How to make farmer better-off? - a lesson learned from a pamelo orchard

          Mr.Somsong  Sangtawan is a teacher who has doctor degree and retired two years earlier to work for his rural community. He owned his reputation and respect by benefit farmers in his community with organizing farmer working as group, adopt of organic farming, development of agri-tour, and successful marketing of their products pamelo.

          After 7 years trial, Mr. Somsong  Sangtawan is success in grown pamelo with organic farming and he transferred this technologies combining with elite varieties to farmers in his community. He use natural benefit insects to control pest in the pamelo orchard and developed local available organic fertilizer to produce pamelo. Those technologies reduced the cost of production and environment friendly. The taste of the organic pamelo is very good!

          The quality of pamelo is good, but how to marketing it is another important issue. To get higher market value, Mr. Somsong  Sangtawan explored a method to control following time of pamelo with manipulating water in the orchard. He can produce organic pamelo according the demand season of the international market such as Chinese New Year and get higher price from market. At the same time he organized farmers working as group to marketing their products avoiding the depriving of benefit by middle man.

          Beside Mr. Somsong  Sangtawan promote organic farming and organize farmer group of pamelo producer. He introduced agri-tour to his community. With the sound environment, more and more people from urban city come to village to enjoy the fresh air, quite countryside, and delicious local food organic pamero. Visitors purchase pamero and it to home which promote the marketing of organic pamero.

          Mr. Somsong  Sangtawan bring his farmers a better live by organic farming, farmer’s group and agricultural tour. His success story may give an example of rural development in modern society that we may need to integrate different aspects such as environment production (organic farming), social(farmer’s organization), economic (marketing) together to solve the problems in the rural development.