Surin Organic Learning Center: Session 2

Here’s the report from Session 2 of our Organic Learning Center. From March 23-26, we hosted farmers’ groups working with the Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BAAC) community development organization in Ubon Ratchhatani, Chaiyaphum and Surin. There were about 29 farmers in the group, at various stages of progression towards organic farming.

Paw Samrit , Paw Tama and P’ Bresong helped start things off on Day 1 at Rice Fund. In the opening session, Paw Samrit (standing, above) said something that really stood out. After talking about the importance of soil improvement in organic farming, he reflected, “You can farm without land. I was just in Bangkok for a week and I realized; you could plant on the roofs of buildings, grow lemongrass in pots. The land is on the roof.” As foodies and gardeners in urban areas of the U.S. begin growing on their roofs, Paw Samrit – a 78 year-old farmer with 14 rai of land (about 5 acres) who doesn’t get off the farm too much – recognizes the need for local food production in Bangkok. But are urbanites in Thailand interested?

Paw Tama, a leader in the Nong Bua farmers’ group – which started in 1985 – used the analogy of climbing a mountain to explain transitioning to organic farming: “before you start climbing, you think it’s going to be really hard, or impossible, but once you start it’s pretty easy and as you move up, you get stronger and stronger.” But chemicals continue to be a major issue in Nong Bua - of 5,000 people in the sub-district, 38 died from liver and other forms of cancer in the past year. For those who have leptospirosis, “they don’t have leptospirosis, they have chemical-sickness,” coming directly from the corporate control over agricultural inputs. P’ Bresong used to grow corn, kale, tobacco and garlic with chemicals, which he was taught to spray all throughout the day without any protective clothing. He eventually wound up in the hospital with pesticide poisoning. It took him 6-7 years to fully transition to organic farming, because he continued to seek work as a Taxi driver in Bangkok. Today he grows beautiful, organic garlic and shallots during the cold season - look for a later post with a photo series of his garlic.

We also watched another episode of Pandin Thai, which focused on monoculture production in Thailand (this series is really good). The first segment looked at Hmong farmers in Northern Thailand that grow cabbage. They plant cabbage for its weight: 1 rai will yield up to 10 tons, which earns up to 2-3,000 baht (more than $100). But farmers’ dreams of wealth aren’t realized. They spray pesticides 2-3 times per crop, and if the season’s conditions are bad - 4-5 times – this is the most of any crop in the country. A small can of pesticide costs 425 baht (the price has doubled since first beginning use). Cabbage prices continue to fluctuate, but seed prices continue to rise. Ultimately, corporations can cut costs, charge more and control the process closest to the market, but farmers simply cannot.

A small farmer named Joh was interviewed about his production system. While he hand transplants (plowing with a tractor leads to major soil erosion) and fertilizes with chicken manure on his 6 rai, he must invest 60 thousand baht per season. Chicken manure has gone up 20 baht per bag in the past year. Joh told the reporter that he was bored with chemicals (6,000 baht in pesticides), but because of consumer preferences middlemen won’t accept “unattractive” produce with bugs or marks on the cabbage.

While the farmers watched chemical-intensive production in yet another region of Thailand, I think the most important lesson from the film was for consumers. Cabbage farmers don’t want to use chemicals, but they need to because of consumer preferences. We want only “beautiful” produce and we want it as much and as cheap as possible. Until we change this way of thinking, farmers will continue incurring debts and getting sick from chemical pesticides. This also connects us to what Paw Samrit talked about regarding urban gardening – many Thai consumers don’t yet realize the need for local, safe and healthy food. Though I did see beautiful cabbage growing in raised pots outside the Satong market in Roi Et on Monday...

During the afternoon session, P’ Yae got things focused, “learning with villagers, you’ll see the basis for an alternative, for sustainable agriculture. We are faced with two options: corporate agriculture using farmers purely as labor and the people’s struggle for survival."

Day 2 got farmers engaged with our farmers’ group's alternative. The morning session was focused on seed saving and SRI techniques. P’ Pakphum opened the session by talking about how seed saving and climate change are connected. The group is working to preserve and expand field rice varieties with strong root systems that are suited to the local ecology and survive with very little water. “Nieung Guong” rice for example – has been profiled by national media and has led to requests from all over Thailand. This session’s group was much more interested in seed saving than the first group, so P’ Jansee got a lot more detailed in his explanation of SRI techniques. For the afternoon session, the farmers got into the paddies and planted rice using SRI methods and then learned about green manures and organic compost.


The evening exchange brought the voices of the Ubon Ratchatani farmers group. Hailing from Ban Muu in Khaam Beea sub-district, the group has worked for community forest conservation since 1985. They’ve resisted the “Green Isaan” (eucalyptus plantations) program and developed an organic farming school of their own, alongside community rice mills (made from community forest trees). Their resistance is much like other villagers' groups in Ubon, including Baan Puu Khaam, which the "New Generation" group of NGOs visited last Decemeber.

