Little organisms, big revolution
It's hard to believe, but lactic acid bacteria, fungi and yeasts could help solve the world's environmental and food problems. In the right combination - and without chemical additives - they create bigger harvests and
Little organisms, big revolution
It's hard to believe, but lactic acid bacteria, fungi and yeasts could help solve the world's environmental and food problems. In the right combination - and without chemical additives - they create bigger harvests and higher profits. Increasing numbers of tropical countries are reaping the rewards in areas such as agriculture, fishing and cattle-farming. Marco Visscher travelled through Thailand and examined the possibilities of a potential panacea.
Look, Kajornvit Yongyut has put it all down on paper. Fifteen years ago he was producing 200 kilos of mushrooms daily. For the past seven years production has increased by 25 percent, sometimes even reaching 300 kilos a day. The farm hasn't changed, nor has its surface area, and he isn't using more than the usual seven bags of compost to fertilise his mushrooms each day. How can this be?
Yongyut can't wait to explain. 'EM', short for 'effective micro-organisms', he says as if describing a magic potion. Yongyut sits back triumphantly, looking briefly disappointed that his visitor from Europe already knew the answer.
He quickly recovers and jumps up, heading for the barn. Here, racks hold thousands of 'beds' containing sawdust from rubber trees, mixed with a cocktail containing lime and gypsum, ripening until the mushrooms can be picked. This is the barn where for years Yongyut sprayed chemicals, sometimes several times a day. The poison was meant to eradicate flies and other insects, which rarely disappeared completely. All those years the heavy smell of chemicals hung in the air. Yongyut suffered from skin problems and had difficulty breathing.
Then, seven years ago, Yongyut heard about EM, which he began spraying in the barn daily. Since then, his yields have increased. He no longer needs the chemicals and his skin problems have cleared up. And what do you know, not a fly in sight.
EM is the rather dull name for a technological breakthrough, which has the potential to spectacularly impact the agriculture, horticulture, fishing and cattle-farming industries, not to mention waste processing, natural forest management and water purification. EM is a mixture of micro-organisms, including lactic acid bacteria, fungi and yeasts. When these organisms are present in the soil, they stimulate productivity and vitality. They purify the water and air present in the soil and excrete nutrients. The result: an excellent environment for plants and animals.
Teruo Higa, a horticulture professor from the University of Ryukyus in Japan, discovered EM, which he claimed significantly increased production levels. Rice fields in Japan produced 50 percent higher yields in the first year. Cucumber cultivators, which normally produce one cucumber per stalk, were able to produce four to five per stalk. The same was true for corn, with reports from some growers of up to eight ears per stalk. The most successful and remarkable example is cherry tomatoes, with yields increasing fourteen fold from 30 to 300 tomatoes per plant. EM is now being used in 116 countries: from Nepal to Canada, from China to Brazil, from Kenya to the Netherlands. The method is used most intensively in Thailand, Japan and North Korea, where EM technology has been applied on a broad scale for a myriad of reasons.
While discussing EM over a meal, Somsak Hemtanont hesitates. Tough question. 'Yes, EM can save the world,' he says thoughtfully, adding resolutely: 'but first Thailand.' The district head of Dankunthod p