Banyoyai Family Life
Mr. Sawai Banyoyai was born in 1958 at Dawnchai village, Maeta subdistrict, Sangampaeng district, Chiangmai.  He has an equivalent grade 4 education.  At the age of 19 he married Ms. Sreeawn and they now have two children - a boy presently 16 and a girl 9 years old.  The boy is finishing his last year of ‘high school’.  The girl is finishing grade 4.  All family members hold Thai citizenship, follow Bhuddism and speak both of the Northern dialects (Yawng and Muang).  Available agricultural labour consists of Mr. and Mrs. Banyoyai as the son is mostly unavailable during the semester and the daughter is too young.  Besides their house, the Banyoyai family have all the modern conveniences including a pick-up truck, a motorcycle, t.v., stereo, etc.... And 4 plots of land.

A Community Sustaining Itself in the Face of Change
Today Mr. Sawai and his family live in Bannodt of Maeta subdistrict, Chiangmai.  It is a community over 200 years old which has managed to maintain its own wonderful local culture to the present.  The area is 80% highlands.  The remaining 20% is a flat broad basin lying on a North/South axis.  Average land holdings of the community members is 5.2 rai per household.

In the past the community lived the typical life of gathering food from the forest.  They also planted rice in the basin and practised swidden agriculture, planting various vegetables following the seasons.  They developed local irrigation systems allowing for bountiful crops.  Produce in excess of family needs were traded for other goods such as salt, tea and assorted tools like knives, hoes and shovels.

In 1937 villagers started planting tobacco as a cash crop.  They were selling it to a local curing house until it shut down under financial problems.  Other agribusiness/cash crop efforts started taking its place as a result of export promotion policies of the government.  The original agricultural production methods of the villagers, therefore, started to change.

Some Life Experiences of Mr. Sawai
Mr. Sawai started in agriculture at the age of 11.  He helped his aunt and uncle plant tobacco, green beans, peanuts and kale and tomatoes for sale to a private company.  Tobacco was the base crop and sold for 0.3-1.8 baht/kg.  Although Mr. Sawai was still young, he was an energetic, independent thinker which may be ascribed to his parents having separated, leaving him to live with his greater family.

In 1975-76 he started looking outside the community for labour jobs.  His first target was Chiangmai where he assisted in motorcylce repair and also found work as construction labour.  His daily income was 30 baht (food being provided by the employer).  He was then without work for about a year.  Then, at the age of 19, a friend told him of work opportunities in Bangkok.  It was construction work.  He also got some work making sails for boats.  His daily income was 30 baht (food NOT provided).  He had enough to live on but none to save.  He kept this up for 3-4 months until tiring of Bangkok and the routine. He began to think of home and his old life.  What he had now was not a life.  He managed to save up 300 baht and returned home.  being a labourer is like being a slave - no freedom, no comfort, only difficulties and working morning to night.

Substistence Through Agriculture
In the year 1976-77 Mr. Sawai was cash cropping tobacco for sale to the ThaiAm company.  In a separate 3 rai plot he planted enough peanuts and rice for home consumption.  All the while growing tobacco, Mr. Sawai and his wife recounted that "we had to work day and night, we couldn’t really rest.  Our physical health was deteriorating.  We were going to the hospital 3-4 times a year because of the chemicals we had to spray in protecting the tobacco."

The income form the tobacco was enough to raise the family day by day.  During the years ‘77-’78, in addition to cash cropping, Mr. Sawai was also a ‘travelling salesman’.  He would bring the wares of the surrounding villages to market in the muang.  He would transport goods to and from the city of Lampoon and Chiangmai.  He also started buying and selling livestock in both directions as well.  The income from this activity was not excessive but helped cover his agriculture debts.  He still wasn’t happy, however, for he had no family time.  He was on the road all the time.  Expenses towards friends were high as acquaintances flocked to him for help.  He longed for the warmth and genuine love of his family.

Sreeawn, Mr. Sawai’s wife, referring to this period, said "Those years were very difficult, very fragile.  There was much uncertainty because my husband was never at home.  I had to stay home worried, uneasy about the whereabouts of my husband.  I had to wait, worrying about my husband driving at night, worry about theft, hold-ups, and the possible betrayal of the buyers of our goods.  I just wasn’t happy.  On top of all that I still had the tobacco to plant; breathing those chemicals.  I think those chemicals are the cause of my son’s weak physique - he is small and must go to the hospital often.  That is unlike his sister who is strong and clever."