P’ Pakphum also spoke about his panel discussion at the Seed Exchange Festival in Khon Kaen. Farmers don’t have power because they sell all at the same time, all the same crop – how do we get farmers to come together and build their power? We can be the ones who decide about crop prices, and realize we can produce food first and then sell surplus rice. But P’ Pakphum’s issue is complex – we don’t have irrigation and can’t change our planting season, and lowering rice production (planting a range of crops) isn’t a solution to a systematic problem.

P’ Pasan, the BAAC representative working with the Chaiyaphum farmers’ group, continued, reflecting on the Ubon farmers’ experience, that state policy doesn’t look at ways to support farming as an important career – farmers are being used as the laborers of capitalism. Organic farming is an important solution for farmers’ careers – but right now it is in a “pothole,” it still hasn’t gotten onto the blacktop. To which P’ Yae responded, “but many things that have already gotten onto the blacktop are finished – for example, Jasmine 105.”

Before Tabthai started raising pigs, purchasing ingredients for organic fertilizer cost 80 thousand baht for it’s 25 members. Day 3 brought everyone to Tabthai village to learn about small-scale production and organic livestock (above, P' Kanya on the loudspeaker). P’ Yae focused on 4 major points related to food security: the basis for our work needs to be self-reliance, nature must be respected and viewed as important (otherwise it’s just organic farming for the market), integrated, diverse production is the approach and finally, farming in cycles (for example, P’ Kanya’s vegetables used for pig feed). Farmers need to take this integrated agriculture concept and apply it, make it work according to their local ecology, and further, farmers need to continue going out and exchanging with others to improve or change techniques.

The Green Market was also discussed in the afternoon session. P’ Tip pointed out that it isn’t just selling vegetables or seeds; it’s selling a way of thinking, an idea. Consumers the used to say, “I can’t eat local plant varieties” eat them now, but this has come from long-term coordination between consumers, local government, NGOs and farmers’ groups. Farmers’ groups are about inspection as well as participation – producers and consumers exchange about presentation and preparation of foods at the Green Market. The learning process for ACT certified pork helped farmers develop their livestock raising system.

I’ don’t work on managing farmers’ loans, I’m here to work with farmers and help them in their community development efforts. We might not yet feel confident about what we’ve learned, but we’ve got the people we’ve learned from and can look to their example
- P’ Pasan of the BAAC

This was one of the most surprising and progressive things we've heard a BAAC representative ever say and it seems like P' Pasan means what he says. It's encouraging to see this kind of involvement from the BAAC. Session 2 was a great learning experience for everyone involved - our village "wisemen" were stronger instructors and the farmers group learning with them was more engaged. We'll continue to follow up with the groups who learned with us in the months following session 3 from April 6-9.

Isaan Seed Exchange Festival

The Alternative Agriculture Network (Isaan) hosted our annual seed exchange festival in Khon Kaen from March 13-14. The festival was an engaging gathering of farmers, NGOs and activists from all 4 of Thailand's regions. It was also an important chance for farmers to swap seeds and stories, or to learn more about what farmers' groups in different provinces are currently working on. Our solidarity strengthened, the movement continues forward towards more seed preservation and expansion, farmers' rights and sustainable communities. For Thai readers, please see the Sustainable Agriculture Foundation's report. Below are some notes from Saturday's pulic seminars.

Ajaan Decha (seated, above), of the Khao Kwan Foundation, started the festival's public seminars with a discussion of the meaning of food sovereignty in Thailand. It isn't necessarily a question of access to food resources, but the type of resources available. Can we access food that isn't produced by agribusiness? Chicken, pork, or watermelon? Find a soybean that isn't a GMO? The answer to these questions is, for the most part, no - unless there are small-scale alternatives available at local markets. The implications of agri-business are important, if not often overlooked - we are being fed chicken pumped with antibiotics and watermelon sprayed with powerful pesticides - and health impacts on large-scale contract growers are becoming more apparent, while small-scale farmers can't compete.

Fortunately, we still have some "rice sovereignty" in Isaan. But hybrid seeds produced by Bayer are spreading throughout Supanburi alongside seeds produced by CP in Kampaengphet - and like with Monsanto corn, farmers need to buy these rice seeds every season. In less than 5 years, Ajaan Decha explained, Bayer seeds are really going to take over in Thailand's central region. A farmer who works with him was forced to plant CP hybrid rice for comparison by the local government, which was at a higher cost and a lower yield. He told the government he wouldn't grow it if the seeds were free. Yet conventional farmers, when asked to stop using chemicals, respond that they can't stop listening to advertisements on the radio and stressing about yields. We can't yet stop chemical advertising or put a tax on chemicals like cigarettes and alcohol, though cancer continues to rise from the use of chemicals in agriculture.

