , Hanoi 131000,
Vietnam
2Faculty of Economics and Rural Development, Vietnam National University of
Agriculture , Hanoi 131000, Vietnam
3Chairman of University Council, Vietnam National University of Agriculture , Hanoi
131000, Vietnam
Abstract
Despite significant contributions of vegetable and flower production
to the improvement of the livelihoods of household producers in the
Central Highlands of Vietnam, several challenges facing the
development of this sector require a general evaluation. This study
aimed at assessing the current situation and economic efficiency of
flowers and vegetables and analyzing the application of production
techniques on the cultivation of these crops. Based on secondary data
sources combined with a primary survey of 144 vegetable farmers
and 74 flower growers in all five provinces (Lam Dong, Dak Lak,
Dak Nong, Kon Tum, and Gia Lai) of the area in 2018, descriptive
statistics and economic values were applied to provide an overview
of the development of vegetable and flower production of the region.
Findings showed that there were large differences in yields and
economic efficiencies of vegetables and flowers among the five
provinces of the Central Highlands. Accordingly, the yields and
economic efficiencies of vegetables and flowers in Lam Dong were
two to five times higher than those in other provinces (Dak Lak, Dak
Nong, Kon Tum, and Gia Lai). In addition, the applications of
technological advances in vegetable and flower production remained
limited. Major challenges for flower and vegetable development
included the lack of irrigation water, weak capabilities of building
flower and vegetable brands, and limitations in market access.
Solutions to improve production technology implications, develop
brands of high-quality products, and raise the ability to access market
for all vegetable and flower stakeholders are highly recommended.
Received: June 1, 2020
Accepted: December 24, 2020
Keywords
Correspondence to
Vegetables, flowers, Central Highlands, crop production, Vietnam
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Vegetable and flower production in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
53% of the total area), plateau (altitude 100-
800m, accounting for 36.5% of the total area),
and alluvial valley/plain (accounting for 10.5%
of the total area) (MPI, 2017). The Central
Highlands (including 5 provinces, namely Kon
Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong, and Lam
Dong) is considered to have great potentials and
advantages in the land, minerals, and natural
resources with diverse flora and fauna systems
(Do et al., 2017; Prime Minister, 2012).
Particularly, the area has fertile soil (mainly
characterized by acrisols and ferralsols) and
tropical monsoon climate (moderate and
subtropical), which are suitable for developing a
big commodity agriculture sector (Minh, 2017;
Decision No. 936 of the Prime Minister, 2012).
As a result, the Central Highlands is one of the
biggest production areas for coffee, pepper,
maize, cashew nut, flowers, and vegetables in
Vietnam (Prime Minister, 2012). Among its
provinces, Lam Dong becomes one of the biggest
areas for vegetable and flower production in the
country (Ngo et al., 2019). This is the
fundamentals for building and developing major
agricultural production in Vietnam (Decision No.
936 of the Prime Minister, 2012).
Introduction
The vegetable and flower sectors have been
increasingly developed in Vietnam for recent
years. Specifically, the harvested area of
vegetables of the country reached 0.84 million ha
in 2017, making vegetables one of the biggest
crops in Vietnam (ranked behind paddy rice and
maize in terms of production areas) (FAOSTAT,
2019). The main areas for vegetable production
are Hanoi city, Ho Chi Minh city, and Lam Dong
province (Ngo et al., 2019). The average yield of
vegetables was around 17 tons ha-1 in 2017
(FAOSTAT, 2019). However, the quantity of
exported vegetables was only 180 thousand tons,
accounting for 1.4% of the total vegetable
production, with an export value of 200 million
USD in 2016 (Ngo et al., 2019). The main
problems in vegetable production and business
are food safety (i.e., overuse of chemical
pesticides) in the domestic market and small
export values (Ngo et al., 2019; Van Hoi et al.,
2009; World Bank, 2017). Meanwhile, the data
about the flower is quite scarce. It was estimated
that there were 22.6 thousand ha of flowers in
Vietnam in 2014, which was mainly
concentrated on Da Lat city (Lam Dong
province), Hanoi and Sapa – Lao Cai province
(the North), and Ho Chi Minh city (the South) of
Vietnam (Ha Anh, 2016; Lamdongdost, 2016).
