Farmers greet Indonesia’s DG for food crops with pest discussion

When Indonesian Agriculture Ministry’s Director General for Food Crops visits a Farmer Field School in North Sumatra’s Nagur Village, Indonesia, farmers are discussing about pest and diseases they regularly spot in their rice fields among their farmer classmates. The class is part of the Better Rice Initiative Asia (BRIA), a cooperation of public private partnership and a sister project of German ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS).

Dr. Hasil Sembiring, Director General for Food Crops (right) and Mr. Isnaini, BRIA Deputy Manager for Agriculture Component (left) at the Farmer Field School in Nagur Village, North Sumatra.

“Coming to learn about the BRIA activities today is very important for both the Indonesian government and farmers,” said Dr. Hasil Sembiring at the Farmer Field School in Sedang Bedagai District. “The government encourages farmers to adopt innovative agriculture technology to increase productivity to fulfil food security for our population and the BRIA training helps us to be able to achieve the goal.”

Dr. Sembiring’s visit to the Farmer Field School is part of the monitoring activities from Indonesian government to BRIA activities as part of MOU signed between Ministry of Agriculture and GIZ Indonesia.

There are 15 Farmer Field Schools in North Sumatra and East Java under BRIA currently. Participated leader farmers exchange their traditional farming practices and experiences with BRIA Field Facilitators and in the mean time learn about innovative and environmentally friendly agriculture technology for better and higher yields to increase their profits for a long term solution for food security. The 14-topic module consists of, for instance, land preparation, seed technology, soil and nutrient management, pest management, post harvest, farmers organization strengthening as well as market access.

Farmers draw pictures of pest and diseases that they spot in their rice paddies and present to their classmates.

Each school consists of 25 farmers including female farmers, young generation farmers and community leaders. They meet approximately once a week for half a day learning one topic each time. For example, in the topic of pest and disease control and management, the day of Dr. Sembiring’s visit, farmers are assigned to work in groups to identify pests and diseases they regularly spots in the rice fields and draw pictures and make presentation to their classmates. The class discusses about the causes and symptoms and how to effectively treat them with safety.

The participated farmers do not receive any financial supports or any incentives to attend BRIA’s Farmer Field School, but the attendance rate is up to 80 to 90 per cent.

Abdul Aziz Hasibuan, 34-year-old farmer at Nagur Village says he wants to learn about the best farming practices in this BRIA School. “I want to increase the productivity in the rice field. But I don’t have knowledge and skill. So I am interested although there is no cash incentive.”

Another farmer participant, Sugiati, 42, adds: “Knowledge is an incentive. When you have knowledge to increase productivity, cash will come later.”

Dr. Sembiring visited the BRIA Farmer Field School in Nagur Village, North Sumatra on 14 June 2015.

Story and photos by Rojana Manowalailao, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems

Field Facilitator tells about pest and diseases to her student farmers at the Farmer Field School.

24/09/201508/08/2017

Farmers and pesticide retailers to get trained in integrated pest management in Vietnam

CropLife International and GIZ recently agreed on carrying through a training programme for farmers and pesticide retailers called “Promotion of Integrated Pest Management to address plant hopper outbreaks in Rice”. ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) is implementing this project in the context of the Better Rice Initiative Asia (BRIA) together with Vietnam’s Plant Protection Department (PPD), the Southern Regional Plant Protection Center (SRPPC), and the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) in three provinces. At least 15,000 farmers and 300 pesticide retailers will be trained in agro-ecological practices and the effective use and safe application of pesticides.

From left: Mr. Raghavan Sampathkumar, Stewardship Director of Croplife Asia; Mr. Le Tien Phong, Interpreter; Keith Jones, Stewardship Director of Croplife International; Ambros Dotzer, Head of Component/ Regional Coordinator ASEAN SAS; and Ms. Do Thi Thanh Huyen, Senior Project Officer ASEAN SAS Vietnam.

In Vietnam, farmers are rarely applying natural, mechanical and biological control methods, and rely heavily on the use of chemical pesticides which results in high productions costs due to unnecessary expenses and unsafe practices. For developing new training modules for farmers and retailers, ASEAN SAS cooperates with the Can Tho University and the Cuu Long Delta Rice Research Institute (CLLRI). The training modules address the protection of natural enemies of pests, the accurate diagnosis of problems, definition of action thresholds and consequent decision making on the choice of appropriate products that are registered for control of plant-hoppers (and/or other rice pests), in order to avoid problems of resistance and resurgence.

