Kirivong (appellation)
More actions
| Kirivong | |
|---|---|
| Bayong Kor, Green Triangle | |
| ActiveRecorded as grown here since 2000 | |
| |
| View from Bayang Kor mountain | |
| Hierarchy | |
| Gene Pool | Southeast Asian Gene Pool |
| Growing Region | Southern Cambodia |
| Growing Area | Takeo |
| Geography | |
| Country | Cambodia |
| Province/State | Takeo Province |
| District | Kirivong District |
| Coordinates | 10.641000, 104.844000 |
| Landscape | |
| Elevation | 50–313 m |
| Area | 66 km² |
| Terrain | Low mountain range, forested slopes |
| Climate | |
| Climate Type | Tropical monsoon |
| Seasons | Wet (May-Nov), Dry (Dec-Apr) |
| Growing history | |
| Dated accessions | 2022–2026 |
| Conservation | |
| Populations | none documented yet |
Kirivong, known in enforcement reports as the Green Triangle,[1] is a landrace cannabis appellation in the Takeo growing area, in Kirivong district, Takeo province, Cambodia, and the primary centre of cannabis cultivation in the country since the early 2000s. The area is defined by the Bayong Kor mountain range, a low forested range along the Vietnamese border spanning four communes: Preah Bat Choan Chum, Prey Ampok, Som and Kiri Chung Koh.[2]
Cannabis cultivation in Kirivong is a multi-generational practice. Takeo provincial police chief Chheang Phannara stated in December 2021 that growing marijuana in Preah Bat Choan Chum commune "is not a new practice and it has been going on for many generations," attributing its persistence to local authorities' "lack of will to implement the law."[3] The NACD identified Kirivong as Cambodia's primary marijuana-producing area in 2022.[4]
Geography
The Bayong Kor range forms a low mountain barrier along the Cambodian-Vietnamese border in the southeastern corner of Takeo province. The terrain consists of forested slopes and ridgelines interspersed with small valleys, rising from the lowland rice paddies at approximately 50m to peaks of around 300m. The district's border with Vietnam's Tay Ninh and Long An provinces makes it a natural corridor for cross-border trade; police reports describe the terrain as "ideal for growing marijuana and smuggling to Vietnam."[2]
Cannabis is cultivated on remote mountain slopes rather than in the lowland agricultural areas. Plots are dispersed across the four communes, typically concealed within forest cover and accessed by foot trails requiring treks of 5 km or more from the nearest roads.[2] Documented cultivation sites include Phnom Bayang (Bayangkor), Toteung Mountain, Da Thlat Mountain, O'bek Thland Mountain and Mount Ondong Thmar Bak, spanning at least seven villages across Preah Bat Choan Chum and Prey Ampok communes.
Cultivation
Growing practices
Modern cultivation in Kirivong is shaped entirely by the need for concealment under active eradication. Plots are dispersed across remote mountain slopes rather than concentrated in fields, concealed through intercropping with cassava, cashew, sesame and forest trees. Growers build sophisticated irrigation infrastructure including wells, ponds, piped water systems and reservoirs to supply the plots, and maintain seasonal forest camps where they "live in the forest" during the growing period. Provincial anti-drug bureau chief Phoeung Sarun noted a three-month cultivation cycle.[5] After each eradication raid, growers replant rapidly at new locations: "When we crack down on marijuana plants in the west, growers secretly plant them in the east because this area is on the Cambodian-Vietnamese border."[5]
Kirivong district police chief Yuk Sarath confirmed in 2017 that "villagers in this commune have grown such plants in their own field for family use, and also for illegal sale to Vietnam and Phnom Penh."[6]
Knowledge export
Kirivong's established cultivation expertise has been documented radiating to other provinces under enforcement pressure. In 2021, a man from Takeo province established a 7,000-plant operation on Bunong indigenous land in Mondulkiri, deceiving local landowners who "saw plants they had never seen before."[7] Similarly, a 2015 operation in Pursat involved plants traced to seed stock from Kandal,[8] and a 2015 case in Kampong Speu revealed a Takeo-based farmer operating on rented land.[9]
Market
Kirivong's cannabis production serves primarily the Vietnamese cross-border market, with secondary domestic distribution to Kampot, Sihanoukville and Phnom Penh. Vietnamese traders travel to the commune to buy directly at the farm gate.[3] Officials consistently report that local growers "do not use locally" and that production is entirely for sale;[3] deputy provincial governor Khan Sokha confirmed that "people in Kirivong district have never used marijuana."[10] A 2022 report noted that the cultivation "is well organized with rich people behind the operations."[11]
Trafficking to the border is conducted by motorbike runners carrying loads of approximately 13 kg per trip.[citation needed]
| Year | Price | Type | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 140,000-160,000 riel (US$35-40)/kg | Farmgate (to Vietnamese traders) | [3] |
| 2026 | US$500-600/kg | Wholesale (Kampot) | [12] |
| 2026 | US$0.1-1/g | Retail (Kampot) | [12] |
Commune police chief In Vuth noted that "most people in the commune have grown marijuana on their plantations in the village because of the high market price it fetches."[3] For the full historical price series including pre-prohibition data, see Cambodia: The Market.
