Safe and healthy food begins at the farm, hence farmers must first be educated on the right way of producing food. An Appeal to Malaysians

Seminar on Soil Restoration and Sustainable Farming featuring Japanese leading farmer Y IIHARA, Top Technician in Compost and Bokashi Making Y INOUE, Malaysian Organic Farmer STEVEN LEONG and Megatrends Asia Partner and Author FOONG WAI FONG.
 

Why this Program?

A new awareness for a better quality of life, health and the environment is increasingly drawing people to food produced with natural input, chemical and pesticide free food. Nutritionists and doctors are recommending a dominant vegetable and fruit diet for healthier living and a better environment. Numerous food scandals have caused anxiety among consumers and there are increasingly concern on the way our food are produced.

It has increasingly been recognized that fresh fruit and vegetables  if they are grown on living soil, fertilized with compost, protected from pests by natural means, and harvested when fully ripe - contain a wealth of vital substances which are of central importance for our well-being. Food Products must be produced in harmony with nature in order to provide food of the highest quality. Their health benefits, harvesting and production methods ; how the farm and orchard is run, on what soil something thrives, how to create the necessary conditions, which principles are taken into account so that plants and animals can develop in the best possible way  these are of great interest to all those who are concerned with safety and health. 
 

Living Soil

Great significance is attributed to imbuing the earth with life. The agricultural enterprise must be perceived as an organism in which the cycle of the living takes priority. Every nutrient which leaves the farm in the form of products must be replaced through natural means. Great value is attributed to the microbiological composition of the individual layers of soil which even within a relatively small space contain other life forms and structures. In working the soil the aim is to protect and have a beneficial effect upon this natural strucutre. The soil is constantly covered to protect it and to allow it to develop. The rotation of crops contributes to the building up of the humus.Consequently, this results in robust plants which are richer in mineral salts and vitamins as well as giving good yields. 

In the natural cycle of matter it is soil life which transforms all organic material into nutrients for the next generation of plants. In the garden and the field, compost, solid manure and plants which fertilize organically provide additional nutrition for the living things in the soil. According to the fundamental principle of fertilizing in sustainable farming practice it is not the plants which are fed, but rather the soil. Plants obtain their nutrients from soil life, therefore receiving them in a natural, harmonious form.
 

OBJECTIVE OF THIS INITIATIVE

This seminar aims to impart the basic principles of soil restoration and introduce the method of sustainable and healthy farming to Malaysian Vegetable and fruit farmers. 

Benefits of the program:
Farmers will learn a more efficient and sustainable farming technology: The benefits include:

1. Care for the soil, allowing farmers to continue farming on the same plot of land. This help reduces soil erosion and degradation caused by the shifting habits of farmers once soil nutrients are exhausted. This helps to preserve Malaysian’s top soil and ecological balance.
2. Reducing cost of input, fertilizers and the use of chemical pesticides. When the soil is healthy, plants become healthier. Hence less use of fertilizers and chemicals. This helps farmers to reduce cost of production. This also reduces the incidence of pollution from chemical based farming.
3. Consumers at large will get better and healthier vegetables and fruits.

Mr. Y. Iihara 
Farmer and top field technician for the Shimamoto method.
Had won top producer awards for cucumber, brinjal and strawberry.
Conducts regular seminars in Japan and Korea.

Mr. Y. Inoue 
Top technician in compost and bokashi making.
Chief editor for the monthy Shimamoto technical buletin.

Mr. Steven Leong 
Crazy organic farmer, who invested his lifetime savings into developing organic farming method in Malaysia. Steven likes to drink beer and smoke hand-rolled cigarettes.

Ms. Foong Wai Fong
Author and Partner of Megatrends Asia. A passionate advocate for  environmental balance and volunteer. 

Schedule:

• February 29                     Kuala Lumpur (9.00AM - 1.00PM) 
• March 1                          Cameron Highlands (7.00PM - 10.00PM)
• March 4                          Kulai (time to be advised)
• March 7                          Kundasan (Sabah) (time to be advised)

Feedback Welcomed!

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