TRANG, Nov 11 (TNA) — Farmers in the southern province are growing cocoa trees as intercrops and have contracts for cocoa bean sales.
Intercrops have become an extra income solution for farmers in Trang amid uncertainty in the prices of other farm products including natural rubber. The farmers chose cocoa for its high demand and grew cocoa trees as intercrops in plantations including those of rubber and palm trees.
Suthep Iam-aksorn, a 49-year-old farmer in Moo 4 village of Khuan Mao sub-district in Ratsada district, was among the farmers who grew cocoa. He said more farmers in Trang were growing cocoa trees because there were numerous markets and cocoa could be processed to make various kinds of drinks.
Mr Suthep had a contract to sell cocoa to a company that set the minimum price at 8 baht per kilogram. He grew about 3,000 cocoa trees in his rubber, oil palm, coconut, papaya and banana plantations. Cocoa trees started to produce beans in about 15 months, he said.
Mr Suthep said farmers should look for intercrops. He thought cocoa could be a main cash crop and grow well in the South because it liked humidity.
He said cocoa did not like chemical fertilizer. He recommended manure. (TNA)