In 1982 the family started planting baby corn as a commercial crop under contract.  The seed was purchased from the contract company and the cost increased each year.  They began to feel all companies were the same.  In 1992 they completely got out of commercial cropping, but the decision and the change did not happen suddenly.

An Important Turning Point
During 1986-87 they became acquainted with community development organizations that were promoting and supporting the establishment of village level organizations.  Later, through the years 1988-93 many such groups were established; for example rice cooperatives, shops, women’s groups and livestock cooperatives.  There were also established inter-village troubleshooting networks.  Through these various groups, villages wer provided a forum for exchange of ideas, solutions, techniques and other of life’s experiences be it news or simply social intercourse.

In May 1993 some members of this network assembled to start producing pesticide free produce. The various community development projects such as the Alternative Agriculture Market, the Network Development Project and the District Agriculture Office (the Sangampaeng agriculture office) all supported the effort by assisting in the planning, market studies and the finer elements of organic agriculture.

In these 8 or 9 years since Mr. Sawai’s return to farming, he was constantly increasing his land holdings, form the original 3 rai, by two or three rai a year when the funds were available.  He borrowed whatever he could from the Agriculture and Cooperative Bank.  In 1987 he decided he’d go whole hog and borrow 180000 baht.  He had decided that buying land to raise livestock and not just vegetables was the only means of clearing himself of debt once and for all.  At 12% per annum it was necessary to raise cash fast.  He felt that possibility lay in rasing oxen, swine, fowl and fish.  Today he is free of agricultural debt (though not easily accomplished) and he holds 21 rai of land.

Equally important in his turning to organic agriculture in his turning to organic agriculture was his experience running goods between villages and the cities.  He saw himself getting older without getting out of the rut.  Even at the outset of organic agriculture, life was very difficult.  Patience was necessary all the time.  But he saw his future years being easier.  He focused only on producing for family consumption.  If there were extra he would sell it.  He planted fruit and vegetables.  His greater family benefitted from excess produce too.  He was finally seeing happiness in his family life and the warmth he was hoping for as well as good health.  It also made him feel good about being able to congtribute to the ammelioration of his natural environment.

Overhauling His Agricultural Systems
Mr. Sawai was involved with the Community Organizations Development Program from 1989-92.  this provided not only a forum for exchange of knowledge but also opportunities to study, firsthand, established organic efforts in Issan.  It was this exposure that led Mr. Sawai to try some mixed agriculture.  In 1989 he planted tamarind over 12 rai of land.  He was still cash cropping baby corn at this time (stopping, as mentioned above, in 1992).

The year he stopped cash cropping he dug two reservoirs to rear fish.  The reservoirs are 20x30m x 4m deep and cost approximately 40000baht to dig.  He notes that
 1.  he can plant many fruit trees such as banana, mango, lamyai and a local fruit [¼Ñ¡§Ç¹] as well as raise chickens on the well perimeters.  He can also water his garden using a pump;
 2.  fish can be raised all year round for home consumption or sale (fish can bring up to 40baht/kg) providing assistance in the lean production periods.

He has water all year as his reservoirs are spring fed.  In the first few years his reservoirs were almost always full.  Today the levels remain much lower due to forestry impacts.  Speaking to this observation, Mr. Sawai says "If it weren’t for the efforts in maintaining and rescusitating the forests I would have very little water.  I doubt if I would realize any fruition frm my labours.  I would have to rely solely on rain water."

Developing a System that Worked
I.  Raising livestock for his ‘guaranteed’ income:
He started raising chickens for meat and manure - 1000 of them.  He started in December, 1991.  They had a rearing time of 8-9 months.  In March 1992 the chicken prices started dropping fast and feed costs soared.  He stopped raising chickens.

When he dug his fish ponds in1992 he released 337 hatclings.  He sells some but mostly they end up as home consumption.  From March until September, 1992 he tried raising some swine - a total of 15 pigs at a purchase price of 750 baht per head.  He raised then for 6-7 months at an average cost per head of 2500 baht.  He was only able to sell each animal for 1200 baht - a loss of approximately 36000 baht.  He stopped raising pigs.

