Phutawen Farm: The new hub of sustainable agro-tourism in Lao PDR

Posing with sunflowers, picking organic vegetables, and cycling tour are some highlights at Phutawen Farm in Lao PDR.

Situated in Ban Hai Village in Pak-ngum District, a 90-minute drive from the Vientiane Capital, Phutawen or the Hill of Sunflower, aims to be a model to promote sustainable food production and agro-tourism across Lao PDR.

“We would like to create a model farm that benefits local community and Lao’s agricultural sector,” said Ms Dalounny Douangpaseuth, Vice President of DPS Group, founder of Phutawen.

“Due to our [construction] business, we have chances to travel to different parts of the country and seen a lot of empty land which the owners have no clue what to do to generate an income from the land.

“Also, while consumers in Lao increase more concern that food they eat should be safe and have good quality, but the country is flooded in with imported food from neighboring countries like Thailand, Vietnam, and China which might contains high chemical residue, we have seen opportunity.”

DPS Group started its farm business in 2012. The first two years were spent on research, feasibility study, and analysis, deriving the present Phutawen Farm, which combines sustainable agriculture, business, and tourism together.

In 2016, DPS Group’s Phutawen Farm Project entered into cooperation with the GIZ-ASEAN project Standards in the Southeast Asian Food Trade (SAFT). The integrated Public-Private Partnership (iPPP) contract was signed by DPS Group and GIZ on 30 September 2016.

Under the collaboration with GIZ, DPS will verifiably apply Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) standards for the fruits and vegetables production farm, and the Lao Organic standard for the rice and field crops farm. Regional market linkages as well as farmer and consumer awareness will also be strengthened in the process.

“We have seen many supports to agricultural sector in Lao PDR coming from international donors. However, the beneficiaries [farmers] were not able to continue after the project faded out,” said the Vice President of DPS Group.

“With Phutawen Farm Project, we aim to promote sustainable agriculture that is safe and has good quality and environmental friendly. We hope to share the knowledge we have to interested people and can contribute to improvement of farmers’ livelihood. Also, we provide opportunity to students as well as interested people to have an internship and real practices at our farm.”

Agriculture is a key sector for Lao PDR. Around 75 per cent of population is engaged in Agriculture. However, the sector in general is still considered underdeveloped and income generation is relatively low.

“Currently, agricultural and food products that comply with certain food standards are rarely available or limited. Through food standards, it can ensure that food we consume is safe. Therefore, we would like to start from our farm first to produce quality products that comply with national and regional food standards and to be the showcase that other farmers and companies can learn.

“In general, local consumers are not aware of the importance of food standards and that we need to educate them and raise their awareness,” Ms. Douangpaseuth said.

With the support from GIZ, different experts have been invited to the farm. One expert from Kasetsart University, Thailand, who specializes on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), conducted a training on GAP standard for farm staffs in November 2016. Recommendations on how to make improvements to comply with GAP were also provided by her.

The farm has also been supported by two other experts with experience working with the Royal Project Thailand on the two main topics; plant production and pre-and-post-harvest handling. Both on-the-job trainings and in class trainings were conducted at the farm to train farm staffs as well as university students. They learned about plant production, plant production planning in greenhouses, plant propagation, proper chemical usage, integrated pest management, pre-and post-harvest management, how to reduce postharvest losses, quality production and quality management.

Phutawen Farm opens to public on weekends. For a weekday field visit, it needs to be booked in advance. Activities include farm tours, cycling, and camping. Visitors could enjoy a combination of agriculture and nature as watching blooming of sunflowers and cosmos fields, as well as picking and buying fresh vegetables, for example, tomatoes, leafy salad vegetable, and cucumber.

We thank all the different organizations such as ADB, GIZ, Department of Tourism Promotion, District Agricultural Office, Agricultural Office of Vientiane Capital, Borikamxay Provincial Office, regional and international experts, among many others, for their continuous support and a shared vision for this farm.

Southeast Asian Food Trade is a partner project of ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems.

By Weerinpat Janewatanakul, Southeast Asian Food Trade (SAFT)

24/01/201710/07/2017

Life of contract farmer in Cambodia: Growing organic, glowing income

Since Ms. Ing Sarun grows organic vegetables for Khmer Organic Cooperative, she smiles more often.

Ms. Sarun, 58, grows rice and vegetables on her family’s land of 0.92 hectare in Kampong Nung Village in Kampot Province, Cambodia. She cultivates rice and grows vegetables such as cucumber, bitter gourd, eggplant, pumpkin, and long bean for a living. She has six members in her family including her husband and four children, two boys and two girls.

The Khmer Organic Cooperative (KOC) buys organic vegetables from farmer groups in Cambodia and supply the fresh produces to its sister company, Eco-Agri Co. Ltd (EAC) in Phnom Penh. EAC is a joint initiative of ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems to provide green agricultural input suppliers such as bio-pesticides and bio-fertilizers to farmers and chemical free agricultural products to consumers in Cambodia.

