The yield of Vietnamese jicama reaches 3–3.5 tons per sào (360 square meters). With good care, it can reach 4–4.5 tons per sào, bringing an income of 10–15 million VND per sào per crop.
In recent years, farmers in Bằng Khánh Commune, Lộc Bình District (Lạng Sơn Province) have converted many low-efficiency rice fields to jicama cultivation. This change has generated high economic returns, helping to reduce poverty and improve livelihoods.
Across the vast fields of Vietnamese yam bean with dark green leaves, farmers are busy pulling up plants and harvesting. Meanwhile, trucks line both sides of the road, ready to transport the produce for sale.
Vietnamese jicama
Ms. Lộc Thị May from Kéo Mật village happily shared: “This year, Vietnamese jicama has had a good harvest and good prices, so everyone is very happy. My family planted two sào and harvested six tons. After harvesting, traders came directly to buy the produce. They then transported it to other provinces and cities for consumption.”
According to Ms. May, jicama is an easy crop to grow and farmers can harvest just four months after planting. Local farmers grow two crops a year. The first starts from February to March for early harvest, and the second from August to September for harvest toward the end of the year. After four months of intensive care, the Vietnam’s jicama crop begins to generate income.
However, when jicama is grown on newly cultivated land, it tends to suffer fewer pests and diseases. As a result, it also produces higher yields. The current average selling price ranges from 5,000 to 6,000 VND per kilogram. Yield per sào is about 3–3.5 tons. With good care, it can reach 4–4.5 tons per sào, generating an income of 10–15 million VND per sào per crop.
Vietnamese jicama factory
Mr. Hoàng Văn Ninh is the Chairman of the People’s Committee of Bằng Khánh Commune. He said: “The total area of Vietnamese jicama across the commune reaches more than 25 hectares. This area is mainly available in villages such as Kéo Mật, Nà Ngần, and Bản Tẳng. Although it is not a main crop, jicama helps increase local incomes. Each year, Bằng Khánh earns hundreds of millions of VND from this crop.”
According to Mr. Ninh, local farmers are currently in the harvest season of Vietnam’s yam bean. In addition to being easy to grow, jicama has many other advantages. These include few pests and diseases, low investment costs, minimal care requirements, and the ability to grow in multiple crops throughout the year.
Therefore, it is one of the cash crops that farmers invest in heavily. Even in areas waiting for irrigation or lacking water, jicama can still grow well.
In the past, only a few households in Kéo Mật village grew jicama on a small scale. However, since 2009, farmers have seen that Vietnamese jicama is easy to cultivate and brings high economic returns.
As a result, they have learned from one another and purchased seedlings to grow it. The cultivation area has expanded steadily, and today nearly the entire commune grows jicama.
Vietnamese jicama materials
With three sào of jicama, and with prices currently high, the family of Mr. Hoàng Văn Văn in Bản Tẳng village is urgently harvesting to sell. He said: “After several months of care, Vietnamese jicama has ‘repaid’ its owner. This year there have been few pests and diseases, and prices are good. In addition, export sales are smooth, so it also make good profit for Vietnamese jicama export companies“.
“My family harvested 10 tons. The investment for four sào was about 4 million VND. After deducting costs, we earned more than 40 million VND. Overall, the profit is several times higher than growing rice,” added he.
Although jicama cultivation remains largely spontaneous, the jicama farming model in Bằng Khánh Commune has generated economic returns many times higher than rice cultivation. It is also one of the effective approaches to crop and seasonal restructuring for farmers in Bằng Khánh Commune, Lộc Bình District.
Vietnamese source: https://nongnghiepmoitruong.vn/trong-cu-dau-lai-cao-d113015.html