Of these provinces or cities, flower production in
Da Lat city accounted for 40% of the total area
and 50% of the total cut flower quantity
nationwide. Similar to the vegetable sector,
flowers for the export market only attained a
minor value of 100 million USD in 2013
(Lamdongdost, 2016). Some problems hindering
the development of flowers were mentioned
(without clear evidence) in the newspapers such
as fragmented production land, low-quality seeds
of flowers, negative effects of climate changes,
inadequate amount of investment, limitations in
applying for technological advances in flower
production, and lack of market demand
forecasting (Ha Anh, 2016).
Agriculture industry still plays an important
role in the economic development of the Central
Highlands, accounting for 34.7% of the total
GDP of the whole region by 2020 (Decision No.
936 of Prime Minister, 2012). The
comprehensive transformation of agricultural
structure in the Central Highlands to 2020 is
oriented toward expanding high-value industrial
crops such as vegetables, flowers, and fruits from
low-productivity crops such as rice (Decision
936 of Prime Minister, 2012). Thus, short-term
and most valuable crops such as vegetables and
flowers have played an increasingly important
role in improving the living standards of
households as well as promoting economic
growth of the Central Highlands’ provinces.
For recent years, the Central Highlands has
developed considerably as a result of great
attention from the government through a huge
The Central Highlands has unique
geographical characteristics. The region's
topography is divided into three main sub-
divisions, including hilly (altitude 1000-2000m,
with an area of 2.89 million ha, accounting for
investment in
a
series of state-level
programs/projects (i.e., the Central Highlands
Programs 1, 2, and 3). The annual economic
growth rate reached a high level of 10% per year
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772
Vu Quynh Hoa et al. (2020)
in a long time before the year 2016 although there
was a decline to around 7.4% in 2016 (Quang
Huy, 2017). This contributed to improving the
living standards of the people with a GDP per
capita of around 40 million VND in 2016 and
reducing the poverty rate to 15% (Ly, 2017).
However, many challenges for the economic
development of agriculture were mentioned in
the reports of the Central Highlands Program 3.
The key challenges hindering agriculture
development included severe land degradation,
negative impacts of industrial projects (i.e.,
bauxite mining) on the environment, and adverse
effects of climate change (i.e., global warming)
(Nguyen Khoi, 2015). Although research on
vegetables and flowers has been conducted in the
Central Highlands Program, these previous
studies were only conducted in a typical
province, Lam Dong province (see in Bui Quang
Tuan, 2016), but have not reflected the current
situation in the whole Central Highlands. While
some previous works on drought, forest
diversity, land-use change, or economic changes
have been conducted in the Central Highlands
(Bui Quang Tuan, 2016; CCAFS-SEA, 2016;
Do et al., 2017; Thai, 2018), a general
Methodology
Data collection
Data were collected from the following main
sources. First, data on the production and
vegetable areas were the secondary data from the
Statistical Yearbook of all five provinces (Dak
Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, and Lam
Dong) in the Central Highlands in the period of
2016-2018. Complementary data from socio-
economic reports and agricultural production
reports of Plant Protection Bureaus (Plant
Protection),
provincial
Departments
of
Agriculture and Rural Development of all these
five provinces were used. Previous reports and
research on the situation of agricultural
development in the Central Highlands provinces
were also gathered.
In addition, the primary data were collected
from face-to-face interviews with farmers and in-
depth interviews with managers and technical
staff at the five provinces in 2018. To collect data
from vegetable growers, based on the statistical
yearbook of five provinces, a sample of 40
questionnaires per province was distributed in
Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, and Kon Tum
provinces, while 60 questionnaires were
delivered to vegetable farmers in Lam Dong
province where vegetables are more popular than
in the other provinces. After eliminating
incomplete responses, the final sample sizes of
Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, and Lam
Dong were 22, 20, 30, 22, and 50, respectively.