Having been a contract farmer for three months for the KOC, Ms. Sarun has opportunities to attend different organic production trainings such as technical cultivation, compost making and pest and farm management. In complying with organic standard, she knows that she has to use organic fertilizer, compost, and natural fertilizer and insecticide. Ms. Sarun also participates in meetings with her farmer group and representatives of KOC to discuss about the production plan and fixing price of vegetables as well as sharing constraint in production to inquire possible supports from KOC regarding pest, seed and necessary techniques.

At KOC, Ms. Sarun enjoys her home grown vegetable such as cucumber at over a double price compared to general market. She can sell her cucumber at 0.75 US dollar per kilogramme while at a local market she will receive 0.3 US dollar per kg. From KOC Ms. Sarun will get payment for her produces about two to three times per month.

“I am very happy with the price and also technical supports from Khmer Organic Cooperative which assists me in improving my knowledge and vegetable growing techniques,” says Ms. Sarun. “Also, I learn now that growing organic vegetable is not only benefiting me but also consumer and environment.”

Being a farmer for more than half of her life, Ms. Sarun is proud to share her tips on when to best grow cucumber in Cambodia.

There are two seasons in Cambodia: rainy season (from May-October) and dry season (from November-April). From November till January the weather is cool which makes it a good season for growing vegetable while from February-April it is very dry and difficult to grow vegetable.

However, in the rainy season since the soil temperature is always cold and wet which is favorable for plant pathogen to grow and spread, the plant is infested, especially rotted root. Also, when the soil holds a large amount of water, it will cause water stress for plant causing downy mildew on leave and productivities decrease.

Still, cucumber grows better in the rainy season and it gives about 15 per cent higher yield. In the land of 180 square meter, Ms. Sarun spends about 53 US dollar to grow cucumber in the rainy season while in the dry season she spends 12 US dollar more for the total input’s cost in a two-month cycle of cucumber.

Ms. Sarun is an exemplary farmer and has a lot of experiences through her collaborations with NGO and government agencies. She shares that during the rainy season farmer should prepare higher bed and use plastic mulch to control weed and soil compaction, and invest in the plastic raining protection from pest and heavy rain.

She also says that cucumber cultivation in the dry season is harder due to water deficiency so the productivity is limited. Besides, the weather is too hot and the vegetable grows slowly while in the rainy season the vegetable grows faster and more productive.

By Saody So and Rojana Manowalailao, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems

04/10/201604/08/2017

From mango orchards to consumers: Value chain analysis makes sure we all get our juicy bits

Vietnamese participants learned how they were linked in a value chain of mango to understand their roles and relations in developing mango production in Vietnam.

Mongo farmers, collectors, processors, cooperative members and government representatives together learn to analyse the value chain of mango in Vietnam.

Twenty actors in the value chain of mango participating in a one-day workshop “Value Chain Analysis of Mango” in Dong Thap Province included farmers, collectors, processors, cooperative members and also some government representatives.

At the workshop, the ‘Link Methodology’, based on the GIZ value links approach, was applied with the aim of getting a participatory understanding of the value chain, the business model that the different actors follow, and the degree of inclusiveness of the small-scale farmers within the value chain. To be inclusive, all actors in the value chain must be equally treated.

The participants were introduced to ‘Mapping the Value Chain’, a technique for the value chain analysis to allow participants to discuss together all the activities taking place from the mango orchard to the final consumer. From this activity, the participants were able to visualize the macro context of the mango market, understand the structure of the value chain, and identify where in the chain they involved in and interlinked. Through an open dialogue the participants expressed their concerns as followings:

“We don’t know what the customers need and we do not know what to do or change.”

“There are many persons buying mango and everyone is requesting different product characteristics. If we follow only one, we run the risk of not being able to sell all the products and then not being able to sell the remaining to somebody else.”

Through mapping of the value chain, the participants discuss all the activities taking place from the mango orchard to the final consumer.

During the workshop, the participants formed four groups according to the type of stakeholder they belonged to: farmers, collectors, farmers’ members of a cooperative, and management board personnel of the cooperatives. The groups created a detailed description of all the links, activities and actors involved in their businesses allowing specifying where to focus intervention efforts that would leverage other links in the value chain.

At the end, the participants filled scorecards with statements that measure the level of inclusiveness among the actors’ relationship. This exercise helped farmers to understand their current situation and identify possibilities of improving their negotiation power with reference to other actors such as collectors. The activity helped them to realize that all actors were working on their own and had no coordination to strengthen their businesses.

Here were some reflections from the farmers:

“One problem is that we do not have contacts with anybody else but with collectors.”

“The only thing we discuss with the collectors is the prices, nothing else.”

“We do not believe in cooperatives.”

“We do not understand why the purchasing price of the cooperative is the same as the collector.”

And, the statement from one collector who participated in the workshop was following:

“I must frequently call the farmers and pay some money in advance to ensure that they will sell to me and not to another collector.”

The workshop results provided an understanding of the mango value chain which in turn would allow tailoring future interventions for a stronger integration and improvement of the relations between the different actors.

The workshop took place in Tinh Thoi Commune, Cao Lanh City on 2 June 2016.

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By ASEAN Sustainable Agrofood Systems Vietnam Team

11/07/201610/07/2017

A study in Cambodia finds organic contract farming raises income of smallholders by as much as four times

A recent study compiled by ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) found that organic contract farmers in Cambodia generated almost four times more from farm activities than conventional smallholders – an economically highly substantial finding. For the most part, these results are attributable to the CEDAC (The Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture) agricultural programme, which through a bundle of hands-on training on organic farming, group certification, and contract farming arrangements aims to tackle rural poverty.

Since additional income is created, organic cultivation offers a highly interesting modality for development whereas the organic label reflects the value added.

In 2015, ASEAN SAS commissioned this research to evaluate how organic contract faming impinges on the livelihoods of small-scale farmers adopting it. Over the course of three months, lead researcher Mr. Benjamin Scholz supported by an interpreter and two CEDAC field staff conducted over 250 face-to-face interviews with rice farmers from 39 villages in Tram Kak district in Takeo province.

On 23 June 2016, the ASEAN SAS team in Cambodia held an event to disseminate the findings at the newly inaugurated Eco-Agri Center, located at the heart of Phnom Penh city. Among the participants were representatives of CEDAC, the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), the Japanese Embassy, Oxfam Cambodia, SNV Netherlands Development Organization, the German Foreign Exchange Service (DAAD), Indochina Research, the project’s partner company Entrée Baitang, and other GIZ projects as well as the GIZ Country Director to Cambodia, Mr. Adelbert Eberhardt.

Apart from sharing specific study findings, the event served as a valuable platform to exchange ideas and spread the word about the organic movement in Cambodia. During the presentation of results, some participants were surprised about the stark difference in farm income separating CEDAC farmers and conventional farmers.

But on an alarming note, many among the audience were shocked as to how vulnerable both organic and conventional rice farmers appear to be towards frequently occuring natural disasters, such as drought and flood. The findings revealed that in many cases farmer households lost up to one third of their total produce, reflecting both particularly severe climatic conditions and low capacity to cope.

Irrigation systems are therefore still very much needed to secure harvests in times of recurring water scarcity – regardless of whether one grow with organic techniques or not.

The results of the research study are now available and will soon be publish published by ASEAN SAS.

By ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems Team, Cambodia

25/05/201607/08/2017

‘Integrated Pest Management Training for Retailers’ makes responsible pesticides business

Retailer training is one part of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) training courses in Viet Nam in promoting safe and sustainable agriculture environment which is the collaboration between the Sub Plan Protection Departments and GIZ from 2015 to 2017, and co-funded by Croplife International.

In the line of project, a minimum of 300 retailers in three provinces of Hau Giang, Kien Giang and Dong Thap would be trained in 2016 to August 2017 by Master Trainers, who are Sub Plant Protection staff members attending the ‘Training of Trainers (ToT)’ at the Southern Regional Plant Protection Center in February 2016, also organised as part of the project.

In the recent four-day training for retailers held between 14-15 and 22-23 March 2016, 130 retailers from the three provinces attended the course. In the eight-module course (see table), the master trainers engaged the participants in the contexts of farmer’s rice production and discussion on “how to identify good advice for farmers as responsible application of pesticides”. The retailers received the IPM training certificates delivered by the Directors of Sub Plant Protection Departments and the Southern Regional Plant Protection at the end of the four-day training.

No.	Training modules
1	Introduction to responsible pesticide use
2	Understanding pesticide products and their labels: giving the best advice to customers
3	Pesticide application, equipment and calibration
4	How to be an effective crop doctor
5	Issues with pesticides
6	Transportation and storage of pesticides
7	Maximizing the safe use of pesticides and PPE
8	Better pesticide handling, first aid and conclusion

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thanh Thuy, the Deputy Director of Hau Giang Sub Plant Protection Department, also one of the Master Trainers said: “The training helps retailers to get updates on IPM knowledge, to make responsible business of pesticides and guide them how to become doctors for plants.

“More benefits for their business will also be gained through providing good advice and consultation to their clients,” she said.

Ms. Thuy also suggested that the retailers should regularly visit farmer’s fields after the training. As a matter of fact, they can give good idea for farmers to make better decision at their rice fields.

Mr. Ho Ngoc Liem, an agricultural retailer in Long Binh Village, Long My Town, Hau Giang Province, one of the participants said: “The IPM training course provides updates on new knowledge, and approach on pesticide application via different active ingredients relating to insect resistance management. I am confident in the knowledge transferred by the IPM project and the master trainers and will use these experiences and knowledges for my business after completing the training course”.

