Unlike in previous years, thousands of farming households in Triệu Phong district of central Quang Tri province see organic farming as offering a sustainable livelihood and a way out of poverty. The change in attitude has resulted from a project to produce clean rice in five local communes, funded by World Vision and Korean International Cooperation Agency. The project has taught more than 150 households to farm without using any chemical products, including pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilisers or preservatives. Farmers have been instructed to make chemical-free pesticides with garlic, chili, onions and other products that are easily available.

The new farming method has brought farmers profits twice as high as normal, since expenses on fertilisers and pesticides have been reduced while productivity remains the same or even better. It has also helped improve soil quality, and cut unemployment in the project areas.-VNA