Meanwhile, flower farmers were only surveyed
in two key provinces, namely Lam Dong (60
samples) and Kon Tum (40 samples), because no
data on flowers (i.e., area or quantity) in the three
remaining provinces were reported in the
statistical yearbooks. The final sample of flower
growers were 26 and 48 in Lam Dong and Kon
Tum, respectively, after removing invalid and
uncompleted responses. In summary, a sample of
144 households growing vegetables in all five
provinces and 74 households growing flowers in
two key provinces (Lam Dong and Kon Tum)
were used for the analysis. These data were
analyzed to identify the economic and
environmental efficiencies of flowers and
vegetables in producer households. More
assessment
of
flower
and
vegetable
development remains absent.
Therefore, our study aimed to provide an
overview of the vegetable and flower
development in all five provinces of the
Central Highlands based on up-to-date data.
The objectives of the study were: (i)
introducing the general situation of vegetable
and flower development in the Central
Highlands; (ii) assessing the economic
efficiency of vegetables and flowers at the
surveyed households in the region; (iii)
analyzing the current situation of applying
scientific and technological advances in the
production of flowers and vegetables; (iv)
summarizing advantages, difficulties, and
challenges for the development of vegetables
and flowers in the area; and (v) proposing
policy recommendations to promote the
development of flower and vegetable industry
in the Central Highlands.
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Vegetable and flower production in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
importantly, the motivations and obstacles for
the development of vegetables and flowers were
also highlighted.
the total output of the Central Highlands. In terms
of vegetable yield, Lam Dong also reached the
highest figure (33 tons per ha in 2018), which
was much higher than those of the remaining
provinces of the region, 2.5 times higher than the
figure of in Gia Lai and 5-6 times higher than the
figure of Dak Lak or Dak Nong. The vegetable
yield in Lam Dong province is also the biggest in
the whole country. Details of the increase in
vegetable area and productivity of Lam Dong
province are presented in Figure 1. Accordingly,
both the area and vegetable yield tended to
increase steadily during the period from 2010 to
2018. Meanwhile, with a small yield of 5-7 tons
per ha, Dak Lak and Dak Nong indicated either
low technical efficiencies or unfavorable land
characteristics for vegetable production.
Data analysis
The statistical analyses such as comparative
and descriptive statistics were used to reflect the
current situation of production, fluctuations in
yields, and values of vegetables and flowers.
Economic efficiency indicators for the crops
were then measured as follows (MARD, 2009):
Value added (VA) = Gross Output (GO) –
Intermediate Costs (IC)
Where GO = Product Quantity x Price
IC consists of costs for materials (i.e.,
seedings, fertilizers, and pesticides), labor costs,
production costs (i.e., land cultivation, irrigation
water, and plant protection), transportation costs,
and interest payments from bank loans.
Regarding the development of safe
vegetables, there was a lack of comprehensive
statistics of all Central Highlands provinces. In
Lam Dong province, the largest vegetable
production area in the Central Highlands, the
proportion of VietGAP vegetables was only
about 8% of the total vegetable quantity (Lam
Dong Plant Protection Department, 2016).
However, the province has also developed
vegetable production based on high technology,
accounting for about 28% of the vegetable area
of the province.
In addition, assessments of the current
applications of technical measures and
challenges were gathered and analyzed through
descriptive and comparative statistics, which
were presented scientifically via tables and
graphs.
Results
Overview of the development of vegetables
and flowers in the Central Highlands
The current status of flowers production
The development of vegetables in general
and safe vegetables in particular
Currently, the official statistics on flowers
were only available in Kon Tum and Lam Dong
provinces, while Gia Lai and Dak Nong
provinces only had data on the area without on
the quantity and yields of flowers. Notably, there
was also no statistical data on flowers in Dak Lak
province. This may be due to the limited area of
flowers grown in these provinces. Lam Dong
province had the largest area of flowers in the
Central Highlands, with over 8,200ha in 2018,
while Kon Tum had only about 180 hectares
(Table 2). The quantity of cut flowers in Lam
Dong province reached nearly 2.8 billion stems,
with a yield of over 330 thousand cut flower
stems per ha. This yield was two times higher
than that of Kon Tum.