Mr. Le Quoc Cuong, Director of the Southern Plant Protection Center under Plant Protection Department said he strongly supported retailers to apply the IPM knowledge and transfer to farmers.

“IPM and responsible pesticide application are one of the best ways to sustain retailer’s business,” he said.

GIZ/Croplife International IPM project will continue supporting the trainings to over 150 retailers during until September 2016.

By ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems Team, Vietnam

19/05/201607/08/2017

Steps to inclusive sustainable agriculture in ASEAN through a value chain seminar

A ValueLinks seminar with participants from six countries in ASEAN took place recently in Siem Reap, Cambodia. Developed by GIZ as an action-oriented approach promoting economic development with a value chain perspective, ValueLinks provides essential know-how on ways to increase employment and income of small-and medium-sized enterprises, and smallholder farmers by promoting the value chains they are operating in.

Mr. Alfons Eiligmann (right) from IDC Unternehmensberatung, Germany, and Claudius Bredehöft, National Project Coordinator, ASEAN SAS Cambodia

The seminar was attended by 29 participants from Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Philippines, and Thailand between 25 and 29 April 2016 and facilitated by Mr. Alfons Eiligmann from IDC Unternehmensberatung from Germany, and Claudius Bredehöft, National Project Coordinator of ASEAN Sustainable Agriifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) Cambodia.

“A clear market demand and value proposition for customers is the key drivers of inclusive sustainable agriculture development strategy. A multi-stakeholder partnership and leadership within the supply chain are needed to overcome challenges to link smallholders to markets and to integrate them into value chain, through promoted and upgraded value and risks more equitable and fairly along the value chain,” Mr. Eiligmann from IDC said.

Mr. Giri Arnawa (second from the right), National Project Coordinator of ASEAN SAS Indonesia, a co-facilitator, shared his experiences in the cross broader value chain of biocontrol agents between Cambodia and Indonesia.

The seminar gave a comprehensive introduction of 12 ValueLinks modules consisting of the project design, methods for value chain analysis and strategy formulation, solutions for upgrading in different fields, and tools for facilitation and monitoring.

The five-day training was conducted through a mix of presentations and group work sessions. Participants learned to combine the business logic with the development logic; and value chain development with process facilitation; look for opportunities when starting their businesses, not for problems; and link value chain development with regional economic development and other approaches. Four working groups were assigned to work on examples of value chain promotion in fresh vegetables, cashew nuts, coffee, and bamboo furniture.

Participant from GIZ Laos, Dr. Nittana Southiseng said she directly gained benefits of the Valuelinks model through the group work on the development of Lao Specialty Coffee Value Chains. This project used for discussion is currently established in Laos under GIZ partnership with private companies and Government of Lao.

The expectation of the seminar were for the project staff and key partners from different organisations to be familiarized with the value chain promotion approach and get a better understanding of instruments and tools used in promoting the value chain.

Ms. Thlang Sovann Pisey, Director of Khmer Organic Cooperative

Director of Khmer Organic Cooperative, Ms. Thlang Sovann Pisey, who attended the training said: “ValueLinks introduces a very interesting tool to be used to develop and link production to the market.”
A particular advantage was that the participants from the GIZ’s Improvement of Livelihood and Food Security (ILF) Programme in Cambodia and ASEAN SAS Partners including the Eco-Agri Center (EAC) and the Khmer Organic Cooperative (KOC) could establish a starting step of creating cooperation for organic vegetable deliveries from the cooperatives to the shops in Phnom Penh.

Mr. Giri Arnawa, National Project Coordinator of ASEAN SAS Indonesia, a co-facilitator, shared his experiences in the cross broader value chain of biocontrol agents between Cambodia and Indonesia in supporting the development of sustainable agrifood systems on the three pillars of sustainability value chains: planet (environmentally), people (socially), and profit (economically).

The participants also took a field visit to GRET Project in Siem Reap Province that initiated vegetables project for communities’ better livelihood. Field findings during the field visit were used to develop existing groups work to practice formulating vision, and overcoming constraints of interventions.

By Giri Arnawa and Claudius Bredehöft, ASEAN Sustainable Agriifood Systems

03/05/201610/07/2017

From organic farmers to organic customers

Recently opened in Phnom Penh, the Eco-Agri Center provides complete services to link organic farmers to markets. The centre is connecting networks of biological input suppliers, knowledges, practitioners, farmers, and markets in order to fill the gap in the organic value chain needed to promote organic products. It trains farmers on organic farming at no cost, supply chemical-free products to eco-friendly production, and create market channels for healthy products.

“I did not know much about organic food and where to buy it. So I had been eaten vegetables from conventional markets which, normally, contained high levels of chemical. It had indeed affected my health badly, and I went to health check-ups two to three times per week sometimes because I felt very weak,” said Ms. S. Chan Ut, 29, who works at an organic farm in Chroy Svay Village, Koh Kong Province, Cambodia.

