In durian-producing areas where hiding the "secret" of cultivation is the norm, there is a farmer who hands out technology ungrudgingly to those around him. He is Le Van Sau of Tan Binh ward, Can Tho city (former Phung Hiep district, Hau Giang province) in the Mekong Delta. On his own 5.5-hectare, 1,000-tree orchard he obtained VietGAP and growing-area-code certification, and released his know-how to neighboring farmers for free. With over 20 people he formed a "Billionaire Farmers Club" and lifted the income of the whole hamlet. This origin-building that chose coexistence over technology monopoly is rich in suggestion for Japanese buyers seeking stable sourcing and origin branding. The article was published on June 25, 2026.
1,000 trees, over 100 tonnes a year—Sau's orchard
Sau's orchard plants about 1,000 durian trees on 5.5 hectares and harvests over 100 tonnes a year. He has obtained the VietGAP standard and the growing-area code (in Vietnamese, ma so vung trong) indispensable for export. Annual profit is said to reach 5 billion–6 billion dong (about 29.5 million–35.4 million yen, converting at 10,000 dong ≈ about 59 yen).
What stands out is that Sau did not keep this success to himself. "I always encourage locals to switch to durian and share the technology ungrudgingly. It is so we can all become prosperous together," he says.
Origin-building called the "Billionaire Farmers Club"
The "Billionaire Farmers Club (Cau lac bo Nong dan ty phu)" Sau launched over two years ago has more than 20 farmers of Tan Binh ward taking part. It is a place to bring and share cultivation experience and technology. As a result, Tan Phu hamlet, the club's base, became the highest-income area in the ward.
| Indicator | Figure (yen equivalent) |
|---|---|
| Sau's orchard area | 5.5 hectares |
| Number of trees planted | About 1,000 trees |
| Annual harvest | Over 100 tonnes |
| Sau's annual profit | 5 billion–6 billion dong (about 29.5 million–35.4 million yen) |
| Farmers in the club | Over 20 |
| Annual income of small-scale households | 700 million–800 million dong (about 4.13 million–4.72 million yen) |
| Annual income of large-scale households | Over 1 billion–2 billion dong (about 5.9 million–11.8 million yen) |
Across Can Tho city as a whole, there are three such "Billionaire Farmers Clubs," said to be lifting member farmers' incomes. It is not an individual success tale but origin-building advancing as an area.
Why "sharing" strengthens an origin
Durian is difficult to cultivate, and know-how for managing flowering and fruit set and for disease control greatly affects yield and quality. If one person hoards the technology, that orchard may stand out but the whole origin's reputation does not rise. Conversely, if technology is shared, quality is lifted at the hamlet level, making it easier to obtain and maintain growing-area codes and to ship jointly.
As residue-pesticide and heavy-metal standards tighten for exports to China, aligning management levels across an entire origin is becoming a precondition for continued exports. Sau's "sharing model" is not sentimentality but a rational strategy for an origin to survive in the export era.
The move to raise value through origin story and quality rather than selling raw material as-is is seen in other Mekong origins too (Related Articles). The "Billionaire Farmers Club" can be called its human-network version.
Implications for Japanese buyers and agriculture people
For Japanese import and distribution, an origin whose quality is managed as an "area" rather than by "individuals" directly connects to sourcing stability. Origins that obtain and maintain growing-area codes and VietGAP at the hamlet level stand advantageously in lot uniformity and traceability. An organization like Sau's club is a realistic negotiating counterpart for securing bundled volume and consistent quality.
Demand for frozen durian is expanding, centered on South Korea and the US (Related Articles), and in Japan too there is room for growing commercial-use and processing-use inquiries. In phases where the Chinese market becomes unstable due to strengthened inspection, there arises room to negotiate directing high-quality lots for Japan to such origins with well-ordered management systems.
Origin-building through technology-sharing is also an idea that connects to Japan's origin branding. Sharing the know-how individual farmers hold across a region and lifting quality—the Can Tho case makes that effect visible in the form of income.
Summary
Le Van Sau's "Billionaire Farmers Club" overturned the industry norm of technology monopoly and enriched the whole hamlet through sharing. Origins that align VietGAP and growing-area codes as an area are strong on the quality and traceability requirements of the export era. For Japanese buyers, it is a move to watch both as a candidate partner for stable sourcing and as a model for their own country's origin branding.
The area economy brought by the "sharing model"
The essence of this model lies in the fact that income is lifted at the hamlet level, rather than one devoted farmer standing out alone. Income levels of 700 million–800 million dong a year (about 4.13 million–4.72 million yen) even for small-scale households, and over 1 billion–2 billion dong (about 5.9 million–11.8 million yen) for large-scale ones, reach across the whole hamlet as a result of shared technology. Rather than the superiority of individual orchards, the origin's average rising connects to the buyer's trust that "lots from that origin have few misses."
Hoarding technology gives a short-term edge, but an origin's reputation does not build up. Conversely, sharing makes it easier to align growing-area-code acquisition and maintenance and residue-pesticide management across the hamlet, clearing the precondition for continued exports. Sau's choice is not sentiment but also an origin strategy to survive the export era. It is a case that throws suggestion at the challenges Japanese origins face—aging and the personalization of technology.
Sources
Dan Viet: Can Tho durian farmers and the Billionaire Farmers Club