While Isaan NGOs have long romanticized about Communism (as some we're a part of the CPT) and Cuba is a good example of the kind of food system a Communist country can build, Laos proves that Communist countries can destroy food sovereignty much like Democracy. The role of agribusiness is expanding in Thailand's neighboring countries - another threat to food sovereignty, regionally. The Black Tai people on the Lao-Vietnam border - a community that continues to practice only animism (related to Black Tai groups in central Thailand) - have been brought into the CP feed corn contract farming system. Meanwhile, the community is forbidden to plant sticky rice, as the government controls non-glutinous rice production. Vietnam exported 4 million tons of rice last year (Thailand imported 4 million tons of chemicals and pesticides) and 50,000 tons of rice seed produces 1 million tons of rice - it's easy for a corporation to control this type of production. Vietnamese production costs are also much lower than Thailand's and yields are on average 800 kg per rai, compared to Thailand's 400 kg per rai.

Isaan doesn't have more than 1,000 varieties of rice, though Laos has over 20,000. And 90% of Thai rice has it's origins in Cambodia. Thai farmers need to continue exchanging with farmers in our neighboring countries to help preserve local varieties. If one percent of all Thai rice farmers saved over 30 varieties of rice, we'd be able to protect rice biodiversity. We need to take traditional knowledge about ecology and biodiversity and resist - globalization only makes us think that we're stupid or that we don't know very much.

Ajaan Decha continued by arguing that the government's rice price insurance program was a good idea, but the execution was flawed - the price was too close to conventional rice and rice dried out before it good earn a good price. B' Bamrung Kayotha (standing, above) responded that the program isn't real, and that the government needs to dare to help farmers. The program has only benefitted the market and maintains WTO standards. Food is more than just what we eat, it's impacting society - solving farmer's problems can't just be about prices at the mill - we need to look at fairness in all parts of rice prices.

In a later discussion, P' Pakphum Inpaen of Rice Fund Surin Cooperative (seated with Sompoi Chansaeng, above) pointed out that communities are impacted by rice price issues first. We need to find communities that are ready for a new kind of support program and let them manage the government's funding solution independently. His progressive idea stems from the fact that farmers aren't just waiting for government support and while forming a farmers' group to manage budgets or projects, it needs to happen. Personally, I would love to see this kind of project happen - enabling farmers to access funds directly and further empower farmers' groups engaged in sustainable agriculture and other solutions to the food crisis.

Diversity in production can be supported by higher prices.

The Wai Sai Hua Jai youth group from Nonyang Village was also making and selling organic rice drinks, made from Red Jasmine and Red sticky rices. Saturday's rainy weather made selling the warm drink easy and excluding the need to buy a new blender (sketchy electricty at the festival), we pulled in some decent funds for the group. Below, they also gave a performance about the loss of indigenous seeds.

Following the festival, farmers' groups from Northern Thailand visited Kudchum, Yasothon to exchange with the Love Nature Club and AAN. For two days the farmers exchanged regarding seed-saving techniques and experiences in building sustainable agriculture systems. Many of the northern farmers do not yet practice organic farming, so learning with the "Wisemen" of Kudchum was an important learning opportunity. Below, Paw Bunsong talks with P' Arun and others about the group's soil improvement techniques.

We are individuals and we know the same amount, but when we come together we know that much more - Paw Johng

On the morning of the 17th, the Kudchum farmers explained their SRI approach and SRI demonstration paddy. Above, Khanungjit from the Joko Seed Center discusses her experience learning with Paw Taa, who grows over 120 varieties of rice. Paw Taa, along with a large group of AAN-Isaan farmers, visited Joko to exchange about seed saving last November. By coming to exchange in Isaan, the learning process between northern farmers and Isaan farmers comes full circle.

Northern farmers learn about how Kud Hin villagers make noodles from a local rice variety.

Indigenous Seeds Conference - Mahasarakam

As the Chi river flowed peacefully past P' Thoy's home in Mahasarakam province, members of the AAN, representatives from sustainable agriculture groups in Northern Thailand, along with several researchers and professors from Bangkok, met to discuss the current situation regarding indigenous rice seeds, plant protection and farmers' rights. The conference was also intended to continue building connections between Thailand's 4 regions, in the lead up to our annual seed exchange, to be hosted in Khon Kaen. While a meeting like this could be held for several days, the day-long conference was jam-packed with panel discussions and an afternoon network-wide exchange.

