VIETNAM: COFFEE CROP UNDER THREAT FROM SEVERE DROUGHT

Vietnamese/Nat Vietnam's export coffee crop, which it says is the fourth largest in the world, is withering as farmers struggle to save their plants from the worst drought of the century. The country's central highlands, the scene of fierce fighting during the war, is now home to Vietnam's biggest cash crop after rice. But this year the combined force of the El Nino weather phenomenon and local deforestation has caused a severe drought in the area. In the years since the end of the Vietnam war, thousands of acres of forest have been cut down to make way for an endless landscape of coffee farms. Fetching high prices on the world market, Vietnam's coffee beans have in recent years made fortunes for the region's luckier farmers. Some top farm incomes register profits of up to 70-thousand dollars in a good year. But so far this year, with El Nino and local deforestation combining to cause a severe drought, the prospects are bleak. It has not rained since November, despite a few occasional light showers. Hot dry winds are withering the trees and killing the beans. If the drought continues, the trees themselves will begin to die and many small farmers will face disaster. SOUNDBITE: (Vietnamese) "As far as my family goes, if the coffee trees die we'll certainly suffer from hunger." SUPER CAPTION: Hoang Cong Dau, Coffee farmer, Dak Lak Province Streams and rivers have dried up and hundreds of the highland's reservoirs are parched mud holes. A number of farmers have died trying to deepen wells that are running dry as the water table recedes. Others attempt to catch water by scooping out water holes in the mud of dried reservoirs. Those lucky enough to have access to water are paying high prices for pumps and fuel so they can irrigate their trees to keep them alive. Those without access to water can do nothing but watch as their plants die. SOUNDBITE: (Vietnamese) "We keep praying to God, praying to Buddha, and if it still doesn't rain, what can we do?" SUPER CAPTION: Hoang Cong Dau, Coffee farmer, Dak Lak Province Agricultural experts at the Agro-Forestry Institute in nearby Ban Ma Thuot estimate that coffee bean losses now stand at 30 to 40 per cent of this year's crop. Bankers who have loaned money to coffee growers for farm supplies fear they will not be repaid. Meanwhile, traders are seeing a general worldwide increase in the price of robusta coffee beans. SOUNDBITE: (Vietnamese) "I think there are many reasons for the increase in world robusta coffee prices, and one of them is the drought in Vietnam. A second reason is drought in Indonesia. Also, growers in countries like Uganda and Ivory Coast are holding their coffee off the market." SUPER CAPTION: Nguyen Lan Chi, Deputy Director, Agricultural Bank, Buon Ma Thout So far, Vietnam's estimated coffee crop losses stand at about 200 (m) million dollars. But the figure could go far higher if the drought continues. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/6ad86a949532e5465d3fc6cb7fb31108 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork