Dak Lak is one of the largest pepper-growing regions in Vietnam. At the moment, people here are entering the new pepper harvest. They are excited because pepper prices have reached a record.
The Dak Lak highlands are in the dry season. This is the time for the main pepper harvest. On the hillsides, pepper plants are green with clusters of ripe peppers. The aroma of pepper spreads through the air.
Farmers begin a day of harvesting pepper by spreading tarps around pepper poles, setting up 5-7 meter high ladders, and getting ready to stand on ladders for many hours.
Ms. Cao Thi Thu (Ea Tiêu commune, Cu Kuin district, Dak Lak province) said that harvesting pepper requires a lot of labor. Each pepper pole is 6-7 meters high, even dozens of meters, so pickers have to stand on the ladder for many hours. This job is very exhausting and dangerous. Finding laborers to harvest pepper is more difficult than for other agricultural products. To attract labor, the garden owners will pay higher wages, ranging from 260,000 to 300,000 VND per day.
Farmers in Dak Lak are harvesting pepper.
Mr. Tran Nhan Hai (Quang Hiep commune, Cu M’gar district, Dak Lak province) said that picking pepper requires diligence. Especially, the pickers are not afraid of heights and can endure the sun and wind because they have to stand on the ladders all day. Although it is hard, the income is stable. That is the reason why Mr. Hai keeps the job.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan (Ea Kao commune, Buon Ma Thuot city) said that her family has over one hectare of pepper intercropped with coffee. This year, although the pepper did not yield much, the price increased sharply (160,000 VND/kg), making her very happy. This is the highest price since 2016.
According to Ms. Lan, 2016 was the golden period for pepper. At that time, the pepper price exceeded 200,000 VND/kg, but later it went down strongly. In 2020, the price dropped below 50,000 VND/kg, causing farmers to struggle. Fortunately, her family had coffee to make up for it, so pepper plants have survived until today. Around her farm, many households have switched to growing other crops.
Pepper is the “black gold” of Vietnam, and Dak Lak is one of the largest pepper-growing regions in the country, with an area of about 32,800 hectares. Cu Kuin District is considered the “kingdom” of pepper in Dak Lak, with about 4,700 hectares of pepper currently in the business phase. The average yield in this area reaches over 3.2 tons/ha, with an annual average production of over 15,000 tons.
Mr. Nguyen Canh Danh, deputy head of the agriculture and environment department of Cu Kuin District , said that in recent years, the high price of pepper has helped people feel secure in reinvesting in production. The authorities also advised farmers not to rush to expand the area but to continue investing in the existing area in an organic and sustainable manner.