More than seven years ago, the AAN realized that the sustainable agriculture movement had to be about more than organic farming and select ag-related political issues. The agenda expanded to focus of using indigenous or local seeds, to support local culture about food and production, train farmers in proper seed-selection techniques and importantly, resist capitalist seed production and ownership. While Jasmine 105 was blanketing the agricultural landscape, farmers were storing away local varieties to preserve and to eat - maintaining an important connection between culture and indigenous seeds. Seeds within the network have expanded based on annual farmer-to-farmer exchange events, while ideas about farmer's rights and community ownership have emerged in response to corporate efforts (especially, CP and Monsanto) to use intellectual property rights (IPRs) ownership controls. There are currently 73 farmer-researchers in the network, with over 140 rice varieties saved for preservation and expansion.

How do we want to define ownership for farmers? What do the rights to local seeds mean?

When P' Jansee, an SFS member on the farmer-researcher panel (above, with microphone) was asked, "We preserve seeds, but how are we going to use them?" he responded by talking about learning more about consumers' preferences and SFS' experiences at our annual indigenous seeds event at the Green Market. As SFS members have built a strong base of indigenous seeds, they can begin tailoring production to the health needs of consumers. If a consumer is concerned about diabetes, they might be interested in Red Jasmine rice, which has a significantly lower percentage of sugar when compared to Jasmine 105 or Gor Kor 6 sticky rice.

P' Lan (above, in striped shirt) a leader in the AAN farmers' group in Kudchum, Yasothon, continued by talking about the reasons for the loss of indigenous seeds. Traditionally, his home sub-district of Gamet planted 23 indigenous varieties of rice. The market for indigenous seeds, however, disappeared following the expansion of large-scale mills designed to mill only Jasmine 105 or Gor Kor 6 sticky rice and government policy promoted "improved" varieties for surplus production. This production system also minimized feed for livestock, as the crop is planted on all of the farmers' fields and harvested all at once. After further discussion about the revival of local seeds by the Kudchum farmers' group, P' Lan concluded that those who produce and grown must have more ownership over seeds - farmers' rights. Farmers also need to continue learning about other crops and try planting them out in order to better understand local ecology.

Resist free trade and preserve local seeds

Following the farmer-researcher panel was a discussion led by P' Supa of the Sustainable Agriculture Foundation. We can hold the belief that plants shouldn't have owners, but this system has changed. The WTO needs to have intellectual property rights (IPRs), as membership depends on it and form the basis for free trade agreements (FTAs). Outside the WTO, the constitution (at least in theory) gives farmers' communities rights, yet there is a disconnect between policy and reality in communities. Later during the discussion, one farmer passionately proposed that property rights should be done away with. He got a quick response: commercial seeds have already destroyed many farmers' rights.

Geographical Indication (GI) is an alternative to IPRs - it allows farmers to freely plant registered seeds, but not use the registered name. Yet there aren't seeds that are specifically able to be planted in one area. If someone develops a new breed, sure they should have the right to register it - but are they really creating anything new? Registration or protection is about indigenous genetics, not a tool for corporate exploitation - yet it's also about allowing other farmers to benefit from local resources. Finding a balance in protection and use is our network's challenge.

Saving seeds in order to plant them again is a farmer's right. Selling locally and exchanging are also farmer's rights - local resource management sovereignty - and power is mobilized for rural communities, in order to come up against the conventional system. This was all building to a network-wide statement in the afternoon discussion/brainstorm (Ubon Yuwa, exchanges with P Wan, of the Joko Learning Center in Nan province).

Plant genetics are of natural systems (also legal).

Property rights become an issue when the seeds farmers produce are taken by a company and we need to register our seeds with them - as is the case for rice seed breeders in Southern Vietnam. The urgency of the conference stems from the reality that seed companies are developing new varieties to create new markets - it's not about improving efficiency for Thai farmers. In response, what is the network's reaction? Create some kind of a law for farmers' way of life, to protect their local resources? Create a new level for community rights, for local resource management? What is the genetics system that we are looking at? Preservation or expansion? How do we manage new breeds? P' Thoy responded: our [AAN] type of agriculture isn't about making money - we need to make a clear separation for ourselves - but what is keeping farmers from thinking they can be their own seed breeders?

The shared feeling among farmers and NGOs is that no one should be an owner or have the right to "own" seeds, but we need to raise the level of community rights for protection and prevent corporate control over material. The notion of a "seed commons" was also raised - allow for free use and exchange, without registration for commercial sale. Farmers are preservationists and network-oriented. Ubon Yuwa suggested that we need a "bridge" to the government, perhaps create an "indigenous seeds assembly?"

Given the success of the National Health Assembly and our network's strong working relationship with public health efforts in Thailand, a seed assembly is possible. But clearly, a lot of things are possible, and the day's conference in Mahasarakam was far from conclusive. It got farmers and NGOs thinking about next steps, and as we build our own bank of indigenous plant material, being able to engage with trade policy or IPRs with farmers' dignity and knowledge behind the movement will be essential for protecting our interests and supporting others who may not yet have access to good seeds.