In September 2015, a “Project Partners Meeting” was held at the SRPPC in Tien Giang province, together with the provincial representatives of PPD and DARD of three provinces involved in the project. Keith Jones, Stewardship Director of Croplife International, and Raghavan Sampathkumar, Stewardship Director of Croplife Asia, assisted at this meeting. Provincial partners showed their commitment by announcing financial contributions to the project. In this regard, the impact of the project would be multiplied and the contents of the training would become part of the working agenda of the partner institutions.

In the beginning of October this year, the first phase of the project will start with the Training of Trainers. Thirty-nine staff from the partner institutions in the three provinces have been selected to get trained and afterwards assuming the function of Master trainers, who will train both groups of smallholder farmers and retailers during the whole project period. The project will be accompanied by an awareness campaign at community, districts and provincial levels, involving schools and agricultural colleges as well.

Participants at the “Project Partners Meeting” in Tien Giang province

31/08/201508/08/2017

A ‘Green Fungi’ improves farmers’ life

Mr Sun Song is a farmer in the Siem Reap province in Cambodia. He has been using an organic fertilizer and pesticide called Trichoderma to protect his cucumbers and string beans from harmful fungal infestation and to improve the growth of his crops for the past year. Trichiderma is a green fungi naturally living in the soil. Before using Trichoderma, Mr Song applied chemical pesticides to control diseases. Trichoderma can be mixed with compost and distributed on the field to improve the soil quality and control harmful fungi, Mixed with water, it can also be used for seed coating to accelerate germination and protect the seed against pathogens. Or, it can be directly sprayed on infested plants.

Mr. Sun Song, 32, farmer using Trichoderma, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia

Asking Mr Song about the differences, he says: “Now my kids are allowed to play in the fields.”

Due to the fertilizing effects of Trichoderma, Mr Song also says: “The crop is healthier and also looks better.”

Mr Sun Song’s yield is higher and because his vegetables are of better quality now that he does not need additional synthetic pesticides, he earns about 200 riel (approximately US$ 0.05) more per kg compared to other farmers. Smiling diffidently, he tells that he also receives support from customers that recently called to ask for his vegetables.

Mrs Choun Yan farms since her childhood. As Mr Song, Mrs Yan started using Trichoderma-based products last year. Even before the harvest, she could see the changes. Previously, Mrs Yan had problems with diseases, mainly fungi. Since the application of Trichoderma, she does not have that problem anymore. In addition, she estimates an increase in her cucumber yield from 1 to about 1.5 tons, while the input costs for pesticides and fertilizer are reduced.

Mrs. Choun Yan, 37, farmer using Trichoderma, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia

In supporting the farmers’ use of Trichoderma and other biocontrol agents (BCAs), GIZ’s ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems’ project (ASEAN SAS) provides capacity development measures, technical know-how, and establishes a national network and discussion forum to enhance learning among farmers and relevant stakeholders. In this respect GIZ, in collaboration with HARVEST Cambodia (USAID funded) and the Cambodian’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF), organized the 2^nd National Biocontrol Agents (BCA) Forum in Siem Reap, Cambodia on 28-29 July 2015 bringing public sector and other regulators, practitioners, extension workers, academia and the private sector together to share experiences and present BCA-related products.

One of the forum’s participants, Dr. Kean Sophea, Deputy Director of the General Directorate of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from Cambodia and his team have been conducting research on Trichoderma in the past ten years.

“So far, a lot of chemicals are used with bad effects. I think the better way is to use organic fertilizer, as it is safe for people and the environment,” says Dr. Sophea.

During the ten years, he and his team have experimented Trichoderma with different kinds of value crops such as vegetables, rice, fruit trees and black pepper. All showed better yields by about 20 to 30 per cent compared to the control groups.

Durians, for example, do not only yield better and give more fruits, but also mature earlier. Dr. Sophea emphasizes that there are no known negative effects to humans of the application of Trichoderma. However, it would not be advisable to eat or inhale the spores of the fungus. Farmers are advised to store the product safely and use protective masks while spraying.

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To demonstrate the practical application and the benefits of Trichoderma, field visits were part of the the 2^nd National BCA Forum’s agenda. At the farmlands of Mr Song and Mrs Yan more than 150 participants witnessed the usefulness of green fungi and earned their own impressions of what BCA have to offer.

How Trichoderma works:
• Competition: Trichoderma is a parasite to other fungi. It spreads rapidly, covers and destroys the harmful fungi without damaging the plant.
• Growth Promotion: Trichoderma affects the root system of the plant. The roots grow stronger and deeper. It also treats root injuries so the plant can take up nutrients more effectively and resistance against drought is increased.
• Antibiosis: Trichoderma produces chemical compounds (metabolites) that inhibit or kill other microorganisms. These compounds are also known as antibiotics.”