The cultivated area of vegetables in five
provinces of the Central Highlands was about
138,000ha in 2018, an increase of 3.7%
compared to that in 2016. In particular, the
largest area belonged to Lam Dong province with
over 63,000ha in 2018, accounting for 45% of the
total cultivated area of the Central Highlands
region. The second rank in terms of area is Dak
Lak province, with 34,000ha in 2018. Regarding
the total vegetable production, the Central
Highlands provinces produced an average
quantity of 2.5 to 2.8 million tons of vegetables
each year. Of the total quantity, vegetable
production in Lam Dong accounted for 75% of
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774
Vu Quynh Hoa et al. (2020)
Table 1. Area, quantity, and yields of vegetables in the Central Highlands during 2016-2018
Area (thousand ha)
Quantity (thousand tons)
2017
Yield (tons ha-1)
Provinces
2016
34.7
11.4
26.5
2.5
2017
36.1
2018
2016
2018
234.6
60.8
2016
6.1
2017
5.8
2018
6.9
Dak Lak
Dak Nong
Gia Lai
34.0
12.4
27.0
2.7
210.2
74.4
243.1
77.6
11.9
6.5
6.5
4.9
27.03
2.63
362.8
28.3
358.7
29.6
369.6
30.9
13.7
11.2
31.8
26.10
13.7
13.4
32.4
26.6
13.3
11.5
33.1
27.3
Kon Tum
Lam Dong
Total
59.0
134.2
61.4
63.2
139.2
1,873.4
2,548.7
1,980.6
2,689
2,091.7
2,786.8
139.1
Source: Provincial Statistics Offices (Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, and Lam Dong) in the Central Highlands (2018).
Tons ha-1
Figure 1. Area and yield of vegetables in Lam Dong province during 2010-2018
Source: Statistical Year Book of Lam Dong (2018)
Table 2. Area, quantity, and yield of cut flowers in the Central Highlands during 2016-2018
Area (ha)
Quantity
Yield
Provinces
(million stems)
(thousand stems ha-1)
2016
-
2017
-
2018
2016
2017
2018
2016
2017
2018
Dak Lak
Dak Nong
Gia Lai
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
68
54
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
157
147
7,908.9
183
150
8,152.3
-
-
-
Kon Tum
Lam Dong
181
8,283
24.1
2,504
18.6
2,726
23.7
2,789
164.1
317.9
123.7
334.3
147.1
336.7
Source: Provincial Statistics Offices (Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon Tum, and Lam Dong) in the Central Highlands (2018).
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Vegetable and flower production in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
Businesses in vegetables and flowers
Economic efficiency of flowers
Most vegetables and flowers were
distributed to Ho Chi Minh city and neighboring
provinces through local distributors and traders.
A small percentage of vegetables and flowers
were shipped to major cities in the North such as
Hanoi and the Central Coast provinces. The
quantity of these products for export was very
small. For example, in Lam Dong province, only
about 1% of such vegetables and 5% of cut
flowers were exported to foreign countries such
as Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, and Korea (Lam
Dong Plant Protection Department, 2016;
Lamdongtv, 2016).
The statistics on the area, the yield, and the
economic efficiency of flowers in Lam Dong and
Kon Tum are presented in Table 4. As
aforementioned, there were very few farmers
growing flowers in the three remaining provinces
of the Central Highlands. Thus, producer survey
in these areas was not carried out. In Lam Dong,
cut flowers were mainly planted in Da Lat city,
Lac Duong, and Duc Trong districts. The types
of flowers were quite varied, with carnations,
roses, hydrangeas, lisianthus, chrysanthemums,
and anthuriums, etc. In Kon Tum province,
flowers were popularly grown in Kon Plong
district
with
gladiolus,
lilies,
and
Economic efficiency of vegetables and flowers
at the surveyed households in 2018
chrysanthemums. In general, flower producers
obtained high economic efficiency, especially in
Lam Dong with over 500 million VND per
household. However, flower production required
a high initial investment of 90 million to 200
million VND, depending on whether the
net/glasshouse systems were covered or not
covered.
Economic efficiency of vegetables
A variety of vegetables was grown by the
farmers in the Central Highlands such as
cabbages, tomatoes, carrots, potatoes, onions,
and lettuce. However, the most diversity of
vegetables were in Lam Dong province, where
the soil and climate were favorable for growing
various types of vegetables. In general, the
vegetable producer households in Lam Dong
province had the largest cultivated area, with an
average of over 7,000m2, followed by Gia Lai
(4,600m2), Dak Lak (3,000m2), and the smallest
was Kon Tum (1,700m2). After covering
expenses, the value-added received by each
household in Lam Dong was 235 million VND,
much higher than that of households in the other
provinces (Table 3).
