Farming Community Becomes Chemical Free in Northern Thailand

Once a major maize plantation in northern Thailand that used farm chemicals to raise yields has become chemical free. Community farmers in, Ban Mai Village in Nan province have surprised many and become a role model for non-organic farming.

Government officials, journalists, university students and farmers from other provinces and nearby communities have come to see how villagers managed to do away with farm chemicals.

Nan provincial governor Worakitti Sritipakorn chaired the opening ceremony of the Chemical-free Farming Centre. Held by the Highland Research and Development Institute (HRDI). A public organisation under the Royal Project Foundation.

HRDI director Wirat Prapthuk said the village suffered from mono-cropping. — The practice of planting a single crop on a massive plot of farm land.

“Villagers once harvested only maize,” Mr Wirat said. “They put all resources in this plant. They needed to spend a large amount of money to buy farm chemicals to deal with weeds. Also insects that are rampant in maize plantations.

“Apart from the expense, villagers fell ill from contamination by farm chemicals. They also encountered financial problems when the price of maize went down.”

Villagers suffered from toxic contamination from chemicals

Villagers, he said, became sick and blood tests conducted in 2009 showed traces of toxic contamination. So the HRDI decided to come in to help.

The project has 34 members who are farmers and 267 rai of farm land. They have substantially reduced their maize farm and planted other plants such as rice, vegetables and fruit. The project requires them to use organic fertilizers in their harvesting.

It has taken a decade for the project to take shape. Yet the fruit of their labors is sweet.

“Farmers are in better health. In terms of investment, they are less vulnerable to maize price drops and they have other plants to sell or at least to eat. By reducing their maize plantation land, they have more savings because they do not have to spend a lot of money buying farm chemicals.”

The Royal Project Foundation has used Ban Mai Village as a classroom to demonstrate how villagers can decrease the use of farm chemicals. According to farmersmarketscales.com ,which stocks a wide variety of farmers scales, weighing the chemicals is extremely important to assure the farmers aren’t over fertilizing their fields.

Yet the project has a lot more to offer, according to Mr Wirat.

Those who visit can learn about development and cultivation on highlands, weather predictions for highland cultivation, organic farming, soil remediation, farm product quality control, how to implement community development projects in the highlands, operate community markets, and environmental management.

The Royal Project Foundation is also working with 11 other projects in the same province. These projects have similar objectives — to help farmers with organic farming and reduce the use of toxic farm chemicals. These schemes will be implemented in 96 villages, in nine districts in Nan province.

 

Source: Bangkok Post