Story and photos by Kristina Spantig, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems

03/08/201508/08/2017

Vegetable growers trapped in the pesticide treadmill

A story reflecting the life of growers, their fears and their hopes

When vegetable grower Khanthong Kasemviriyanont sees pest, she gets panic. She gets afraid her vegetables will not look ‘good’ and a trader will offer to buy them a low price. Her immediate solution is spraying chemical pesticides.

Trader hires cutters to collect vegetables at the farm

“I don’t know what to do. I don’t have other options. I need to sell vegetables and if there are a lot of holes on the vegetables, the trader will not take the vegetables or buy them at very low price,” says Ms. Kasemviriyanont, who is a vegetable grower for over 20 years in a Central province, Thailand.

Ms. Kasemviriyanont, 41, has been using chemical pesticides since she became a farmer. Today she has experienced breathing difficulties. “Of course, I am scared. There is something wrong with my breathing. Also, I just heard that a man whose job was spraying chemicals died recently [due to chemicals inhaling]. The only option I have is to wear protection gear when spraying chemicals.”

Ms. Kasemviriyanont says she uses a lot of chemicals on her vegetables especially during what she perceives as outbreaks. She spends about 10,000 to 20,000 Baht for chemical fertilizers and pesticides for every vegetable growing, which usually last about one or two months. She says all vegetable growers she knows do the same thing.

“Maybe instead of asking me why I am using chemicals, you may wish to ask consumers why they only choose to buy ‘nicely looking’ vegetables,” says Ms. Kasemviriyanont.

Vegetable trader Chamnean Buacheen who comes to buy Ms. Kasemviriyanont’s vegetable at the farm gate says he only wants to buy the vegetables that look nice.

“If there are worms on vegetables or holes on the leaves, I will offer a lower price,” says Ms. Buacheen, 42, who has been buying vegetables directly from the growers during the past 20 years.

He continues that: “The vegetables have to look clean and nice. Otherwise, I cannot sell them to the market. Sellers only want to have vegetables without pests and diseases because they think those are what consumers want.

“The situation has always been like this since the past 20 years in business,” he says.

Mr. Buacheen is also a vegetable grower himself and he thinks that for getting nicely looking vegetables he needs to apply heavy loads of chemical pesticides.

“Personally, I am scared when eating vegetables and try to wash them carefully before I eat them. However, this is the way it has been for growers ever since. We use chemicals. They kills pest. We can sell vegetables,” he says.

“Maybe instead of asking me why I am using chemicals, you may wish to ask consumers why they only choose to buy ‘nicely looking’ vegetables”

Kannika Toutiem, 42, a vegetable cutter, says the cutters do not eat the vegetables they cut.

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“We usually observe chemical pesticide residues on the vegetables we cut, sometimes conspicuously green round spots on them,” she says.

Ms. Toutiem also grows rice and cassava. She says she does not use chemical pesticides on her crops because she only produces them for consumption in her family, not for sale. She says the rice growers in her area all use pesticides in rice.

After talking to them, in their views chemical pesticide appears to be their only option for growing crops. Dr. Thomas Jaekel, a chief technical advisor of ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) says: “The views of the three farmers exemplify quite well their belief system of why and how in using synthetic pesticides. Their views also reveal the myth and the overuse of pesticide has taken a firm grip on the way how farmers produced their crops.”

The farmers say they are interested in healthy alternatives of crop production including the use of biocontrol pest product but only if the pest can be controlled properly at a manageable cost particularly during what they perceive to be pest outbreaks.

“I don’t want to risk my health. And if there are other options, I would like to try,” says Ms. Kasemviriyanont, “But at the end of the day I need to sell my vegetables. I need a new trader [market]. The groups of traders I have been selling vegetable to do not make a difference whether I use the chemical pesticides or biological products. They are not giving me a better price,” she says.

Mr. Buacheen says he also wants to try biological crop protection but he wants to be sure that it is effective. “I am afraid that biological pesticides cannot control pests in commerce vegetable growing. I am afraid that if it fails, I would lose my investment. So I stick with the same old way of using chemicals for now,” he says.

ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS) has been conducting field trials on the use of biological crop protection in comparison with application of chemical pesticides. The field trials have been conducted in Chiangrai in 2014 and currently ongoing. The recent field trials on the use of biocontrol agents in controlling flea beetles in Chinese cabbage were conducted in Kanchanaburi, Thailand from May to June this year. The objective is to demonstrate the use of biocontrol agent is beneficial for farmers and provides them with the crops that satisfy their needs and expectation.