Applications of technological advances in
production and negative impacts of diseases
on the growth of vegetables and flowers
Applications of technological advances in
vegetable and flower production
One of the important objectives of this study
was to evaluate the applications and
implementation of technical measures in
vegetable and flower production in the surveyed
households. The results I n Table 5 indicate that
Table 3. Economic efficiency of vegetables of the surveyed households in 2008
Indicators
Sample size
Units
Dak Lak
22
Dak Nong
20
Gia Lai
30
Kon Tum
22
Lam Dong
50
households
Average
area/household
m2
3,000
2,800
4,600
1,700
7,090
Quantity
tons
2.5
30
2.2
28
5.8
69
2.0
24
23.1
277
42
Gross output
Intermediate costs
Value added
million VND
million VND
million VND
12.5
27.5
13
19.0
50
7.5
16.5
15.0
235
Note: Because households grew a variety of vegetables with differences in crops, yields, and prices, specific criteria for each type
of vegetables such as yield, selling price, and cost were not presented.
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776
Vu Quynh Hoa et al. (2020)
Table 4. Economic efficiency of flowers of the surveyed households
Provinces
Indicators
Units
Kon Tum
26
Lam Dong
48
Sample size
households
m2
Average area per household
Quantity
2100
2500
thousand stems
30
65
Gross output
million VND
million VND
million VND
360
130
230
715
200
515
Intermediate costs
Value added
Source: Fieldwork (2018)
Table 5. Applications of technical advances in vegetable and flower production
Provinces
Techniques
Dak Lak
Dak Nong
Gia Lai
Kon Tum
Lam Dong
(%, n = 22)
(%, n = 20)
(%, n = 30)
(%, n = 22)
(%, n = 50)
Irrigation
+ By hands
+ Spraying
+ Dripping
Fertilizer application
+ Broadcasting
+ Fertigation
Flowering treatments
+ Yes
33.3
66.7
0.0
100.0
0.0
46.5
53.5
0.0
88.9
11.1
0.0
4.5
77.3
18.2
0.0
100.0
0.0
66.7
33.3
85.7
14.3
93.8
6.2
36.4
63.6
0.0
0.0
-
-
0.0
35.0
65.0
+ No
100.0
100.0
100.0
Breeding
+ Yes
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
28.6
71.4
+ No
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
Preservation after harvest
+ Yes
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
21.0
79.0
+ No
100.0
100.0
100.0
100.0
Note: n = sample size.
the techniques in watering and fertilizing in Lam
Dong were much higher than in the remaining
provinces. Only farmers in Lam Dong used drip
irrigation, which allowed for the optimal usage
of water and fertilizers thanks to the application
close to crop roots. The percentage of farmers,
who used spray/sprinkler irrigation to distribute
water to larger areas easily, was also higher in
Lam Dong than in the other provinces.
Furthermore, the flowering induction in Lam
Dong has been conducted mainly in
supplementary light treatment. Product post-
harvest preservation was mostly carried out using
carton boxes, only few big farms used
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Vegetable and flower production in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
cooling/cold storage.
vegetables and flowers because these crops were
mainly grown outdoors based on natural
conditions. Only few households had the
capability to build net houses or greenhouses for
vegetable/flower production. In addition, serious
drought and lack of irrigation water were also the
main obstacles in vegetable and flower
production in the Central Highlands. Meanwhile,
factors related to plant protection chemicals and
farming practices were not considered as the
main barriers to growing vegetables and flowers.
The survey also showed that households did not
face any difficulties in recognizing plant pests
and diseases because these producers
accumulated a lot of farming experiences for
several years. Furthermore, the use of pesticides
by producer households was mainly influenced
by pesticide dealers, and the quality was
guaranteed.
Negative impacts of pests and diseases on
the growth of vegetables and flowers
Harmful effects of pests and diseases on the
growth of vegetables and flowers are presented
in Table 6. It can be seen that the Central
Highlands’ producers faced leaf worms, stem,
and fruit borers, which were common in all five
provinces. However, the worse situation
occurred in Dak Lak, Dak Nong, and Gia Lai
provinces. While leaf and stem borers were also
popular in Lam Dong, vegetable producers,
however, considered them to be less severe. In
addition, thrips, aphids, spiders, and aphids were
also responsible for negative effects on crops.