Eat to Change the World

Februrary 24th was our network's release of the "Eat to Change the World" campaign. After attending Terra Madre last October, sustainable agriculture organizations in our network were inspired to campaign for more sustainable consumption in Thailand. Slow Food provides a distinct way to approach the flavors of Thai cuisine and the importance of biodiversity, seed saving and small-scale production.

The release day featured samples from the quisines of Songkhla, Yasothon and Surin. Songkhla made several sweet deserts and preserved fruit dishes, Yasothon mixed up an herbal salad, with starfruit, eggplant, black peper, garlic and a number of other fresh ingredients, and Surin stir-fried some Black Jasmine, Red Jasmine and Whole-grained Jasmine in our organic rice bran oil, along with some local potatoes, sesame and egg. All the dishes were fresh and delicious, prepared by the same women who produced their ingredients,

The day featured a discussion on the meaning of Slow Food in Thailand and the possibilities for our movement. Witoon Lianchamroon of Biothai started things off by asking, "why create something like this? For what reasons? Well, it's about the culture around the food system and it's process. Slow Food evokes a feeling of 'non-fast food.'" Local food, produced by small-scale farmers or indigenous plants sold at local markets - ostensibly "slow foods" - have been in Thailand for a long time, but Slow Food aims to revive knowledge about production and taste and make it accessible to consumers. Further, Thailand's food culture has changed a lot over a short period of time. Traditionally, meat was rarely eaten, mostly for holidays - but the rapid increase in consumption (of a number of unhealthy foods) has led to high cholesterol and diabetes among many Thais. Witoon pointed to an informal survey of 100 youth at a recent ActionAid event that found that of those who eat fermented fish paste, it was only eaten 4-5 times a month. Fermented fish paste is eaten daily by most rural people in northeastern Thailand.

Given Thailand's growing affection for fast food, I'd say that Slow Food could be an important response to our changing food landscape. People in Bangkok are eaters. Though someone might be genuinely interested in conscious consumption, it all begins at the market. If consumers can change their way of thinking about consumption, and about speed or convenience, and feel satisfied with food diversity (given the lack of diversity and quality in Thailand's supermarkets), Slow Food could make a difference here. And the next step would be to establish a new connection with producers. Eating is empowering and systems of consumption have influence on our markets. When we know how our food is produced, we are able to support alternative systems. Slow Food in the U.S. is a good example - Alice Waters was featured recently on 60 minutes and The New York Times just ran an article on the coming "Food Revolution." Despite slow growth in the organic food market in the U.S. right now, the growth of small farmers and Obama's move to plant a White House garden proves the point that farming and consuming sustainably is economically and socially viable.

So what does this recent event have to do with us here in Isaan? March 9th brought our regional meeting to talk about our "local foodways" approach, where representatives from Yasothon, Mahasarakam and Surin discussed ways to show the connections between producers and consumers. In each of these three provinces, we have organized Green Markets that bring organic-certified food to consumers several times a week. By highlighting these markets we can show consumers the benefits of informed consumption, or supporting local alternatives. These markets are also a kind of "new foodway" because agro-industry has begun to designate certain provinces for certain mono-cropped grains, vegetables and livestock. A vendor at a conventional public market can most likely tell you where their produce was delivered from, but not where it was grown or how it was produced. Below, cabbages, tomatoes, cucumbers, limes and papayas delivered to the Yasothon city market from Ubon Ratchatani.

Above, fermented fish sauce, tomatoes, pumpkins, mangoes, various gourds, bale fruit, chili, galangal, rice, yard-long beans, jujube, tamarind and kaffir lime leaves, all produced locally by an organic farmer/vendor at the Mahasarakam Green Market. We can prove that the foods we eat - and the culture around them - can be supported by small farmers producing a diversity of organic crops. The Bangkok event pointed out that foods often follow us - the range of ethnic communities throughout the city has generated different types of public markets carrying a range of products. For Isaan's provinces - be they Lao or Khmer - the fruits and vegetables, pork and fish that we eat, are all central to our culture. A diversified, regional food network supports consumer health, the environment and in the words of P' Ubon Yuwa, creates "new communities." Slow Food enables producers and consumers to reconnect with clear information about the food they share.

Youth & Organic Farming in Baan Nonyang

I made it up to Kudchum, Yasothon province for part of the Nonyang Village Organic Learning Center's "Youth Session" on the weekend of March 7-8. Below are some photos and notes from the events. There were youth in attendance from Yasothon, Mahasarakam, Roi Et and Kalasin provinces - mostly high school students (many of which are about to finish school and begin looking for employment). The goal of the weekend was to teach the youth groups about organic farming as a career, introduce a few different techniques, and motivate the youth to continue with group activities or campaigns related to organic farming - like those of the Kids Love Nature group in Surin or Wai Sai Hua Jai in Yasothon. Thanks to P' Breeo and Udee for inviting me to join in on the fun!

