Trang Farmers Earn More Selling Veg at Vegetarian Festival
Trang farmers are enjoying increased sales during the Vegetarian Festival as they offer over 30 varieties of pesticide‑free vegetables and fruits at unchanged prices. Farmer San Chan Sia (Luang San) reports daily earnings of 1,000‑2,000 baht from his three‑rai plot in Kantang district, despite rainy weather limiting supply. He attributes his ability to hold prices to low production costs and strong local demand.
During this year’s Vegetarian Festival, Luang San still has over 30 types of vegetables available for sale, including morning glory, bok choy, luffa, bitter gourd, long beans, holy basil, Thai basil, sweet leaf vegetables, white cabbage, lime and many more. In addition, he has ten fragrant coconut trees, honey‑sweet pomelo and large pomelo trees that are ripening weekly; previously he sold them at the Kantang agricultural market two days a week. During the festival, both regular and new customers have been asking for pesticide‑free produce, causing demand to outpace supply. From October 9 to 18, which coincides with the festival, many customers have pre‑ordered vegetables and fruits. Luang San says he will keep prices unchanged because most of his buyers are locals and his costs are low—he uses groundwater and chicken manure or homemade compost. His vegetables are mostly sold in bundles of 10 baht each; bok choy goes for 26 baht per kilogram, luffa and long beans for 35‑40 baht per kilogram, lime for 60 baht per kilogram, and pomelos for 50‑60 baht each. He expects to earn at least 1,000‑2,000 baht per day during the festival. Luang San noted that he has been farming for five years, starting with dragon fruit, then pomelo, raising chickens and growing over 30 kinds of vegetables using an integrated, sufficiency‑economy approach. Although frequent rains this year have reduced yields, he has not raised prices—bok choy remains 26 baht per kilogram, luffa 35‑40 baht, and all produce remains pesticide‑free.