Eradication
Main article: Cannabis eradication in Kirivong
Kirivong has been the primary target of Cambodia's annual eradication campaigns since at least 2016, with operations typically intensifying in the dry season (December-April). Enforcement is constrained by remote terrain, community non-cooperation and the rapid replanting cycle. The documented scale of eradication has declined dramatically from a peak of ~250,000 plants annually (2017) to 3,365 plants in the single documented 2025 operation, though the vast majority of operations go unreported in English-language media.
| Year | Plants destroyed | Dried seized | Key data | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 60,000+ | Kirivong district | [13] | |
| 2017 | ~250,000 (Jan-Nov) | 272 kg (H1) | 275,815 national; largest documented year | [6][14] |
| 2018 | ~94,870+ (documented ops) | 164,925 national; single op of 65,000 plants | [15] | |
| 2019 | ~3,500 (documented ops) | Two documented operations | [16] | |
| 2020 | ~26,000+ (documented ops) | 50+ kg (seizures) | Incl. "Green Triangle" designation | [1][17] |
| 2021 | ~6 tonnes dried; 250 kg fresh | 174 locations; 107 reservoirs | [18] | |
| 2022 | 60,000+ (national) | 14+ tonnes (national) | NACD: Kirivong #1 area | [4] |
| 2025 | 3,365 | Single documented operation | [19] |
For the full documented operations table (25+ individual raids, 2017-2025), see Cannabis eradication in Kirivong.
Accessions
| Accession ID | Name | Collected | Locality |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-002024001 | Kirivong General Population 2024 | Kirivong (appellation) | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0220260001 | Kirivong General Population 2026 | Kirivong (appellation) | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420220001 | Kirivong General Population 2022 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420220002 | Kirivong 'Lime' General Population 2022 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420220003 | Kirivong 'Cambodian Red' General Population 2022 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420220004 | Kirivong 'Mango Passion' General Population 2022 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420230001 | Kirivong General Population 2023 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420230002 | Kirivong 'Lime' General Population 2023 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420230003 | Kirivong 'Cambodian Red' General Population 2023 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420230004 | Kirivong 'Phnom Bayang' General Population 2023 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420230005 | Kirivong 'Ta Ou' General Population 2023 | Secret | |
| ZOM-KHM-TAK-0420230006 | Kirivong 'Pha-aok' General Population 2023 | Secret |
Conservation status
Conservation status: Endangered — Active eradication, multi-generational cultivation under sustained enforcement pressure, no known preservation efforts.
Kirivong's landrace populations face the most acute eradication pressure of any growing area in Cambodia. The annual destruction of tens of thousands of plants, combined with the systematic dismantling of irrigation infrastructure (282 reservoirs destroyed between 2019 and mid-2021 alone[2]), eliminates not just standing crops but the physical cultivation infrastructure that supports them.
Despite this pressure, cultivation has persisted for generations. The multi-generational continuity documented by provincial authorities suggests a resilient seed-saving and agricultural knowledge transmission system, but the scale and frequency of eradication operations represent an ongoing threat to genetic diversity and traditional practices.
Recent news
Gallery
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View from Bayang Kor mountain
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Kirivong cannabis cultivators caught". Khmer Times. 22 February 2020.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Hunt on for Takeo marijuana growers". The Phnom Penh Post. 1 June 2021.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 "Officers told to tackle marijuana cultivation". The Phnom Penh Post. 6 December 2021.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Takeo takes the marijuana cake". Khmer Times. 10 January 2023.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Police destroy five marijuana farms in Takeo province". The Phnom Penh Post. 12 August 2021.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Khouth Sophak Chakrya. "Field of Dreams: Marijuana crop destroyed in Takeo." Phnom Penh Post, 5 July 2017. [1]
- ↑ "Mondulkiri marijuana farm busted". The Phnom Penh Post. 5 April 2021.
- ↑ Khouth Sophak Chakrya. "Thousands of marijuana plants seized, burned by Pursat police." Phnom Penh Post, 6 May 2015. [2]
- ↑ "Man arrested with 171 marijuana trees in Kampong Speu." Phnom Penh Post, 1 August 2015.
- ↑ "Police destroy marijuana plants in four locations in Kiri Vong district." Khmer Times, 3 October 2021. [3]
- ↑ "Marijuana plantations in Takeo destroyed by police." Khmer Times, 23 June 2022. [4]
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Dillon, Eloïse. Field report (forthcoming). Zomia Collective, 2026.
- ↑ "Takeo marijuana plantation goes up in smoke." Khmer Times, 10 February 2017. [5]
- ↑ "Thousands marijuana plants seized in Takeo." Khmer Times, 8 December 2017. [6]
- ↑ "Police continue weed crackdown." Khmer Times, February 2018. [7]
- ↑ "Police hunt suspects in connection with 1,000 Takeo cannabis plants." Phnom Penh Post, 21 February 2019. [8]
- ↑ "Two hectares of marijuana found and destroyed in Takeo." Khmer Times, 5 August 2020. [9]
- ↑ "Takeo police chief vows war on weed." Khmer Times, 27 December 2021. [10]
- ↑ [burn 3,365 marijuana plants in raid on Bayang Kor Mountain]. Landrace.Wiki News, 3 February 2025.