Mae Tanai kicked off Sunday's activities with a brief talk about her experience of becoming an organic farmer. She had worked in Bangkok for a number of years before coming home to pursue a new career at home in Mahasarakam. She pointed out a number of valuable things, "farming is the basis for a secure livelihood and freedom. We all have 24 hours in a day - but it's up to us how we use them. We have a choice to pursue the labor market, but given the economic crisis, I believe that farming is a better alternative." I think her words got everyone thinking before we went out to spend our remaining 12 hours learning more about organic farming.

Learning to make dish soap from natural ingredients

The group was split in two before heading out to Paw Taa and Paw Noi's fields. With Paw Taa, each group learned about rice seed selection and SRI planting methods. With Paw Noi, they learned about various grafting and tree pruning techniques, including Dragonfruit, Mango and Longan.

Nu, from the Wai Sai Hua Jai group, picks out the best rice grains for seeding. The kids used magnifying glasses to see the characteristics of each grain more clearly - especially the "nose," where the roots will eventually emerge.

Having selected the best seeds, they are planted in a burnt rice husk mixture and watered for about 2 weeks, until they are ready to be planted in the paddy, one seedling at a time. Below, 20 day old seedlings in one of Paw Taa's dry-season, seed-saving paddies.

Over at Paw Noi's fields, Paw Lurn and Paw Noi gave the group a lesson on Dragonfruit grafting, Paw Jong gave a lesson on Mango grafting and Paw Anon taught about rootstock grafting for Longan.

There are three main varieties of Dragonfruit, based on their white, yellow and purple colors. March and April are their fertilizing months - male plants tend to be wider, female plants more narrow - and they pollinate during the evening time.

Udee ties on the coconut husk mixture that will create a micro-environment for new Longan roots. The Alternative School project at Jalurn Suk School also practiced this back in October, with Guava trees.

The afternoon's sessions were definitely educational, but I think the kids were pretty hot and tired by the evening. Thankfully, a big dinner-tasting/party was in the works for that night and everyone had a lot of fun. Each meal was presented based on the homes that the kids stayed in, and they got up in front of everyone and explained where the ingredients came from (unfortunately, the cookies were purchased), how they were produced and then gave a short advertisement for their dish. Afterward, we all shared the food together and had a little jam session with music and drama performances.

Paw Taa: "answer proudly that you are farmers' children!"

While it's hard to expect rural youth to jump right into organic farming for their career - especially given family situation, inherited debt or other obligations - activities like the Youth Session are important ways for kids to learn more about self-reliance and the alternative of organic farming. A lot of the youth in these groups may go right to Bangkok and work for a few years, or spend most of the cold and dry seasons working in different hired labor jobs. But when they come home to support their parents or begin a family, farmers' groups within the AAN feel it's important to teach them about the community-based opportunities provided by organic farming. I applaud the youth-focused work of P' Breeo, Udee and their student team from Mahasarakam - it is essential in the effort to bring young people into Isaan's movement for sustainable agriculture. Plus, they are just really good at what they do and understand clearly where rural youth are coming from.

Surin Organic Learning Center: Session 1

Isn't that a beautiful design?

It's been a while since our last post - as usual, SFS and the AAN have been up to a lot in recent weeks. And on the eve of the Organic Learning Center's Session 2, it's fitting to finally post an update from Session 1. We hope to write a post on Session 2 when it wraps-up on the 26th.

Thanks to funding from the Office of Agriculture and Cooperatives – an organization of the Ministry of Agriculture – we were able to organize our first “Village Wiseman’s Center and Development Network” in over two years. There were 33 farmers attending from Ban Khlot, Khok Yang sub-district and from Ban Pru, Grasang district, in Buriram province. P’ Chaiyo, leader of the Ban Pru group and TAO for the sub-district, who has already begun his transition to organic farming, was there to help other members feel ready to start farming organically. Ban Khlot still grows mostly rice, but a lot of sugarcane, rubber and cassava are entering the district. In addition, a lot of the farmers in the group were here because they were concerned about their health and wanted to lower input costs. One farmer from Khok Tohm village has been using chemicals for 46 years – that’s exactly when they were first introduced to northeastern Thailand.

One of the first things we asked the group to think about throughout the session was, “why have villagers changed, and started this movement for sustainable agriculture?”

Day one started off with Paw Samrit’s (former president of Rice Fund Surin) inspiring, passionate talk about the opportunity to farm organically. Land ownership isn’t the limitation; it’s about the opportunity to begin, and by learning together, farmers can find a solution. He also explained a simple input/output cycle: chemicals come in, create ruined soil, health and environment and out comes debt. Farmers will need to take what they’ve learned at the learning center and apply it in their own lives and practices. Forming a group and working together is essential – a farmer can’t do it all alone. P’ Nok added, “maybe we don’t give you money to use, to lower your debts – but organic farming is what you can use to lower them.”

