Pushing Lava Soil Durian to Become Chiang Rai's Pride: One-Day Agricultural Tourism Route Linking Khao Luang National Park

Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Piyarat Chiyapairat revealed her plan following an official inspection visit to Mae Chan and Mae Sai districts in Chiang Rai on May 24, 2025. The ministry aims to promote high-value agriculture, product value-added processing, and strengthen cooperative efficiency. She met with young farmer groups at Mae Chan Municipal Market before visiting the Nan Non Durian Community Enterprise in Khui Khai subdistrict, which grows durians on volcanic soil at Doi Nan Non. These durians possess unique dense flesh, fragrant aroma, and are harvested later than other regions (July-August), commanding premium prices. The group requested support for infrastructure, processing facilities, freeze-dry equipment, and irrigation systems. Chiyapairat recommended upgrading the community enterprise to cooperative status to access low-interest financing and connecting with Khao Luang-Khun Nam Nang Noi National Park to develop a one-day agro-tourism route marketing "earth-guardian durians" for sustainable income.

The deputy minister also visited Mae Sai Agricultural Cooperative (Sri Muang Chum branch), a financially healthy cooperative with green-rated financial health status and transparent management through mobile applications. It features solar panel installation reducing electricity costs by 50%, serving as a clean energy model. She supported introducing financial monitoring programs for cooperatives to track quarterly financial risks and prevent fraud.

She reviewed a water diversion project from Mae Sai River through pipelines to supply over 20,000 rai of agricultural land in Sri Muang Chum subdistrict and inspected the RMC.1 water intake structure at Ban Muang Daeng to establish systematic water management and address agricultural contamination.

Chiyapairat concluded by monitoring a rice field group project at Ban San Sai Noi in Ban Dai subdistrict using alternating wet-dry technology combined with red earthworms, substantially reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The group requested support for rice dryers and mills to prevent grain damage and maintain quality. The ministry will consider continued support. On this occasion, the deputy minister distributed production inputs including mushroom spawn, biofermented extract, vegetable seeds, chemical fertilizers, and high-quality organic fertilizers to farmers to reduce costs and enhance modern agricultural efficiency.