Organic farmers unable to meet needs of hotels, restaurants
Organic farmers unable to meet needs of hotels, restaurants
The members of nine organic vegetable grower groups in Vientiane are unable to supply sufficient vegetables to meet the needs of hotels, restaurants, resorts and entertainment venues, Vice President of the Vientiane Organic Market MrThonglorSilamath said recently.
A large number of hotels, restaurants, resorts and entertainment venues in the capital would like our growers to supply organic products including vegetables and fruit year round, but we can't make it happen, MrThonglor said.
He said farmers were keen to provide hotels and restaurants with as much produce as possible after they expressed an interest in placing orders. Several businesses had made requests and discussions among members are ongoing. Growers can supply certain kinds of vegetables but not all of those requested by hotels and restaurants. The group can grow only some kinds of vegetables and are unable to produce the wide range grown by farmers in neighbouring countries.
MrThonglor is the head of the organic vegetable grower group in Xiengda village, Xaysettha district. He said Organic farmers are currently unable to supply products to hotels and restaurants in Vientiane all year round even though these businesses would like to buy our products. Our farmers use basic crop cultivation techniques and don't grow some kinds of vegetables year round.
He also said they were unable to grow fruit as Laos does not have the same fruit growing seasons as Thailand. Farmers can only grow fruit during one season.
At present, organic farmers in Vientiane can produce about three tonnes of produce a day for sale at the Vientiane Organic Market. However, local demand was for five tonnes a day, according to MrThonglor.
Vientiane now has a population of more than 800,000 people, of whom a large number are interested in buying organic products believing them to be more healthy. Organic products are known to be safe to eat and cultivation methods are environmentally friendly.
A representative of the Lao Plaza Hotel in Vientiane said the hotel had bought some produce at the Vientiane Organic Market, some of which was imported. She said hotels and restaurants in Vientiane should support organic farmers and encourage them to grow more crop varieties such as are grown in nearby countries, then hotels won't need to import organic produce.
According to a 2015 statistical report on tourism by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, there are more than 200 hotels, 219 resorts, 100 restaurants and 39 entertainment venues in Vientiane.
MrThongloremphasised that the nine vegetable grower groups, comprising more than 100 farming families, were unable to meet the high demand from local residents, hotels and restaurants.
We [the heads of each group] have discussed the possibility of expanding the land on which crops are grown and bringing in new members. We now have 300 hectares of farmland but only a small number of farming families. Meeting the high demand from local people, hotels, and restaurants is a huge challenge for organic farmers both now and in the future, MrThonglor said .
The 100 or so farming families grow their crops on small plots of land and are not ready to grow them on a larger scale using advanced agricultural techniques, he added.