Regarding diseases, fungal, downy, and stem rot
were also common in most of the provinces, but
being more serious in Dak Lak and Dak Nong.
In this study, households were directly asked
to indicate which factors played an important role
in vegetable and flower production and
consumption. The results in Figure 2 show that
market factors (including prices and markets for
the product) were ranked as the most important
(57% and 54%). Other factors such as weather,
investment level, and water resources had
considerable effects on the production of
Local government’s supports and assistance
The results showed that most producers only
received technical assistance for flower and
vegetable production (such as safe production)
from the local government agencies and
production training or technical consultation
from the local businesses. In Lam Dong, some
Table 6. Harmful effects of pests and diseases on the growth of vegetables and flowers
Levels of popularity and seriousness of pests/diseases
Types of harmful pests and diseases
Dak Lak
Dak Nong
Gia Lai
Kon Tum
Lam Dong
Harmful pests
+ Leaf worms, stem, and fruit borers
+ Thrips
X3Y3
X3Y3
X3Y3
X2Y1
X3Y3
X2Y2
X3Y2
X3Y1
X1Y1
X2Y3
X1Y2
+ Fruit flies
+ Aphids and spiders
Harmful diseases
X2Y2
X2Y3
X2Y2
+ Leaf spots
X3Y3
X2Y2
+ Root rot
X1Y1
X1Y1
+ Rusts
X1Y1
X2Y1
X1Y1
+ Fungi (downy mildew fungi and leaf fungi)
+ Anthracnose and leaf yellowing
X3Y3
X2Y2
X2Y1
Note: X (popularity level); Y (seriousness level); 1 (low); 2 (medium); and 3 (high).
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778
Vu Quynh Hoa et al. (2020)
Figure 2. The importance of factors affecting vegetable and flower production and business
household producers were supported by the local
government with new production technologies.
However, most producers did not receive any
financial supports, post-harvest technologies, or
market access, and brand development. Even
though Lam Dong was famous and more
developed for flower and vegetable production,
new market access and brand development had
not been paid much attention by the local
government. The solutions for promoting flower
and vegetable exports were inefficient.
new technologies in the production and
preservation of agricultural products.
Difficulties and challenges
The majority of vegetable and flower
producers, except for some large-scale farmers in
Lam Dong, were highly dependent on weather
conditions in crop production because they could
not afford to invest in net houses or greenhouses.
These were big challenges in flower and
vegetable production when environmental
pollution and climate change had negative
impacts on agricultural production. For instance,
ensuring irrigation water was a serious problem
facing many flower and vegetable producers in
the Central Highlands. In addition, produce
damages caused by simple packaging and
traditional shipping by rudimentary vehicles
needed to be paid more attention to.
Advantages
and
difficulties
in
the
development of vegetables and flowers in the
Central Highlands
Advantages and strengths
First, the farmers/producers had a lot of
experience in vegetable and flower production
and pest/disease management or control,
especially in Lam Dong. Some producers began
to use new varieties, improve farming
techniques, and apply advanced technologies in
producing and post-harvesting such crops.
Most producers were unable to apply
advanced technology in flower and vegetable
production. The majority of these households
watered their crops by hands and employed
fertilizer broadcast method in their production.
They were also unable to apply flowering
treatments, except for those in Lam Dong, which
could reduce the yield of flowers. In addition,
most producers could not produce and preserve
seeds for the following crops. Consequently,
most of them had to buy seeds imported from
foreign countries (about 80%). Post-harvest
technology was very limited, which could cause
Second, local authorities played active roles
in training farmers on safe vegetable production
such as pesticide use and raising awareness of
farmers in safe agricultural production.
Third, businesses, especially in Lam Dong,
played an increasingly important role not only in
market and brand development but also in
introducing and supporting households to access
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Vegetable and flower production in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
significant losses in agricultural products.
Consumption of vegetables was mainly in fresh
forms with low added value, while very few
products were processed by modern technology.