“Now that I work at the organic farm, I do not have those health problems anymore, and I learn about organic farming techniques which I can apply on my family organic farm directly.”

Agriculture is one of the cornerstones of Cambodia’s economy. Almost a third of the land area in Cambodia is dedicated to agricultural activities. Slightly more than half of the country’s population is employed in the agricultural sector which generates 33.5 percent of the overall GDP (World Bank, 2013). Despite crop production nearly doubling since 2006 and an overall increasing food production, the sector still faces a number of severe challenges. One of them is low-quality products and even fertilizers with toxic ingredients inundate the Cambodian market due to the absence of unified standards and weak control mechanisms of agri-inputs.

The Eco-Agri Center is a joint initiative of GIZ Cambodia (through ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems–ASEAN SAS), and the Khmer Organic Cooperative. ASEAN SAS is a regional project that operates under the German-ASEAN Program on Response to Climate Change (GAP-CC). The overall objective of the project is to develop regionally coordinated policies and strategies addressing sustainable agriculture and food production and food security, and to strengthen sustainable agrifood systems.

By Yotsawin Kukeawkasem and Rojana Manowalailao, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems

29/04/201607/08/2017

From 300 to 100,000 green farms: From Trilateral Cooperation to Lao PDR

Lao PDR expects an increase of Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) farms to 100,000 in 2020 from a current figure of 300 in 2016. This shows a clear sign of priority given by the Lao government to reach food security within the nation and a will to secure a solid slot in the international market.

In supporting the country to reach the goal, a “Strengthening National Good Agricultural Practice in Lao PDR (Lao GAP) project” was jointly developed under the framework of Lao-Thai-German Trilateral Cooperation Programme and ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) to introduce and develop functioning national GAP system in line with ASEAN standard. It was expected that farmers would produce fruits and vegetables to meet the GAP standard according to the domestic and regional demand, and also increase its competitiveness in the regional market.

After almost five years of implementation, the project now came to an end.

“The Lao-Thai-German Trilateral Cooperation is considered important because its scope of work is in accordance with the Lao PDR’s strategic plan, particularly in relation to the establishment of a Lao GAP Certification Body in preparation for integration with the AEC [ASEAN Economic Community], said Mrs. Inthanongsith Kommamuang, the Deputy Director General of the Department of Agriculture (DOA) of Lao PDR at the final Project Steering Committee Meeting on 30 March 2016 in Vientiane.

“With the efforts of the Lao Department of Agriculture alone, success might not be achievable,” she said.

Thai-German Trilateral Cooperation is a joint partnership programme initiated by Thailand and Germany to support development cooperation with the neighboring countries of Thailand such as Cambodia, Lao and Vietnam. With pooled resources of technical know-how, expertise and finances from such a close cooperation of like-minded partners, it is expected that added value and optimal results as well as effectiveness in aid delivery can be created. The priority areas of cooperation include education/vocational education, rural development including agriculture, micro-finance and SME development and health.

The Lao GAP project was made possible by the Lao DOA, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Thailand International Cooperation Agency (TICA) and GIZ. Under GIZ, ASEAN SAS supported the project in phase II (October 2014 – March 2016).

The final meeting discussed a transition of gained knowledge and practices to ensure the sustainability. The discussion included identifying areas of change or improvement for the continuity activity, which further leaded to the development of strategies and proposed activities in the roadmap for a good agriculture practices in Lao PDR.

This roadmap involves the transformation of DOA’s strategy (2015-2025) to concrete action, which will help key players to determine guideline for GAP implementation to increase the number of farmers and areas receiving Lao GAP certification by three per cent, accounting for 100,000 farms by 2020. The draft roadmap, which is primarily set as a mid-term five-year plan (2016-2020), focuses on the following five main activities.

Determination of Lao GAP certification areas
Upgrading Lao GAP to national standards
Upgrading Lao GAP to meet international standards
Dissemination of Lao GAP knowledge
Measures or policy to promote Lao GAP

These five aspects will guide the development of concrete activities to further the goal of successful implementation of Lao GAP as aimed by the DOA, which will lead to the sustainable food security in the future, not only in Lao PDR or ASEAN, but also at a world level. With the tripartite cooperation, the aim of reaching 100,000 GAP farms or even beyond should not be a far-fetched concept.

By Pimpilas Nuntiphon Khoeiram, Thai–German Trilateral Cooperation, Patamasiri Hoonthong and Rojana Manowalailao, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems

25/04/201607/08/2017

West African rice stakeholders get exchanged on Thailand’s value chain coordination

Better Rice Initative Asia (BRIA) collaborated with Competitive African Rice Initiative (CARI) to organize a study visit programme on Rice Value Chain in Thailand, on 14-20 February 2016, for project partners from West Africa (WA) to directly learn from stakeholders in the Thai rice value chain, what it takes to be a leader in the global rice industry. BRIA is a sister project of ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood system.