He also tried to raise oxen during this same period.  He bought 10 head at 7000 baht each.  They were raised over a 5 month period.  They were sold in August  at a profitof 1500 baht per head.  These animals require not outlay what-so-ever.  They will feed adequately on corn and rice stalks and grass.  He bought more oxen to raise after this.

II.  Pesticide Free Produce:
 -  Fruit trees for the long term.  It was also viewed that more trees would be a better natural balance.  Mr. Sawai planted 42 tamarind trees, 80 custard apple, 12 bamboo clusters, 50 papaya and a number of mango, lamyai, wild mangosteen, pomelo, banana, neem and others.

 -  Pesticide free vegetables:  Vegetables were planted mainly for family consumption but he also realized immediate income from excess produce.  He had planted various local herbs and vegetables such as cha-ohm, gourds, sesbania, kaffir lime, basil, citronella grass, lemon grass, ginger, galangal and other species.  He planted many local varieties as they would take well and he would be sure to get produce regularly - with little nurturing or other maintenance necessary!

Other seasonal vegetables and herbs he would plant in an alternating manner following the appropriate season, making use of his land all year round.  Examples of such species are lettuce, kale, ‘morning glory’, pumpkin, cucumber, eggplant, various beans and coriander, etc.  In any one field, Mr. Sawai won’t plant one type of plant consecutively.  Consecutive plantings, he feels, reduces the yield.  He therefore either plants mixed plots or rotates the crops - for example rice then beans.

Income and Expenses on the Banyoyai Farm
Comparing income before and after converting to a ‘low input’ farming system (figures listed are baht per year):
 
 

Today’s income is less than previous income but his expenses are considerably lower today than they were in earlier, cash cropping years.  Mr. Sawai breaks down his present expenses as follows (baht per year):

1.  Average cost of food still necessary to buy: 18 000
2.  Various ‘making merit’ contributions:  2 000
3.  Assorted greater family expenses:   5 000
4.  Children’s needs:   50 000
5.  Household expenses:   10 000
                TOTAL    85 000

In the past, Mr. Sawais expenses were far greater than this - particularly money put out for food and hospital costs.  The expenses that are rising greatest today are his kids schooling cost.  Presently Mr. Sawai has an outstanding loan 100 000 baht for a new pick up truck

Production Techniques
1. When planting the vegetable seedlings, one often has problems with shoot rot, wilting or other fungal diseases.  Mr. Sawai sprinkles the ashes of rice straw on the field beforehand.  The seedlings reportedly grow well and he has little problem with fungal diseases.  Regular watering is also essential but not so as to make the soil too muddy.

2.  It is important, in preparing your field for planting, to first turn the soil so as to allow it to air dry approximately seven to ten days.  Then smooth out the soil and add manure.  Water the field every day for 5 days.  You can then add more manure if desired/available and plant your vegetables.  the reason for giving the manure 5 days to work is that the seedbed at the initial addition of manure will be too warm due to the biological processing of the maure.  The percent germination will be noticeably lower if this process is not adhered to.

3.  Pest control:  All weed species should be pulled from the field as a pre-planting measure and the field then planted as soon as possible.  The quicker the soil surface can be shaded over by the desired plants, weeds will have a difficult time to sprout.  Crops should always be planted in alternating succession.  Furthermore; at least two species should be planted simultaneously.  This will help in breaking up pest insect life cycles.  Species planted simultaneously should, therefore, be species that do not attract the same pest.  It should be kept in mind how competitive plants will be for sunlight and nutrients (consider plant height and root depth).  Some species, like tomatoe, can actually repel some insect pests.  It is also beneficial to plant local herbs either mized together in the field or between fields - plants such as sweet basil, basil, ginger, galangal, lemon grass, citronella grass, etc. which are effective in controlling the spread of pests.  Lizards and birds are also of benefit in a low input system as they eat pest insects.  Finally, it should be known that other insects can be of benefit to the low input farm as they too prey on some pest insect species.

4.  Weed control: Natural weed contrl involves pulling out or plowing under the weeds and then ensuring your crops cover the soil surface adequately to prevent weed reemergence.  High percent soil cover also aids in soil moisture retention.  If the weeds are pulled out they can be composted for later use as a fertilizer or dried in the sun and then spread over the soil as a moisture barrier.

