Developing circular agriculture

Dong Nai province has identified circular agriculture as its development direction to promote a green agricultural sector and reduce emissions for the future. Localities across the province are encouraging the wider adoption of circular agricultural models.

Farmers implement a model of raising goats and cultivating crops in Xuan Loc commune. Photo: Binh Nguyen

This model combines the production of crops and livestock in a closed-loop process where livestock waste is converted into crop fertiliser, and agricultural byproducts from the orchards are used as animal feed. This solution helps farmers boost their revenue while supporting sustainable growth by lowering investment costs and reducing environmental pollution.

Using orchards to raise livestock

The country's largest cashew cultivation area is located in the northern part of Dong Nai province. To increase income from the same area of land, farmers use their cashew orchards to raise chickens and ducks. Free-range chickens and ducks kept beneath the cashew canopy thrive and are less susceptible to illness. Free-range orchard chickens provide firm, lean, and flavourful meat while lowering feed costs by foraging on insects, pests, and weeds growing beneath the cashew trees.

Raising chickens and ducks in orchards also improves crop growth because farmers can use the manure from their livestock to lower fertiliser costs. In the orchard, hens that consume weeds also help farmers in lowering the amount of labor required for weeding. This initiative is a circular agriculture model linked to safe and sustainable production that is being replicated by many households in the province. Farmers can increase the value of the same land area by using existing land for animals.

Currently, the province has a variety of circular agricultural models, including the garden-pond-livestock shed model, integrated livestock-crop farming models, which are being replicated with various animals such as poultry, crossbred wild boars, goats, and cattle, among others. Many localities are encouraging the expansion of these models by providing technical training to farmers and supporting OCOP (One Commune One Product) certification for agricultural products. This undertaking helps to establish brand recognition, connect to markets, and guarantee sustainable outlets.

With 7 hectares of land intercropped with cashew, coffee, and pepper, Hoang Quoc Hai’s family in Nghia Trung commune has dug extra ponds for water storage and fish farming, and raises chickens in the cashew orchard. Furthermore, since the beginning of the year, his family has constructed enclosures beneath the orchard canopy to rear a few crossbred wild boars. According to Hoang Quoc Hai, the family uses leftover food and available vegetation to raise both chickens and crossbred wild boar in the orchard, resulting in nearly zero feed expenses. The local chickens and crossbred wild boars raised in this manner grow well and are not prone to disease. Because of their higher meat quality and food safety, crossbred wild boars and free-range chickens are widely favored by the market and fetch high prices.

With their dynamism and creativity, farmers in the province have developed many circular agriculture models combining animal and crop production, such as pepper cultivation with goat farming, and grass cultivation for commercial cow farming.

Nguyen Van Thinh's family, who owns 3 hectares of land in Phu Hoa commune, is a prosperous local farmer with a model of growing fruit trees combined with raising hundreds of goats. Thinh said that currently, goat farmers are making a lot of money since there is a high demand for live goats and they may fetch up to 200,000 VND per kilogram. Meanwhile, farmers keep prices down by using readily accessible fruits, vegetables, and leaves from their crops as feed, such as bananas and jackfruit. Manure from the livestock is used to fertilise the orchards. Due to the present increase in feed and fertiliser prices, farmers are more interested in this efficient production model.

Making specialties that the market prefers

According to Tran Van Tan, a representative of Vinh Phuc Joint Stock Company in Dong Tam commune, Qua Dieu Vang (Golden Cashew Apple) Ecotourism Area, invested in by the company, has become an attractive destination offering a range of activities, including outings, stream bathing and camping. The farm showcases a variety of products and specialities made from cashews. Among them, free-range chickens raised naturally in the cashew orchard are a well-known local delicacy. This feature is also a culinary strength that many tourist sites and tourism farms are tapping to create a distinctive culinary feature for visitors travelling to the northern part of Dong Nai province.

Cam My commune is well-known for its regional specialities of capon and free-range chicken. There are really two ways to raise them, despite the fact that both are free-range models. In large-scale cashew or cajeput orchards, some farms construct centralised shelters for their chickens. Others raise free-range chickens as well, but they are raised in spacious garden spaces where they may move around more freely and at a lower density. This method, commonly referred to as "forest chicken" farming, yields products that sell at much higher prices than the caged model.

Mach Chi Hung, a farmer raising free-range chickens in Cam My commune, said it takes at least five to six months for "forest chickens" raised freely in large orchards to be ready for market. Meanwhile, in some places, they are given very little supplemental feed, extending the raising period to as long as a full year. The chickens are not overly large when harvested, but their meat is firm, fragrant and sweet, making them a speciality favoured by consumers. In addition to regular chickens, the farm also raises free-range capons, a well-known local speciality with a long-standing reputation. This initiative is a highly profitable model that has become a traditional local occupation to which many farmers remain devoted.

Long Khanh poultry wholesale facility in Xuan Lap ward has established a linked supply chain for free-range chicken farming, with large-scale production of specialities such as Tre chickens, capons, black-bone chickens, and Noi chickens, among others. A distinctive feature of this facility is that the chickens are raised on feed mixed daily with a variety of herbs.

Phan Dang Chanh, owner of Long Khanh poultry wholesale facility, said the facility has invested in spacious farms located in cashew and cajeput orchards, raising selected native chicken breeds favoured by the market for their high meat quality. In the animals’ feed, the facility adds a variety of herbs, such as andrographis paniculata, achyranthes bidentata, and lilac, which help improve absorption and metabolism while supporting the development of a natural and safe immune system. Consumers highly favour chicken products from this model for their firm texture, rich flavour, and health benefits.

By Binh Nguyen – Translated by Minh Hong, Minho