It is often said that nobody who’s willing
to work will ever starve in Thailand. A 13th
century king’s praise for his homeland,
inscribed in stone and memorized by schoolchildren,
proclaims that “there is rice in the fields,
and fish in the waters.” Even in hard
times like today, the country’s natural
wealth continues to provide hopes and a livelihood
for its sons and daughters.
Thailand’s geographic location spans
a length of more than 1,600 kilometers—roughly
the distance from New York to Miami—which
means its climate and plant and animal life
are the most diverse in Southeast Asia. The
country is therefore able to grow tropical,
sub-tropical, and temperate lowland and lowland
crops for domestic consumption and export. Rice
has always been the most important crop, and
many varieties have been developed over the
year to suit the climate and soil types of different
region. Cash crops such as rubber, cassava,
maize, soybean, tobacco, sugar cane and pineapple
were introduced in the 1950s and 1960s. Since
then Thailand has become one of the world’s
major food producers, and looks set to keep
its place into the next millenium.
It is impossible to talk about agriculture
in Thailand and not mention the Royal Projects.
The first of these were started in the early
1970s with the goal of improving the living
standards of hilltribe people in the North and
wean them off opium cultivation. Temperate-climate
fruits and vegetables were introduced as replacement
crops. These as well as later projects have
proved very successful both in eliminating opium
growing and promoting new farming methods in
the northern provinces of Chiang Mai, Chiangrai,
Lumphun and Mae Hong Son, all of which offer
abundant opportunity for agrotourists. The Royal
Project Foundation has four research stations
and 34 development centers which work to support
farmers in selecting crops, improving farm management,
and helping to preserve the environment. The
Foundation also helps farmers with marketing,
packaging and processing. Products are marketed
under the brand name Doi Kham and are available
at supermarkets and at the Farmers Market near
Chatuchak Park.
Traditional farm life varies from region to
region. The Central Plains are known as the
country’s rice bowl, but the crop is grown
everywhere. Though mechanization is taking over
in some parts, manual labor is still in wide
use, from planting to harvesting. Rice is grown
year round in the Central Plains, but elsewhere
the planting cycle is fixed. Most of the country
starts planting in May or June and harvests
the crop between October and December. The South,
which has a different rainfall pattern, starts
planting between July and September and harvests
its crop between February and March. There are
fascinating rituals surrounding each step of
farming, and harvest time is the best time to
stop by and see the farmers at work, especially
in villages where farming is not yet commercialized.
It is possible to visit the rice fields during
harvest time, and at some facilities, such as
Maejo University in Chiang Mai, you can try
your hands at planting or harvesting the rice
in their demonstration fields.
both coasts of the Gulf of Thailand. The Eastern
provinces receive the southwest monsoon that
makes them greener and wetter than the rest
of the country. They produce quality rambutan,
mangosteen and some of the best durians for
local and overseas markets. Provinces southwest
of Bangkok are also fruit growers, though the
list varies from one to the next, and cottage
industries long ago sprung up to absorb oversupplies.
A visit to these quaint little factories offers
an opportunity to sample their products and
take home some of the best.
Thailand’s agrotourism to a large extent
shares a boundary with eco and cultural tourism,
since farm life is inseparable from local culture
and heritage. Agrotourism centers run by the
Department of Agricultural Extension offer tours
of local farms with nature exploration and home
stay in the villages. Some agro destinations
can be enjoyable stops on a long trip, offering
sightseeing, education and shopping pportunities
in one packages.