P’ Bresong, who was also presenting to the group, added, “when I was working in Bangkok for a few years, I realized that if I worked these hours at home, I’d be able to make it as a farmer.” P’ Bresong, the president of the Tatoom farmers’ group, a Rice Fund Surin committee member, and a leader in the AAN, has only 8 rai of land and raises 5 cows.

The group watched an episode of “Pandin Thai” - a program sponsored by Thai Health Foundation - about the global “4 Crises” and their impacts in Thailand: society, economy, political and environmental. The section on the economic crisis certainly stood out the most: instead of talking about the credit crisis or bank collapses, they interviewed Isaan farmers who were homeless, waiting on the street to find work in Bangkok. Going to find employment in Bangkok is not a new phenomenon for Isaan farmers, but reality is stting in that this rural-urban cycle is economically unsustainable. The belief that remittances can be the basis for rural livelihoods is being challenged by this current crisis. In the interviews, the farmers were asked about their situation, how they wound up looking for work in Bangkok, and so on. Some answered solemnly about how difficult it was to live at home and the need to find work to pay off debt; that this was how life was for Isaan people.

But a few farmers, sitting outside a temple waiting for some donated food and trucks to come pick them up, were both animated and angry. In one scene, a man runs away from the camera to try and jump in the bed of a pickup truck, but can’t get on – only two men are picked-up per truck. In another scene, when a man from Khorat province is asked why he’s in Bangkok, he answers, “I used to plant and eat rice like my brothers and sisters, but look at this [pointing at the bags of donated food from the temple]. I would plant rice, corn and chili, but I couldn’t survive planting them!! I’d harvest the rice, pay off some debt, and then take out a new loan to buy corn seeds and fertilizers. I’d harvest the corn, pay off some of that debt, and then buy chili seeds and pesticides!!!” He explained an un-ending cycle of debt accumulation that resulted in the loss of land and livelihood – he had no choice but to come and find work in Bangkok. The video was pretty unsettling. But I think it spoke loudly to a lot of the farmers who had come to learn about organic farming – almost everyone had gone to find work in Bangkok for some period of their life.

On day 1, Paw Samrit had emphasized the importance of learning via farmer-to-farmer exchange, and the ways that it makes sustainable practices real. For day 2, we moved into Donlengthai village, which we spent introducing practices and then actively learning them. The morning session focused on soil improvement – green manure crops (atmospheric nitrogen-fixing) like green beans, “pra” beans, peanuts and “snow Africa” (still can’t translate that one) as well as several types of fermented compost, and herbal pesticides. By the end of the morning, farmers answered confidently and in chorus: “Yes!” when asked if they thought they could make organic fertilizers themselves.


The afternoon was spent teaching about seed selection and SRI techniques. There was also discussion about larger issues like corporate control over seeds, which made small things like seed selection more important, as CP is already taking on all aspects of production and markets. The goal of these kinds of conversations is to empower farmers to think for themselves and “plant the seed” for critical thought. Later in the afternoon, we also got a visit from the Office of Agriculture and Cooperatives – everyone got the “sufficiency economy” talk and they stressed, “if this doesn’t produce results, then we’ll stop supporting this project.” Not sure if this was a encouraging message or not…nevertheless, we're thankful for their generous support.

The evening discussion focused on forming a group to support organic farming and village self-reliance. P’ Pakphum pointed out that creating a group is about creating power for yourselves, about creating an alternative - “a demand for fairness and justice” from the government and agri-corporations...he was skipping a bit too far ahead. Thankfully, P’ Jansee got back to basics, “you need clear goals and clear leaders to succeed," and talked about the process of forming their group. To wrap things up, P’ Samrat put out a clear invitation to the group, to continue working with the Donlengthai farmers’ group and that they are here to support new farmers – “we’ve taken this time teaching because we want you to learn and do – please keep in touch with us in the future" (we're also planning to do follow up visits with their group).

After reflection on the first evening, farmers were still unsure about going forward with the transition – despite having new tools to work with. Without a doubt, Farming organically here in Isaan is about changing one’s way of thinking – how do we convince farmers that this is the right move? Or, how do we enable them to realize a solution, a genuine alternative? The organic learning center provided farmers the opportunity to try out new techniques, to pursue the aspects of organic farming that they are interested or feel they may be skilled in. In this way, it’s about taking small steps to build an alternative – making organic compost for the coming planting season or investing in a few piglets to generate lots of free, high quality manure for your fields and pork for local markets.