Participating in this visit were 14 professionals selected from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Tanzania and Nigeria, who represent a range of professions from producers, service providers, to workers for government extension and advocacy organizations. They have good knowledge about rice supply chains in their country.

This CARI-BRIA Exchange Programme allowed the stakeholders in the rice value chains in those countries to exchange experience with their Thai counterparts. CARI participants were eager to understand the role of each stakeholder, support from the Thai Government, and rice production system that includes quality improvement, farm mechanization and technology as well as standards.

The participants visited stakeholders in the BRIA project site in Ubon Ratchathani in the Northeast as well as private companies and government agencies in the rice industry in Bangkok including the following:

Baan Umsaeng in Rasisalai District of Sisakhet Province

The participants learned from this self-sustaining farmer group how it manages and controls supplies of organic and Fair Trade rice for export. Registered as a Community Enterprise in 2006 with support from local DOAE (Department of Agricultural Extension), the group consists of 1,250 farmers with 20,075 rai (est. 3200 ha) in rice growing areas. It has its own milling facilities which are also shared with other organic producers in the area. Its jasmine rice is famous and has been granted “Thung Kula Rong-Hai” Geographical Indication under Thailand’s and European Commission’s standards.

The group were keen to learn about comparisons of costs and profit between transpanting and seed broadcasting techniques as they are promoting transplanting to their farmers. They were very interested in the small-scale packing house, agricultural machines and how to make compost.

Det Udom Siri Choke Miller Partnership Ltd., in Ubon Ratchathani Province

This is a private family run mill, currently managed by the 3^rd generation. The group were shown around its large compound, which consists of a cold storage warehouse filled with 20,000 tons of paddy with a basic cooling system underneath. They also observed how rice was received with some basic facilities used to reduce field heat. The participants learned about buying mechanisms and rice grades in relation to moisture content. Its 2^nd generation owner, Mr. Huangseng Sae Li, is also the president of Ubon Ratchathani Rice Miller Society.

In Thailand, millers buy paddy from local assemblers. Big rice millers pile their stocks during harvest season and keep paddy in the warehouses waiting for purchase orders from central big brokers before they mill it. Exporters are large traders who carry out refining processes and handle wholesale or retail packaging.

Capital Rice Trading

At this top rice exporter of Thailand, the participants toured one of its factories on the outskirts of Bangkok where jasmine rice is processed and loaded into rice barges or ships docking at its own wharf. Capital Rice Co., Ltd, established in 1977 under the STC Group, currently exports rice to Nigeria, South Africa, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, UAE, Jordan, Spain and France.

Capital Rice buys milled rice from both the Government’s stock and private companies. The company checks rice quality at every step of the process such as before and after loading with fine dusts and stones removed, polishing, separating broken grains, color sorting, grading, etc. The factory operates 24 hours a day, 6 days a week, all year round to fulfill its capacity of 200,000 tons a day. Sixty percent of their rice is to be processed into parboiled rice. Every single package then passes through a metal detector. The participants were impressed by the quality control. Some even recognized retail packages from this factory found in their home countries.

Thai Rice Exporters Association

The Thai Rice Exporters Association (TREA), with 220 exporters as its members, was founded in 1918. This private association plays a vital role in the rice value chain in the country. Together with the Government, the association promotes worldwide recognition of Thai rice and Thailand as the most reliable supplier of quality rice. The association has the vision “to maintain the lead in world-class rice exports for Thailand.”

Participants paid attention to what African rice farmers can learn from Thailand’s experience with market liberalization and international free trade, which have attracted foreign investors and traders with technology and knowledge to the country. For example, in Niger State, NGOs and agribusiness firms are allowed to invest in development projects and farmers can learn from foreign investors. However, significant changes can occur only when the government policies support market liberalization.

TREA obtains a USD 0.5 contribution on every shipment made by its members.

Rice Department (RD)

As a government agency, one of its duties is research and development of rice varieties suitable for growing and eating. Seed production and dissemination is the main duty of the department. Rice cultivation technology generation is also undertaken by 27 Rice Research Centres situated nationwide. Besides, there are 23 Seed Centres located in the major rice producing areas. RD sells certified seeds to private seed producers, agricultural cooperatives as well as the Community Rice Centre (CRC), a registered farmer group, promoted by RD to produce commercial seeds for general farmers. RD is also responsible for farming innovation.

In 2015, RD sold 3,855 tons of seeds to farmers and bought back 4,047 tons of commercial seeds. Since the quantities demanded are greater than the quantites supplied, the private sector satisfies the rest of the market.

Lessons learned:

WA participants had an overall impression that the Thai Government supports the rice supply chain with various programmes. Several public and government-supported institutions consider rice as an important crop, not only for exports but also for improving the livelihood of rice farmers. Rice will continue to be a major crop for the country’s food security reason although it may become less competitive.

