Over the past 2 years, the Tuy Loan organic vegetable growing area in Da Nang’s Hoa Vang District has welcomed a total of around 6,000 pupils across the city to learn how to grow vegetables.

Local school pupils getting hands on farming experience.

Farmers from the Tuy Loan Organic Vegetables Consumption and Production Service Cooperative have worked as professional tour guides of the pupils who are show keen interest in getting hands on farming experience.

During their visits to the Tuy Loan growing area, the children are introduced to different types of vegetables and fruits, and ways to keep their plants healthy. They also become actively involved in growing their own organic vegetables, weeding and catching caterpillars.

Mr Tran Luong, a farmer from Tuy Loan Village in Hoa Phong Commune, said that the Tuy Loan organic vegetable growing area becomes busier and more boisterous with a large number of child visitors who always laugh, chat with each other, and eagerly learn how to grow vegetables and catch caterpillars.

“Admission fee to the growing area is only 5,000 VND per child. Despite being a small amount, the money collected from admission tickets can help local elderly farmers increase their incomes. In addition, these farmers can earn a little money from selling vegetables and drinks to visitors”, Mr Luong added.

Farmer Tran Cong Khue from Tuy Loan Tay 1 Village underlined the significance of such tours to the Tuy Loan growing area in advertising this type of community-based eco-tourism to visitors from both home and abroad, as well as increasing the consumption of organic vegetables and fruits. Moreover, this will help to partially compensate for crop losses during stormy season to local farmers.

In attempting to promote the development of ecotourism in association with agriculture, the Tuy Loan Organic Vegetables Consumption and Production Service Cooperative has taken part in domestic fairs, and implemented cooperative programmes on supply-demand links in agricultural production and consumption activities.  

The focus has been on building product quality management system, and developing trade names with QR codes.

Furthermore, the Cooperative has applied many scientific advances in its production activities, including the integrated pest management (IPM) programme, biological products, and growing vegetables in net houses and under plastic mulches.

Thanks to this, most of the made-in-Tuy Loan agricultural products have won the strong trust of local consumers.

Mr Bui Dung, Director of the Cooperative, noted that a newly-launched tour to his Cooperative, the Tuy Loan rice paper traditional village, and the traditional Tuy Loan Communal House has received high appreciation from schools and travel agencies across the city.

He revealed “Next year, my Cooperative is expected to host around 8,000 school pupils with a pilot admission fee of 10,000 VND per one. As a result, it is likely to earn nearly 80 million VND in revenue.”

He added that the development of the community-based eco-tourism in the Tuy Loan vegetable growing area has helped to create stable jobs for 50 local residents, to lift 7 families out of poverty, and to assist 15 poor families.

Mr Dung also asked for help from relevant local agencies to appeal for more businesses to invest into his Cooperative, and issue more preferential policies for his unit, as well as to develop more tours to the Tuy Loan rice paper traditional village, and the traditional Tuy Loan Communal House, combined with the Nui Than Tai Hot Spring Park and river tours. The intention is to promote the development of this type of ecotourism.