5.  Soil ammelioration:  This can be achieved naturally by the above steps as well as by the use of legumes as green manures - especially peanuts and/or green, yellow, black or long beans.  Mr. Sawai has seen an 85% increase in productivity using beans as a nitrogen source.

6.  Mr. Sawai uses water pumped from his fish ponds when rain water in insufficient.  He has lines running to each plot.  During the cool season he spreads rice straw to cover the soil surface to reduce dessication.

7.  Management:  He keeps to a minimum the hiring of help.  He tries to rely on family only.  Mr. Sawai prepares the fields.  His wife Sreeawn plants the crops and his daughter waters the fields morning and night.  The son helps haul manure on weekends.  He uses various tools such as pumps and sprinklers as appropriate so as to minimize farm labour and thereby minimizing family expenses.

Managing Production for Home Consumption and Sale
Essentially all of the produce planted are family favourites as production is focused on family needs.  If Mr. Sawai has business in town he’ll pack a lunch from home as he knows it’s safer and less expensive.  It is also deemed very important by Mr. Sawai that "If a farmer wants to stay a farmer that person will have to understand the market - what’s selling at what price.  They have to know the people in the market.  Those agents are very important in country folks lives."  He, himself, has been fortunate in being able to study the market carefully in his cooperation with the Imboon Pesticide Free Market in Chiangmai, as well as his work with Green Net in Bangkok enlarging the organic market.  It was this group that was the progenitor of the alternative agriculture products producers and consumers groups as discussed earlier.

His knowledge of organic produce and markets led him to be a distributor of organic produce but he did not pursue that avenue too far as it interrupted his family life and cut in on his time for his own garden.  In order to expand the distribution of his own products, Mr. Sawai made three steps:
 1.  He sold produce at the local market AND at his farm.  He distributed his produce daily and therefore got to know many people.  These people began requesting his produce regularly and became a daily source of income.  Sreewan is the sales lady at the market.
 2.  The organic producers group sent produce every two days to the Muag in line with prescribed quotas.  Goods were distributed to Chiangmai, Lampoon and Bangkok as well as assorted stores in between.
 3.  Food processing was also undertakn such as the drying of herbs and fruit such as lamyai and banana.  Such processing is to fill various distributor requests but is done when time and/or produce is available.

Advantages Gained by Changing to an Organic System

 Farm Ecosystem:
Soil and Water:  After the cessation of application of chemical fertilizers, and applying manure, compost and green manure in their stead, the soil changed from a hard dry soil to a loose, friable earth.  The soil started holding the nutrients necessary for bountiful growth.  He noted a much greater rate of decay of applied organic matter suggesting the reestablishment of a healthy soil microbiological community.  Another popular healthy soil indicator, the earthworm, returned to Mr. Sawai’s farm, along with insects and other soil macrobiota.  This all adds up to increased moisture retention and aeration as well - all the ingredients for healthy, bountiful crop growth.

 Insects and Disease:

After stopping spraying insecticides, Mr. Sawai noticed the return of many varied species of insects both pest and nonpest species.  This allowed for natural population control, limiting the number of any one species.  Examples of benificial types of insects are spiders, hornets, mantis and dragonfly.

Disease control lies in the selection of tolerant (usually local) varieties of plants.  Also, Mr Sawai notes, planting during the rainy season allows for the easy spread of disease.  During the dry season only scattered occurences are noticed.  Disease resistance relies greatly on the strength and condition of the plant and therefore directly on the condition of the soil.

 Other Natural Animals:

The population of other animals, for example; frogs, toads, birds and mice have all increased.  Generally this is beneficial to the farm as they tend to eat other pest species.

Family Health
While cash cropping, Mr. Sawai reports; "Myself and my wife would have to go to the hospital almost every week with headspins ang general fatique, irregular heartbeat, unable to sleep normally and often with fevers.  What money we had left after buying food went to hospital bills.  We had very little money left to save.  Our mental health was starting to deteriorate."  Today there is no more of that.

In today’s production there are no chemicals at all.  The whole family now enjoys the farming activities.  They have safe food to eat every day.  They don’t have to be concernec with middle men, with company representatives.  There is a lot of family time now.  Body and soul are healthy and free.