P Boh jumps into the pen for some demonstration

And so, on day 3, the student-farmers learned about raising organic pigs and making various forms of herbal composts for pig feed and rice paddy fertilization. P’ Kanya – Tabthai village’s livestock wise-woman – gave a clear explanation of the goals of raising pigs, “it isn’t necessarily about the market, but it’s about our organic farming system and creating community food security.” Producing 2-3 pigs for the Green Market every Saturday is largely a by-product of he efforts to lower organic fertilizer costs by raising pigs, yet today she can hardly keep up with the orders for piglets and butchered pork. She also put it right to the young men in the group - who had been horsing around in the front row while she was speaking – “you need to pay attention, learn new skills and so something for your families. Some day, you are going to be grown-ups and some day, you’re going to need to be responsible.” That got them quiet and attentive! Yet all too often youth in rural communities have no interest in agriculture as a career and fall into the debt cycle of chemical farming without ever finding sustainable work off-farm. For the rest of the day, folks got down and dirty, making several types of compost – including a mixture of “Smiley Garbage” with pig manure and rice bran. The afternoon also featured a biodiesel lesson, which everyone really enjoyed. The young guys in the group got to fuel up a tractor with a pre-prepared liter and drive it around the village.

Day 4 brought a representative from the Cooperative Account Inspection office to teach farmers about how to use the accounting books they were given on the first day. Being able to keep track of expenses and income earned is essential for small-scale farmers, who are often in debt of up to 100 thousand baht (almost 3,000 USD). Not a single farmer in the group earned money in the last year. By managing money in paper, farmers can provide proof of how they decide to spend money or how they earn money, which is essential when applying for bank loans or paying off debt.

Once the group got through the accounting lesson, P Nok got out the biodiesel kit to wrap up the process started on the afternoon of Day 4 - the villagers' got to take home a few free liters of biodiesel. Paw Samrit and P’ Bresong came back to bring it all together. Paw Samrit pointed out that pursuing alternative agriculture is about “finding a place to stand” – it’s a process and way to develop and though the ecology isn’t the same in every farmers’ fields (thus providing different environmental challenges), “in the end, you’ll smile like champions.” He continued later, “we always look in front of us, see others and ask, ‘how do they do it?’” But we need to be able to see what we have and what we’ll be able to do – maybe making biodiesel is jumping too far ahead – we need to able to feed ourselves, first.”

Maybe this answers the question of why farmers have switched to farming organically?

Parallel universes: A rice farmer's point of view on U.S.-European GMO attitudes

From The Ethicurean - a blog that looks critically at all aspects of the food system:

Parallel universes: A rice farmer’s point of view on U.S.-European GMO attitudes

Wanted to share this post by Greg Massa, a California rice farmer who has exchanged with several farmers from our network. While he writes, "One [U.S.] farmer told me that it lets you ‘farm dumb’ so that you don’t actually need to think about farming anymore," farmers like Greg Massa, P' Samrat Thong-iam and Paw Man Samsee provide a powerful example of what it means to "farm smart." In the winter of 2007 - thanks to the work of ENGAGE - the three farmers (photo below, with Chris Westcott, ENGAGE member and former coordinator) were able to meet together and exchange about GMOs, as well as their movement for organic rice farming.

(Greg's irrigation system - a little bit different from Samrat's rain-fed paddies.)

The example of past ENGAGE tours is a chance to present one of our new ideas - We're hoping to organize a U.S.-to-Thailand tour for U.S. farmers, consumers and organizers/activists. We invite you to come to northeastern Thailand and exchange further with our network about the global movement for sustainable agriculture as well as the global stuggle against agro-imperialism.

As folks here often say, "We're fighting the same fight!"

By creating new opportunities for exchange and movement-building, Thailand's Alternative Agriculture Network (AAN) can only grow stronger. If you or someone you know might be interested in a "Food Sovereignty Delegation"-type tour like this - for Jan/Feb 2010 - please contact us or feel free to comment on this post! All feedback is welcome!

Expropriation of Cargill?

Not many details here, but this recent Wall Street Journal piece got me thinking. Talk about a clash of the world's two largest paradigms.

It's an odd confrontation with capitalism, from a socialist government dependent on oil exports. Cargill is the world's largest grain processor/trader and the seventh largest food corporation in the world. Venezuela's gross national income is over 210 million (just below Thailand's). Venezuelan people - also like Thai people - depend on rice as a daily staple.

Venezuela already faces food shortages and nationalizing further doesn't seem to be a solution.
What are the implications for food security? How is this kind of populism an alternative? If agribusinesses like Cargill didn't control supply, would Venezuelan communities be able to create local food systems?

''Prepare the decree and we'll expropriate Cargill."

In other news, we've just wrapped up this week's "Organic Learning Center" with villagers from Ban Khlot, in Khok Yang sub-district and from Ban Pru, Grasang district, Buriram province. Focusing on low input costs and farming to provide healthy food turned out to be a worthwhile approach with these farmers, who are just beginning their transition to farming organically. More to come once the photos are ready...