All for developing Lam Son sugar trademark

Mr Le Van Tam, President of the Lam Son Sugar Association and the Lam Son Sugar Joint Stock Corporation – the largest sugar producer in Vietnam and one of 500 largest enterprises in the country, is called amicably “Old Farmer” by local people in Thanh Hoa province. The moniker comes from his characters and activities. He actively talks with farmers on field or at their homes as he knows what sugar canes need and what farmers need. We have a friendly talk with Mr Le Van Tam, President of Lam Son Sugar Joint Stock Corporation.

You have been working in sugar industry for about 30 years and you are still very wholehearted with sugar canes. What has motivated you?

I used to be a farmer and I stood up from extreme poverty as most other farmers who are most vulnerable to poverty. How to help farmers escape from poverty was the main motive for me to grow with Lam Son. I feel very happy to see farmers become richer from their daily works.

Lam Son Sugar Joint Stock Corporation is now a top sugar producer in the country and appears on the list of 500 largest companies in Vietnam (VNR500). This recognition has been built up by our efforts.

What are the strategies for your sugar brand?

Vietnam is short of a half million tonnes of sugar at present and the volume will surge to 2 million tonnes by 2020. Thanh Hoa is a large province and the soil is good for the crop to grow. Currently, the province is growing sugar canes on some 33,000 ha. If the area is expanded by another 20,000 ha, Vietnam can produce a half million tonnes of sugar more. We can even offset the shortfall of one million tonnes by 2020. Economically, 100,000 ha of rice in the province turns out 1.6 million tonnes and the export price is US$250 per tonne, revenues are about US$400 million. Meanwhile, with only 50,000 hectares of land, we can produce 500,000 tonnes of sugar, and at a price of US$700 per tonne, we rake in US$350 million. Thanh Hoa must pay attention to food security but it cannot replace Mekong Delta in rice cultivation. Each location should base on its advantages to build up the trademark.

But, the branding of Thanh Hoa Sugar faces difficulties right from the accumulation of land to apply modern science and technology?

This is our long-time concerns. Our sugar cane area initially had 35,000 households but after they exchange lands to make individual plots bigger, the number of households fell to 23,000. But, only 1,000 households have more than 1 ha of field, 196 households have 3-10 ha and 12 households had 10-20 ha. It is very difficult to do something big in a segmented small farming area. For instance, if we use dripping technology that we call nettafim, the productivity and economic value will double but this method is only applicable on 15 hectares plus. Over the past three years, we can apply nettafim technique on 395 ha. Our company has provided financial supports for farmers to exchange land plots to enlarge individual areas but our effort has not brought in expected result. We need a new direction to adopt hi-tech agriculture.

You are planning a new approach where farmers contribute land and your company contributes capitals. Would you mind providing some details of this plan?

In the past 25 year, the company has annually invested VND200 billion in rural areas and farmers. The total figure is VND500 trillion. But, this huge figure can only help farmers escape poverty, not get riches. We set up the company to accumulate land to grow sugar canes and farmers have accumulative assets. But, a long-standing contradiction in agriculture is production relations are unsuitable with production forces. We cannot apply modern technologies to segmented small fields.

A training school is necessary to train workers, technicians and managers for the company. I have heard a lot of slogans for a new face of countryside and farmers but I have not been informed of methods to do it. I think Thanh Hoa must to restructure production on its hilly terrain to make new breakthroughs. This is definite.

We witness a fresh change with a new urban zone taking shape here?

This is a long march. Thanks to sugar cane, we can build Lam Son Cultural and Sporting Centre with a gymnasium, two tennis courts, swimming pools and other facilities, which are expected to put into use soon. Authorities of Tho Xuan district pledged to help us build a country-level football stadium. These infrastructures benefit the district and residents and serves as stepping stones for the future urban zone. To tap rich historical treasures, we plan to build an ecological, historical tourist site. It is five years for us to carry out this project to serve the Thanh Hoa Festival 2015. When the Lam Son – Tho Xuan urban chain is formed and tourism develops, sugarcane will have more conditions to grow up. We must do for ourselves and for this land – VCCI

Tags: Lam Son sugar