The V.A.C. system in northern Vietnam

The Vietnamese saying Nhat canh tri, cans vien says that the first profitable activity is aquaculture and the second is agriculture, horticulture or gardening. Integrated farming is a traditional approach to family food production in the poor, rural regions of Vietnam. The integration of the home lot, garden, livestock and fish pond is called the VAC system (VAC in Vietnamese is Vuon, ao, chuong which means garden/pond/livestock pen).

The widespread promotion of the VAC system, referred to as the VAC movement, began in the early 1980s after importance of small-scale integration was emphasized by the late President Ho Chi Minh in the late 1960s. The objective of the movement was to increase and stabilize the nutritional standard of the rural poor. Because of adoption of the VAC system, the dietary balance of the rural poor is significantly improved by the addition of dietary protein, particularly in the isolated villages located in the high mountainous regions.

This farming system is a family-managed, with practically all of the labor coming from the household. VAC farms can be found in a variety of agro-ecological conditions, including irrigated lowlands, rain-fed uplands and pert-urban areas.

It is estimated that 85-90% of the rural families maintain a garden and livestock pen, with 30-35% of these families having fish ponds. In many villages, 50-80% of families have the full VAC system. Figures show that 30-60% of family income of most of the village families may come from the system; in many cases, the full family income may be derived from the VAC system.

Seasonal calendar of agriculture/aquaculture activities in the uplands and lowlands.

DESCRIPTION OF THE UPLAND VAC SYSTEM (FOUND IN MOUNTAINOUS REGIONS SUCH AS HOANG LIEN SON, HA TUYEN, BAC THAI, LANG SON AND OTHER PROVINCES)

The house is constructed close to the pond so that the domestic and kitchen wastes are drained into the fishpond. The livestock pens and garden are also situated near the pond. The 1,000 - 1,500 sq m garden includes a variety of vegetables, (i.e., green onion, sweet potato, water cress, etc.) and fruits (i.e., banana, orange, peach, apricot, etc.) and other crops' including sugar cane, tea and cassava. This provides a mix of perennial and annual crops.

A portion of the livestock manure is used for manuring the trees and vegetables. Trees are manured once or twice a year; vegetables manured according to the needs of the crop. Pond silt is removed every 34 years and used as a fertilizer.

Integrated farming system (upland)

Most families keep a variety of animals on the farm, including one or more water buffaloes and cattle, one or more pigs and several ducks and chickens. The large ruminant animals are allowed to graze or are fed farm by-products. The swine and poultry are usually fed with kitchen wastes, as well as other farm products and by-products such as cassava, rice bran, sweet potato, banana trunks and water hyacinth.

The fish pond is usually allocated a more central part of the farm for better management. Pond area ranges from 100 - 1500 sq m, with a pond depth of about 1 m. Ponds are often drained after the final harvest, usually in February. The pond bottom is kept dry for 1 - 3 weeks; after which it is cleaned, limed, manured and then tilled up with water for re-stocking. Domestic washings and kitchen wastes are channeled into the pond daily. Animal manure is also applied twice a month at the rate of 0.05- 0.15 kg/sq m. Three months after stocking, farmers begin to harvest on a weekly basis using small nets and continuously re-stock and harvest the pond.

DESCRIPTION OF THE LOWLAND VAC SYSTEM (HANOI, HAI HUNG, HA NAM NINH, HAI PHONG; AND OTHER PROVINCES)

In the lowland areas of North Vietnam, the integration of the garden, livestock and fish culture is also common. Usually, houses are constructed close to the pond. In sandy regions the houses are often built at some distance from the pond for hygienic reasons.

The garden is usually small, between 400 - 500 sq m. Fruit crops commonly grown include banana, orange, papaya, peach litchi, longan and apple. In many suburban family gardens, ornamental trees and flowers are planted as a main income source. Vegetables grown include green onion, sweet potato, cress, tomato, cabbage and water spinach.´ Both perennial and annual crops are planted to provide year round food to the house and products for the market.

Pond mud is annually removed and used to manure the fruit trees and livestock manure is used to fertilize the vegetables. Pond water is used for irrigating the garden, especially the vegetables.

Integrated farming system (lowland)

Most families keep a variety of animals on the farm, including one or more water buffaloes and cattle, one or more pigs and several ducks and chickens. The large ruminant animals are allowed to graze or fed farm by-products. The livestock pens for pigs, buffaloes and cows are constructed at the corner of the garden close to the pond. The swine and poultry are usually fed kitchen wastes, as well as other farm products and by-products such as cassava, rice bran, sweet potato, banana trunks and water hyacinth.

Most families have ponds of 50 - 400 sq m, with different shapes and an average depth of 1.0-1.2 m. Ponds are drained after the final harvest (usually in January/February). The pond is then kept dry for a few days, limed, manured and re-filled with rain water or irrigation water. (Early rains may start at the end of March.) Domestic washings and kitchen wastes may be channeled into the pond with a small part of the manure coming from the livestock used to manure the pond (according to the farmer's experience). Green vegetable leaves of legumes such as peanuts, green bean leaves, etc., are also used for manuring the ponds.

Summary of the basic features of the integrated system in Northern Vietnam.

Prepared by: LE THANH LUU FARMER-PROVEN

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