ASEAN SAS supports effective and environmentally friendly crop production solutions while promoting economic advantages in the value chain that guarantee food safety and security in the region.

Story and photos by Rojana Manowalailao, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN SAS)

12/06/201509/08/2017

Juicy taste but safety first

A presentation highlighting product safety and quality for Thai fruit juice industry

Fruit juice industry in Thailand is enjoying a fruitful tree climbing rate with a total market of Baht 12,000 million in 2014. The last year’s total growth rate is at 13 percent.

Napaporn Rattanametta, a Project Manager on Food Safety for ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems Project started her presentation with these facts and figures at the “Seminar on EU Import Control and Food Safety Management at the border: Case study at Frankfurt International Airport” on 25 May 2015 in Nonthaburi, Thailand.

Participants consisted of officials from central and regional agencies, manufacturers, small and medium size exporters roughly about 100 persons.

Her 45-minute session focused on “Improving Product Safety and Quality for Thai Fruit Juice Industry”. A slide after slide in her presentation showed quite shocking pictures of the ‘Before’ and ‘After’ of the fruit juice factories before and after her advisory assistances. Areas to be improved, for example, included fresh fruit quality, fruit washing machine, personal hygiene, plant hygiene, contamination risk reduction and maintenance programme.

She also presented the ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems Project’s market survey results on Thai fruit juice in 2012 and 2014. As a result for declared “100 % Guava juice”, only approximately 40 per cent of juice content could be detected in the analysed sample. Meanwhile, in the sample “100 % strawberry” only 20 per cent juice content could be detected. Having been working in the fruit juice industry for over 12 years, Ms. Rattanametta has carried fruit juice factory inspections in a number of factories and conducted training and skill development programmes for fruit juice factory staff across Thailand and Vietnam.

Ms. Napaporn is also a certified auditor for Sure Global Fair (SGF), a global voluntary certification system for fruit processing industry based in Germany.

SGF and the ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems Project under Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) or German International Cooperation in English are supporting the Thai fruit juice industry in a private partnership project “Improved Product Safety and Quality for the Thai Fruit Juice Industry” in its efforts to comply with the requirements of the international market. The common objective is to increase safety and quality of Thai fruit juice products in accordance with national and international recognized standards, for example: assure legal and industrial safety and quality standards; maintain fair competition; support the positive reputation of healthy and natural fruit juice products; and ensure consumer satisfaction.

By Rojana Manowalailao, ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems

27/05/201509/08/2017

Organic agrifood products showcase at the launch of Thailand’s crop insurance 2015 scheme promoting agriculture risk management

Thailand’s crop insurance 2015 scheme was recently kicked off in central region’s Ang Thong province on 15 May. Finance Minister Sommai Phasee opened the launch ceremony with over 300 farmers attending the event. GIZ’s ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (SAS) project’s representatives were also present.

The Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) is the distribution and claims processing arm of the Thai rice insurance scheme. GIZ signed a “Memorandum of Understanding on joint technical cooperation in the field of strengthening marketing & distribution for crop insurance for smallholder farmers” with BAAC under the SAS’s RIICE (“Remote sensing based information and insurance for crops in emerging economies”) public-private-partnership project.

RIICE is carried by five parties, namely Allianz Re, Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) (German Development Cooperation), Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), and sarmap. The parties aim to establish a public-private-partnership model to transfer natural catastrophe risks from farmers and governments to the private insurance sector. The project makes use of remote sensing technologies to observe the growth of rice. Through timely and transparent information on crop losses due to natural catastrophes, insurers can act quickly and pay claims systematically.

It was agreed in the MoU that RIICE will support BAAC in running its insurance operations more efficiently.

04/04/201509/08/2017

A Study Tour to Thailand

The GIZ-ASEAN Sustainable Agrifood Systems (ASEAN-SAS) project in Cambodia has brought people together to strengthen the capacity of farmers in organic production techniques, to help them establish linkages to international markets. To that end, the technical staff of GIZ ASEAN-SAS (Cambodia and Thailand), the Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture (CEDAC), and CEDAC Sahakreas Ltd. (SKC) undertook a study tour to Thailand, which took place 25-29 January 2015. The aims of the study tour were:

To share experiences with entities working in the organic food sector in Thailand,
To study agricultural best practices, including CO₂ fumigating procedure for organic rice, and
To strengthen the network between practitioners in the organic agriculture sector.

