From The Star:

After discovering the benefits of chemical-free farming, one man passionately shares his experience and knowhow.

PART-TIME farmer Sanmargam Kathiravan often shows his visitors a set of “before and after” photographs of – don’t laugh – a goat.

He had bought the sickly, underweight goat in 2006 for RM250 and nursed it back to health over six months. The “after” picture shows a healthy and fatter goat with a shiny coat of hair.

Sanmargam was doing a little experiment to convince himself of the efficacy of an organic growth promoter called pancakavya that is said to be not only good for plants but also beneficial to animals.

“It works in India but we’re not sure if it will work here. So, I did my own R&D (research and development). Take the goat, for instance. It will require few hundred ringgit of medication to treat its cold and skin rashes. But I did it with very little money. Now I can speak confidently of the effectiveness of pancakavya,” he says with pride.

Pancakavya is made from cow dung, urine and milk, as well as yoghurt, molasses and eggs. It takes 20 days to be ready for spraying on plants. It also acts as a pest repellent.

Sanmargam was among a small group of farmers from the northern region of the peninsula who were taken to India a few years back by the Consumers Association of Penang (CAP) to witness how small farmers have found a way out of agrochemical-based farming.

In 1998, the factory production supervisor was planning a jasmine garden as a social security net for his home-maker wife. He reckoned that jasmine would always be in demand from the Indian community, which uses the fragrant flower for religious purposes. He bought a bungalow lot in a medium-cost housing estate in Lunas, Kedah ,to execute his plan.

“I started growing jasmine. Soon, I faced all the problems common among farmers who rely on synthetic pesticides, herbicides and chemical fertilisers. My plants were attacked by insects, the leaves were eaten by caterpillars and the buds were invaded by bugs.

“Other farmers were not willing to share their knowledge and the Department of Agriculture could only advise me on chemical application. Eventually, I moved from using Class 1 to Class 4 toxic chemicals but that didn’t solve the problems. It seemed that the insects were immune to the chemicals,” recalls the 42-year-old father of three sons.

It wasn’t until 2003 that Sanmargam came across CAP which was promoting sustainable agriculture and had brought in a vermi-compost expert from India, Dr Sultan Ismail, for a workshop in Penang.

There was no turning back after that for Sanmargam. He attended further training in India and became convinced about the principle of organic farming. He started rehabilitating his garden by spraying pancakavya once a week. After three months, the routine was reduced to every fortnight and after six months, he only sprayed once a month.

“It completely eliminated the pest problem. Once you stop applying chemicals, you get help from Mother Nature. The birds will pick off the snails and the insects will control one another,” he enthuses.

Sanmargam’s garden not only thrives with organic jasmine and vegetable plots, it is also a mini-laboratory and factory for growth promoters like pancakavya and effective micro-organisms and fungus repellents. The ingredients are sourced locally at a fraction of the price paid for agro-chemicals.

The four-tank vermi-compost system sits in one corner of the garden and churns out several tonnes of organic compost a year, which is used in the garden as well as sold at RM4 per kg for extra income.

And gone are the days when he had to cajole buyers to take his jasmine blooms. “Now, the retailers tell me not to sell to others. Previously, I had to beg them to take my flowers. I can understand their reluctance because the flowers did not last more than a day.

“The organically-grown jasmine not only lasts a few days, even the fragrance is sweeter. This is the feedback from retailers and customers. There’s a money back guarantee for anyone who finds a bug in my flowers,” quips Sanmargam, adding that he now supplies the flowers to six shops in Penang and two in Lunas.

On high demand days, he gets RM3 per tin of flowers and a minimum of RM2 on slower days. Previously, he got as low as RM1 per tin.

Next, he is planning a dream farm where he can raise livestock like cows and goats, and have more space to grow vegetables and fruits. The livestock will ensure a steady supply of cow dung, urine and milk for producing various organic materials for the farm. Sanmargam now speaks widely and passionately about organic farming to farmers at organised events and to those who have heard of his success and drop by his house.

“I believe in the goodness of this system and I want to share my experiences with anyone who is willing to try,” he adds humbly.