The participants felt that free market and free trade are key to develop a competitive rice industry. Allowing more players from production, processing, marketing, and exporting to come into the rice value chain will contribute to a competitive market and farmers will respond to the market demand, supported by relevant institutions.

As Thailand is a major exporter of quality rice, the Government has set clear standards for different types of rice traded on the world market. It is important that stakeholders comply with those standards, especially for quality rice, to produce quality products.

Since financial support is also vital, participants thought that financial institutions are effective to provide services, loans, and programs to rice farmers in Thailand.

Finally, public-private partnerships (PPP) with investment and assistance programmes from the private sector and academia should be promoted to support farmers and augment the Government’s efforts to enable the supply chain to function effectively and promote the rice secor.

Phillips, Fred Odame is an agribusiness and rural development specialist with over 12 years’ experience providing business and technical assistance to agro-based industries. Fred is the Country Coordinator for CARI Ghana implemented by TechnoServe. He commented that the visit created a learning platform to enable exchange of ideas on best practices to improve rice production, marketing and rice based nutrition. He had the opportunity to meet and interact with seasoned experts within the rice industry in Thailand. He gained a better understanding of the BRIA project and would use the lessons learned to improve the CARI programme in Ghana.

Kassim, Suwedi Rajab in Tanzania does farming in Mtunda village, Rufiji District. He faced great challenges from the start due to poor or unavailability of advice and assistance from concerned agricultural related organs and local authorities. Thus, he had to look for literature and the only reliable resource was the internet. He was eager to learn about water management in farms. He expected to apply the lessons learned to his farm and transfer them to local communities.

Competitive African Rice Initiative (CARI), BRIA‘s sister project in Africa, is a programme commissioned by Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by GIZ in cooperation with Technoserve, Kilimo Trust, and John A. Kufuor Foundation. Its objective is to significantly improve the livelihoods of rice farmers living on less than 2$ a day in Nigeria, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Tanzania by increasing the competitiveness of domestic rice supply to meet increasing regional demand. In most of West Africa, rice production has not been able to match the increases in demand triggered by population growth, rapid urbanization, increasing incomes and consumers’ preferences in terms of cost and cooking quality. Despite significant increases in rice production, WA still procures half of its rice needs through imports, which account for about 20% of the world’s rice exports. Asia (particularly Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, and India) is the major source of these imports. To date, increases in African food production, including rice, have been achieved largely through extending the area under cultivation. Unlike Asian countries, African countries have not invested in developing efficiencies that permit a low-cost rice system. Strategic investments in research & development, production and trade infrastructure and the establishment of an enabling environment that stimulates private sector initiative proceed at a slow pace.

Contributed by Kamol T. and Juejan Tangtermthong, based on the report “CARI-BRIA Exchange Visit on Rice Value Chain in Thailand” by Orachos Napasintuwong

20/04/201607/08/2017

ASEAN cooperation puts biocontrol national legislation on the table while boosting livelihood in the farm

When asked if Elianor Sembiring of Bio-agro-input Association, Indonesia had anything to say to farmers, he quickly replied: “Change”. Mr. Sembiring said farmers in Indonesia usually overly used chemical products in farming so that they got rid of pests quickly. And, as consequence, a lot of people were ill because they had been contacting and consuming toxic food from the toxic land in a long period of time, Mr. Sembiring said.

A similar situation is found in Cambodia. Peov Meas, a Chief of Biotechnology Laboratory of National Agriculture Laboratory said farmers in Cambodia also used a lot of chemical pesticides and fetilisers because they wanted fast results.

Excessive use of fertiliser and pesticides by farmers is one of the major challenges in the ASEAN region. Since inception, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) as part of the ASEAN-German Programme on Response to Climate Change in Agriculture and Forestry has supported sustainable eco-friendly value chains in agriculture with involvement of public and private sectors both at regional and national level.

Since 2014, the Project has provided technical assistance in developing regionally-cooperated policies and strategies and pushes for an implementation of national legislation, while promoting the use of sustainable inputs and crop management practices via biocontrol crop protection and integrated pest management, and establishing public and private partnership linkages to cover gaps in reaching sustainable cross-border value chains.

Policy at the forefront

In the past two years, ASEAN SAS has accommodated the development and incorporation of the ASEAN Guidelines on the Regulation, Use, and Trade of Biological Control Agents (BCA) into the national policies and strategies of the ASEAN partner countries. The Guidelines are the first of its kinds in ASEAN attempting to bring a holistic solution to the issue of sustainable agricultural practices. Supported by ASEAN SAS, the Guidelines were completed and underwent the endorsement process by the ASEAN Ministers of Agriculture and Forestry in 2014.

As a result, the government of Lao PDR is currently developing amendments to its Pesticide Management Law that will deal with the registration of biocontrol agents while the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Cambodia is planning to develop the first national BCA guidelines within 2016. For Myanmar, ASEAN SAS will work towards the inclusion of policy recommendation on BCA regulation into national legislation in 2016.