(Bui Quang Tuan, 2016; Danse et al., 2007). The
lack of general evaluation limits
a
recommendations policies and solutions for the
development of vegetables and flowers in the
whole Central Highlands. Our findings indicate
that there was a significant difference in the
production area, yields, and economic efficiency
among the five provinces of the Central
Highlands. Vegetables were mainly grown in
Lam Dong, Dak Lak, and Gia Lai provinces, but
the farmers in Lam Dong achieved the highest
yield and economic efficiency. In other words,
vegetables and flowers were the most
economically produced in Lam Dong province,
which is similar to several reports (Bui Quang
Tuan, 2016; Danse et al., 2007). Meanwhile, the
majority of flower areas were in Lam Dong
province, others’ accounted for very minor. This
implies that vegetable and flower producers in
other provinces should pay more attention to
improving the yields and economic values of
these crops.
Despite accumulating rich experiences in
flower and vegetable production as mentioned
above, household producers still faced a growing
number of pests and diseases, especially those in
Dak Lak, Dak Nong, and Gia Lai.
While Dak Lak and Dak Nong had relatively
large areas of vegetable production, the yield was
the lowest in the region. This raised the question
of where the reasons came from. It might be due
to unfavorable weather conditions, unsuitable
soil, or poor farming techniques.
Finally, the biggest challenge faced by
vegetable growers, based on their self-
assessment, was the output market for such
products. Currently, vegetables and flowers were
mainly consumed domestically, in Ho Chi Minh
city and neighboring provinces. The proportion
of vegetables exported was very low. Unstable
prices and oversupply or limited access to
markets remained major barriers for producers
on the way to expand their farm size. Meanwhile,
the solutions for vegetable and flower market and
brand development by local authorities have not
been paid much attention nor adopted
effectively.
Other scholars introduced the overall
development of vegetables in Vietnam
nationwide, but only placed an emphasis on the
Red River Delta (i.e., Hanoi city) (Huong et al.,
2013, Ngo et al., 2019). Besides that, these
existing works did not evaluate the negative
impacts of insects and diseases on the growth of
vegetables and flowers (Bui Quang Tuan, 2016;
Huong et al., 2013; Ngo et al., 2019). In this
study, we identified the popularity and harmful
seriousness of insects and diseases on vegetable
and flower production across five provinces in
the Central Highlands. Therefore, both producers
and technical training provided by local
government agencies are suggested to efficiently
monitor and evaluate these negative effects on
such crops caused by these insects and diseases.
Moreover, little is known about growing
techniques and technological advances that the
farmers and producers applied in vegetable and
flower production in this region. Our results
revealed that these crop producers remained
limited in applying modern water irrigation,
flowering treatments, crop breeding, and post-
harvest preservation technology, except for a few
big producers in Lam Dong. This may explain
why many producers attained low yields and
economic values.
Discussion
This study is one of the first to
comprehensively assess the current situation of
vegetable and flower production in terms of
production land, yields, quantity, economic
efficiencies, negative impacts of pests/diseases
on such plants, and applications of technological
advances at all five provinces of the Central
Highlands of Vietnam. The findings provided
significant policy recommendations and practical
implications for both local governments and
stakeholders in these sectors.
Some prior studies either focused on land
use, water use (i.e., in coffee), or drought crisis
in the Central Highlands (Minh, 2017; CCAFS-
SEA, 2016), while others only provided
information on vegetables and/or flowers in a
typical location such as Da Lat city, Lam Dong
Vietnam Journal of Agricultural Sciences
780
Vu Quynh Hoa et al. (2020)
In addition to assessing the production and
economic efficiency of flower and vegetable
production in the Central Highlands, this work
has found the most difficulties facing the
producers and farmers, which has not been
pointed out by previous work. Specifically,
output market issues (i.e., fluctuations in market
prices and instability in output markets) were the
most barriers and most concerns to the farmers in
the areas. This is consistent with what has been
found in previous study of Ngo et al. (2019)
which was conducted in Hanoi city in the North
of Vietnam. Thus, essential solutions for
improving the ability to access new domestic and
export markets that need to be concentrated on
include building brands of high-value vegetables
and flowers or improving product quality
through modern technological advances. These
solutions were also recommended by prior
work/reports (Decision No. 936 of the Prime
Minister, 2012; JICA, 2017). Apart from market
factors, the negative impact of climate change
(i.e., drought) was also a big challenge for plant
growers, which is in accordance with other
findings reported by Bui Quang Tuan (2016) and
Thai (2018). The upgradation of the irrigation
system for such crops is needed as 70% of
cultivation areas experienced severe drought
(CCAFS-SEA, 2016).
