Problems, Obstacles, and Approaches to Implement Organic Agriculture Policy: Case Study of Growing Organic Rice at Baan Dong Bang, Nong Bo, Ubonratchathani

Abstract

The research is aimed to investigating the problems and barriers of implementing organic farming policy to the related government offices and to propose the suggestion to these government offices to adjust their approaches to promoting organic agriculture in the province. The qualitative methods of this research included a literature review, focus groups, and in-depth interviews to investigate conventional and organic rice farmers, their problems and obstacles.  The interviews also included the problems and obstacles of the provincial agricultural officers and head of Nongbo Subdistrict Administrative Organization to implement organic farming promotion policy in Ban Dong Bang, Mueang District, Mu 8-9, Ubonratchathani province. Key informants comprised of conventional and organic rice farmers, provincial agricultural officers, and head of Nongbo Subdistrict Administrative Organization (SAO). The data was gathered, analyzed, triangulated, and returned to the groups of informants for additional comments. Afterward, problems, obstacles, and suggestions were addressed to Ubonratchathani Provincial Agriculture and Cooperatives Office

The research revealed that non-organic farms had four main problems: water, capital, weeds, and labor. The predominant problems of organic rice farms consisted of four essential elements: water, capital, resources of production materials, and marketing. For policy implementation, there were six problems and obstructions i.e. limitations of organic agriculture technology; lack of assistance to farmers during organic conversion; constraint of numbers of organic inspectors; Multiples standards of organic agriculture; mindset of the agricultural officers and farmers derived from conventional agriculture; and insufficient budget of Nongbo SAO.