Vietnam and the Philippines announced the inclusion of the ASEAN regulatory guidance into the national pesticide legislation in 2015, whereas in Thailand a drafting committee for developing a national action plan was established, and potential areas in improving the regulatory framework and the use of BCA were identified. Also, in 2015 the Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia implemented the ASEAN Guidelines in a form of Decree No. 39, which was released in December.

Better livelihood in the farm

Ms. Him Sothea from Cambodia is an example of the woman who could change her life from nobody to a well-organized organic rice farmer.

Indonesia not only has been active in improving its policy framework, but also in implementing concrete steps to foster the use of BCA and other bio-inputs to farmers. With technical assistance of ASEAN SAS, 150 ‘BCA Clinics’ were established across the country. The Clinics educate farmers and growers on the use of bio-inputs in agriculture. ASEAN SAS has also partnered with the agro-tourism Taman Simalem Resort together with the Islamic University of North Sumatra in Indonesia in providing knowledge and skills to local farmers in the use of bio-inputs, and giving certification support for organic production. About 70 farmers adopted organic practices and received ‘Organik Indonesia’ certification. Income of organic farmers was increased by 180 percent for growing organic fruits and vegetables since inception of partnership.

Ersemina Munthe, farmer from Treasure of Farmers Group – Organik Indah Lestari said: “The profit we see here today marks the good impact of organic farming technology in our village. Through establishment of contract farming with TSr, adoption and implementation of organic farming practices, where we knew that GIZ is helping and sharing supports, we have yields increased and earn higher incomes.” Ms. Munthe, 51, has been a farmer for more than 30 years.

To promote organic cultivation among farmers in Cambodia, the CEDAC (The Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture)/GIZ (German International Cooperation) project trained farmers in implementing biological plant protection based on Trichoderma fungi, a specific form of biological plant protection. In cooperation with the USAID ‘HARVEST’ programme, the CEDAC/GIZ project focused on the diversification of the cropping system while conveying economic understanding to farmers in order to make appropriate decisions. The Project introduced cost-saving, yield-increasing, and climate change-mitigating technology Trichoderma (BCA) which aimed at improving income for 56,000 farm households.

Plant protection staffs in Vietnam were trained in Integrated Pest Managemet technical knowledge and application skills. They will serve as Master Trainers for both the training of farmers and retailers in 2016.

Him Sothea, 49, who participated in the CEDAC/GIZ project, said she now knew very well about chemical pesticides, which were hazardous to water, soil, beneficial insect, and human health. She said recently a neighbor farmer in the village died at the field because he was not instructed well to use pesticides against insect crab in rice field. Since then, she and some other farmers in the village stopped using chemical pesticide. Instead, she used bio-inputs such as compost, cow dung, field residue, and green manure to fertile soil, and natural pesticide to control insect.

These days, Ms. Sothea makes 2,500 US dollar annually from selling organic rice from the surplus of family consumption with 15 percent above the conventional market price. She is also a leader of an organic rice producer group, which is her new title besides a mother and wife after having trained with the CEDAC/GIZ project. A survey analysis showed that due to the new knowledge gained during the training female farmers feel better confident and empowered.

In Vietnam, since November 2015 the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) project supported by GIZ and Croplife International has started knowledge and skill training for government extension staffs, farmers, and pesticide retailers in order to make appropriate decisions for the responsible and safe use of pesticides. So far, about 40 plant protection staffs were trained in IPM technical knowledge and application skills, and these specialists will serve as Master Trainers for both the training of farmers and retailers in 2016.

In Thailand, two field trials on the use of biological crop protection in comparison with application of chemical pesticides have been conducted. The objective is to demonstrate that the use of biocontrol agent is beneficial for farmers and provides them with the crops that satisfy their needs and expectation.

Mr. U-Tai Songsaeng (far back), a trader who bought the Chinese cabbage at the ASEAN SAS field trials said it is hard to believe to see such a good quality vegetable without using chemicals.

U-Tai Songsaeng, 39, a trader who came to buy the Chinese cabbage at the ASEAN SAS field trials said: “It is hard to believe to see such a good quality vegetable without using chemicals. I grow vegetable myself and I used chemicals but my vegetables did not look as good as these ones,” he said.

The results of the field trials were used to develop application guidance for environmentally friendly and safe management of pest and disease and economic models in support of future capacity development activities in other ASEAN countries.

In all, some 700 ministry officials and agricultural experts and over 15,000 farming households have been trained so far in using sustainable agricultural practices in the past two years since the inception of the Project. Cooperation with the private sector in particular has been expanded to the extent that over 50 international and local companies have invested in project activities benefiting the public interest.

German-ASEAN SAS came to its mid-term milestone in 2015. The team recently met to review the project progress, and discuss emerging issues and possibilities and challenges of the post 2015 activities.

By Rojana Manowalailao, Sustainable Agrifood Systems