In 1998-1999, local residents in not only Son Thuy but also other communes in Kim Boi district lived in hardship all year round. Their livelihoods and incomes mostly relied on agricultural production, therefore, no one thought they could get rich. They also studied and tried growing many kinds of plants such as watermelon and litchis and raising a lot of animals like pigs and chickens. However, their incomes even were not enough to feed them.

 In 1993, after finishing his military services, Luc returned to his homeland and worked as a farmer. His concern at that time was to find out a working method to stabilise his life. He did many jobs from fish raising, vegetable planting to afforestation, and he also failed many times.

 When visiting a relative in Hung Yen province and seeing that local people had a stable and well-off life thanks to longan planting, he decided to invest in growing Huong Chi longan. He bravely bid 1.3 hectares of uncultivated land to plant Huong Chi longan.

 Bui Van Luc checks Son Thuy longan quality

 He then worked and learned from experience of longan farmers in Hung Yen province as well as books and newspapers to have his own experience in caring the trees, pruning and grafting, fertilizing, and preventing diseases. Therefore, the productivity and yield of his longan trees increased year after year. After one decade, longan is proved to be suitable for local weather and soil and bring the biggest economic efficiency in Son Thuy.

 Luc now owns 2.2 hectares of longan with 450 trees of Huong Chi longan and other longan varieties which have the total yield of 25-40 tonnes a year, producing profits of 500-700 million VND for his family.

 In 2016, the National Office of Intellectual Property under the Ministry of Science and Technology granted a collective label certificate to Son Thuy longan, opening a new opportunity for the product to gain a firm foothold in the market.

 Son Thuy longan, whose seed is small, is juicy and its taste is sweet and different from other varieties in the locality. Together with Hanoi, Phu Tho and Nghe An, the product’s presence is now expanded to Hai Duong and Hai Phong.

 Longan is helping local people change their life. At present, 54 percent of local households are growing longans. The commune has 110 hectares of longans, of which 58 hectares have had fruits for harvest. Its total longan output this year reached 700 tonnes, earning local farmers 14 billion VND, or 250 million VND per hectare. The value can reach 400-500 million VND per hectare if longan trees receive good care.

 Thanks to longan growing, many local households escaped poverty and some others earned more than 100 million VND a year. Many of them now have new-model cars, and can build big houses. Their children can also pursue their learning without worries. Son Thuy currently forms a production region for commercial products that is a dream of many other localities./.

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