Entities were selected according to the technical background and specific interest of the participants. In the beginning, participants presented their experiences with organic rice value chain development in Cambodia, where the demand for organic rice has been gradually growing. However, there is no established national regulation on the certification and declaration of organic agricultural products, meaning that anyone can claim that their products are organic without any certification. CEDAC has been working with small-scale farmers to promote organic rice production, resulting in the export of approximately 1,000 tons of organic and fair-trade certified rice in 2014. To comply with international organic standards, CO₂ fumigation to eliminate insects before shipment is a requirement for export. Herba Bangkok Sl is a company experienced in CO₂ fumigation and marketing strategies for organic rice. In order to tackle the lack of experience in the CO₂ fumigation procedure, Herba showcased the treatment for the participants: 2kg of CO₂ per ton of rice must be circulated consistently in a covered plastic bag. The share of oxygen must be lower than 13.7%, and the concentration of oxygen and CO₂has to be regularly monitored, or else insects will not be killed within 14 days. In its warehouses, Herba uses mechanical traps, daily cleaning and uniform packaging. Herba buys from organic rice farmer cooperatives and exports mainly to the US and the EU. They are very interested in importing premium organic fragrant and non-fragrant rice, as well as half broken rice, which is an opportunity for Cambodian farmers and CEDAC to enter the market. During the next rice season there will be a joint workshop between farmers, CEDAC and Herba to discuss the production plan.

Xungdur is another organic food company known for initiating market-linked organic food processing, working closely with organic farmer cooperatives that use their own resources to produce
fertilizer and bio-pesticides in compliance with organic standards. Xungdur used to apply conventional practices, which involve high chemical inputs, ultimately causing health problems and low profits. However, once the owner of Xungdur discovered that following organic principles is the most effective method in developing and improving health, she began to promote organic rice and vegetable production to farmers, providing weekly trainings on organic agricultural techniques. She altered Xungdur’s product lines to contain only organic rice, and developed food processing and packaging lines. Xungdur’s products are now well known and in high demand. Government agencies and organizations are assisting the cooperative with production techniques, marketing, and financial resources to strengthen the company’s sustainability.The study tour was very useful and informative to the participants, who gained a better understanding of the concepts and principles of effective business practices and production techniques. Moreover, they benefited from lessons and experiences shared at the training workshop, not only to improve their own knowledge but also to develop ideas that will promote the sustainable development of organic agriculture in Cambodia.

10/07/201311/08/2017

Rising Demand Boosts Organic Rice Industry

Phnom Penh, Cambodia Production of Cambodian organic rice is rising rapidly as international demand for the product increases, experts said at a forum for growers and other industry members held Tuesday at the Phnom Penh headquarters of agricultural NGO Cedac.

“In the first six months of this year we’ve exported about 200 tons of organic rice, which is about double last year’s figure,” said Cedac president Yang Saing Koma, adding that farmers aren’t producing enough to meet demand. “We hope that by next year, we’ll be exporting 1,500 tons annually.”

Although there are about 100,000 farmers who produce organic rice in Cambodia, only about 200 meet international standards, Mr. Saing Koma said.

He said Cedac hopes the number of certified organic farmers will rise to 700 by next year, but certification is a strict, three-year-long process, and farmers who are certified are subject to annual inspections thereafter.

Claudius Bredehoeft, national project coordinator for the regional program ASEAN Biocontrol for sustainable Agrifood Systems of GIZ, the international development arm of the German government, said at the forum that Cambodian farmers are well-positioned to carve out a niche in the rice market. GIZ together with CEDAC is building up the organic rice value chain for the national and international market since 2003. The organic production is preserving the soil fertility on the one hand and supports the farmer to save the costs for chemical inputs on the other. Through the organic and fair-trade certification and market driven approach the farmers are increasing their income as well.

“Since Thailand has introduced minimum rice prices, and Cambodia can export tax-free to the E.U., it has advantages Thailand and Vietnam do not,” he said. “With the fair trade and organic price premium, there are good market incentives to [continue to grow the rice industry].”

Heum Sothea, a farmer from Kompong Chhnang province and forum participant, said that growing organic rice had improved living conditions for her family.

“When I grew conventional rice, I spent a lot of money on fertilizer and chemicals, and cultivated only 1 to 2 tons per hectare. I sometimes had to sell pigs to pay my debts,” she said.

“But now that I grow organic, I harvest about 3 tons per hectare and sell at higher prices. I can use the profit to send my children to school and buy them plots of their own.”

by Mech Dara and David Kaner