and Dak Nong) where current yields remain
much lower compared to those in Lam Dong
province. The yield improvement can be done
through technical training activities and the
application of new seed varieties and modern
technologies. Second, the supply of irrigation
water for vegetable production is very important,
which requires the participation and support of
the local government as well as cooperations and
benefit-sharing
among
vegetable/flower
producers and businesses. Third, the local
governments should support private stakeholders
in building and developing brands of high-value
flowers and vegetables. Fourth, it is crucial to
expand markets for high-value flower and
vegetable products through trade promotion
activities and providing market information more
widely to producers and businesses. Fifth,
support policies for credit, innovating breeding
technologies, and post-harvest preservation
should be implemented more efficiently. These
policies require close cooperation among all
stakeholders (local government, producers,
businesses, and research institutions) in the
vegetable and flower supply chains in the Central
Highlands.
Nevertheless, this study still has some main
limitations. First, deep analyses of the main types
of flowers and vegetables in each province have
not been addressed, which limits to propose
specific solutions for major crops in the Central
Highlands. Second, surveys of other stakeholders
in the supply chain of flowers and vegetables
such as processors, retailers, and consumers are
missing. Finally, factors affecting economic
efficiency and the application of production
technology based on quantitative methods or
econometric models remain absent. Thus, further
research should be focused on exploring factors
affecting the development of main flower and
vegetable varieties in terms of economic and
technical aspects through surveying all the
supply chain actors.
This study found that vegetable and flower
production played important roles in improving
the likelihood of the Central Highlands’ people,
especially in Lam Dong province as suggested by
previous scholars (Bui Quang Tuan, 2016; Danse
et al., 2007). However, many challenges hinder
the development of this area such as the negative
impacts of climate change, deforestation, and
natural depletion, which is similar to a recent
report by Thai (2018). To solve this problem, it
requires a comprehensive evaluation of the
current situation of agricultural production in
relation to climate change that is rapidly
increasing in the region.
Based on the above findings, we propose
policy recommendations to promote the
development of the flower and vegetable
industry in the Central Highlands region as
follows: First, producers need to improve the
yields of vegetables in the areas (i.e., Dak Lak
Conclusions
Overall, the development of vegetables and
flowers in the Central Highlands’ provinces has
brought many economic benefits to producers,
781
Vegetable and flower production in the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Current status and perspective strategies
Do H. T. T., Grant J. C., Trinh B. N., Zimmer H. C. &
especially in Lam Dong province. However, the
growers in this area have also been facing many
difficulties and challenges in both production and
consumption. Production technology and
Nichols J. D. (2017). Diversity depends on scale in the
forests of the Central Highlands of Vietnam. Journal of
Asia-Pacific Biodiversity. 10(4): 472-488.
FAOSTAT (2019) Database about Vietnam agriculture.
technological advances for vegetable production
remain limited in terms of water and fertilizer
application systems, seed breeding techniques,
and post-harvest preservation. Despite that, the
biggest problems perceived by producers are the
output market and price instability. In addition,
the negative impact of climate change (i.e.,
drought), soil degradation, and the shortage of
water sources for plant cultivation are also big
obstacles for vegetable and flower production in
the region.
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Gia Lai Statistics Office (2018). Gia Lai Statistical
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Acknowledgments
Quang Huy (2017). Central Highlands Steering Committee:
Annual average economic growth of over 10%.
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This study was financially supported by the
Vietnamese government for the National project
Applied Research for Technology Development
(Reference Number: 02/KHCN- DTDL.CN-
18/18). The authors would like to acknowledge
the help of the local leaders, officials, businesses,
and farmers in the five surveyed provinces
(including Dak Lak, Dak Nong, Gia Lai, Kon
Tum, and Lam Dong) in the Central Highlands of
Vietnam.
JICA (2017). Data collection survey for formulating
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