Essay
The value of farms and farming
Our eyes widened. The freshly harvested banana we’d eaten was so sweet and delicious it felt like a dessert.
My friend and I were visiting Fireflies, one of a handful of soil-based organic farms in Singapore. The farm had been around for more than 25 years but the land lease was expiring.
The land had been reallocated for military use. The farmer, Cai Kien Chin, who is in his 70s, would have to tear down all the farm structures he’d painstakingly built over decades.
What was even more heartbreaking was leaving behind the nutrient-rich soil that had taken years to nurture. Determined to steer clear of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, which he believed were unsustainable and detrimental to both the earth and humans, Cai did extensive research on improving soil fertility through eco-friendly methods such as mulching and composting.
(mulch 根おおい《植えたての樹木または作物の根を保護するためにその上に木の葉･藁(わら)･土などを広げたもの》.
compost 1 〈生ごみ･草などを〉堆肥にする.2 〈土地〉に堆肥を施す.）
He had even flown to California with his wife just so they could meet and learn from renowned organic farmer Bob Cannard.
Previously a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine, Cai believed that vegetables grown without pesticides or chemical fertilizers were better for the health. Wary of the hormones and antibiotics commonly used in animal rearing, he refused to fertilise the soil with manure, even though that is usually permitted in organic farming.
His daughter could hardly hold back her tears as she spoke of how deeply her father cared for the farm and its customers. He initially sold his leafy vegetables at an unbelievably low price of $2 (Y190) per pack because he wanted organic produce to be affordable for the masses.
“To this date, the farm has never been profitable,” she said.
Many customers are sorry to see the farm go. Some encouraged the aging farmer — whom everyone calls “Cai Papa” — to bid for another plot of land, but the family doesn’t think they are likely to succeed. The trend in Singapore favours high-tech vertical farming. Besides, a new lease might last only two or three decades. It’s hard to make long-term plans for a farm within such a time frame.
Given Singapore’s small land area, we have perhaps gotten used to being uprooted. Since the 1960s, many farms have closed or been forced to relocate as demand for land use has gone up. But the government recently set a goal of “30 by 30” — producing 30% of our nutritional needs locally by 2030. Wouldn’t the closure of farms like Fireflies make it harder to achieve this goal?
Policies aside, I believe that farmers, as stewards of our land and providers of our sustenance, deserve special respect. Farmers like Cai need more recognition and appreciation. Even if they can’t keep their farms, their expertise should be valued, and the least we could do is give them opportunities to share what they know.(Tan Ying Zhen)
20220826-06x.mp3 - Google ドライブ
