Farmers teach each other how to go organic

Published Date: August 25, 2009

Ayurzana Oyunchimeg, a farmer from Mongolia, knows more about how to sustain an organic farming system after a Church-run program in Central Java.

Mongolian farmer Ayurzana Oyunchimeg (left)
studies the use of organic fertilizer during the program

During the Aug. 11-13 live-in portion of the program for farmers from around Asia, Oyunchimeg stayed with villagers and helped a local farmer harvest organic rice paddy planted on 560 square meters of land.

She learned about soil nutrition as well as how to produce organic fertilizer from animal manure and how to make organic pesticide.

The 51-year-old Buddhist woman said many farmers in her country were introduced to organic farming only a few years ago. At home, she grows potatoes, cucumbers, other vegetables, paprika and blueberries.

Oyunchimeg was among 29 farmers from Cambodia, Indonesia, India, Mongolia, Myanmar, the Philippines and Thailand who attended the 2009 Southeast Asia Farmers´ Conference, held Aug. 9-15 at Hening Griya retreat house in Baturaden.

Karitas Indonesia (Karina) hosted the program organized by Caritas Asia, the Catholic Church´s regional body for social service, which took over the sustainable agriculture initiative begun by Asia Partnership for Human Development (APHD). That non-governmental organization, a Bangkok-based association of Catholic development agencies from Asia and partners from other parts of the world, ceased operations in 2008.

Fransiskus Riatmono Hadi, 40, from Lampung, southern Sumatra, found the program beneficial. “I realized that many countries have developed organic farming. Now I do not feel alone in developing this kind of farming,” he said.

The Indonesian Catholic farmer has been using organic methods since 1997.

Like Oyunchimeg, Filipino farmer Leonardo Domingo also stayed in a village, where he learned about local organizing. He said he would organize farmers in his home town and share with them what he has learned.

Gabriel Baroi, a program officer of Caritas Asia, commented: “Learning directly from other farmers through a live-in program is better than merely learning from theories.”

Oyunchimeg (extreme left) helps harvest rice

He hopes participants will go a step further and “think about what kind of agricultural technology fits their locality best.”

Besides the live-in program, participants also shared experiences of promoting sustainable agriculture in their respective home places.

During the meeting, Sukram, an Agriculture, Plantation and Forestry Department officer of Central Java province´s Purbalingga district, spoke about the System of Rice Intensification, which the department is promoting among organic farmers in the district.

“This system produces many more paddy seedlings,” he said.

Vincentian Father Stephanus Bijanta, a member of Karina, told UCA News the program aimed to encourage participants to share with one another how organic farming can help one “build a relationship with God and nature.”

APHD organized annually sustainable agriculture conferences beginning in 1995.

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