Community Importance
Because organic agriculture is a practise that demands a lot of patience and determination all the time, a strong community really helps.  In Mr. Sawai’s area many farmers are into organic agriculture and they help each other by sharing new ideas, technologies and time spent going to see other operations.  they also share the duties of bringing produce to market and finally dissemination of the benefits of organic agriculture.  IN particular they spread the word about the dangers of chemicals in agricultural production.  After three years od community efforts, they have noticed an increase in people coming to see and learn - mostly people wanting to learn some safer agricultural methods for the family garden.  Some people come to buy the organic produce - for their family or for parties/ assemblies, etc.  Sale of village produce has been steadily climbing.  It would seem these people prefer to come straight to the producer to buy than to buy from some market removed from the producer.

Government Offices and NGO’s
As their word about pesticide free produce spread, the numbers of groups coming to study and observe and share and support grew steadily.  Community level government units have offered support in various aspects of production; for example providing new seed varieties, providing seedlings and various production and processing equipment and supplies.  Other offices have come to do research.  There have been radio and television news reports and features on the community’s progress.  Community members have even been retained as resource personnel.  The reception was most definitely positive.

Features That Encouraged the Acceptance of an Organic System

INTERNAL
1.  The complete failure of ‘new age’ system of cash cropping - cash cropping only offered little choice, middle men, company attitude and others profiting from your hard labour.

2.  Exposure to the requisite chemicals of ‘new age’ agriculture is a health risk and is only an added expense.  The exposure is regular and each year the necessary volume increased, increasing exposure.

3.  Safe food being available from personal organic production.  Embracing ‘new age’ agriculture means having to buy your own food and not being sure of its toxicity.  Embracing organic agriculture provides a means for planting lots of safe food for your family - needing to purchase only very little food.

4.  The ready acceptance shown by his family towards this system.  They all partake and all enjoy the benefits.

5. His land was appropriate for organic agriculture - he has water available all year from his wells.  The lay of the land - mostly a flat basin - is easy to work.

6.  Regular income all year is a definite bonus.  Sale of fish, vegetables and fruit provide a daily source of income, thereby providing scholling money and money for a few creature comforts of life.

 EXTERNAL
1.  The support of NGO’s in training of production and marketing systems.  They sent him to study and training sessions.  Through revolving funds set up by NGO’s, his local group was able to acquire various necessary tools for organic production.  All the while, the NGO’s were hunting out markets and distributing produce.

2.  The market showed a strong interest in such produce.  Organic produce was becoming necessary stock items in many stores to satisfy patrons.  The only thing about the markets demand is that regional production doesn’t meet the demand.

3.  Other agriculture networks held seminars, training, etc. increasing Mr. Sawai’s exposure and appreciation of the concepts and benefits.

4.  News reports and the trend of society’s concern for conservation and ammelioration of the environment further stressed the importance of turning to an organic system.  These reports made him think about how he could contribute for his family’s gain and society’s as well.

5.  The interest outside groups showed in his efforts - he must be doing something right.  People from far and near were researching his progress.

Limitations of Organic Agriculture Systems

1.  Government support is inconsistent.  If government were to genuinely provide regular support on all aspects of organic systems, production would then be far easier to manage and more people would adopt the procedures

2.  Some species of produce planted to meet market demand are very difficult to protect from insects.  The farm ecosystem has yet to reach a balance.  Some insect species are still spreading.  It is always necessary to be finding new, chemical fre mangement techniques to protect your produce.

3.  Marketing management is difficult.  Produce is an easily spoiled product - especially during transport.  Transport and storage methods are still a rather large concern.

4.  Financing can be difficult - especially at startup.  Generally farmers are quite poor and lack adequate land holdings - or lack land tenure altogether.  Money is also required to buy new equipment.  Widespread adoption of organic methods therefore is slow.

FINAL WORD
Mr. Sawai tells us; "Farmers, if they want to have a better life, must be somewhat daring.  They must find time to learn gain new experiences.  They must be willing to try and fail - but be thinking all the time.  If things become blurred or cloudy then wait and observe other people.  If you don’t make some venturesome decisions then you’ll be left waiting for old age to take you, your mouth agape at opportunities lost."