Taiwan's entry into the World Trade Organization in 2002 had the island's agricultural sector, in particular rice growers, worry about international competition. These fears, however, seem to have been groundless, as statistics from the Council of Agriculture showed that the average production value per farmer increased 40 percent between 2001 and 2007.
The sector experienced at first a serious setback. The island's total rice growing area decreased from 307,037 hectares in 2002 to 260,159 hectares in 2007. Farmers saw their profits drop when they started selling their crops at low prices to compete with imported rice that was even cheaper. "I was really worried, or I should say scared to death, as I had put all my savings into planting rice," said Lai Chao-hsuan, a local rice grower.
In 2004, Yen Lan-chuan and Juang Yi-tseng's documentary "The Last Rice Farmer" called the public's attention to the plight of rice growers. The film follows the lives of three elderly men in Taiwan's southern county of Tainan who have devoted their lives to growing rice despite the poor economic reward and suffering from unexpected natural disasters. "Even though the harvest is not satisfying and prices are low, we are still optimistic," said Huang Kun-bin, one of the three farmers interviewed.
The documentary proved pivotal for the future of rice farmers in Taiwan. Two million people watched it, including former President Lee Teng-hui, and it started a series of debates on how to revitalize the agribusiness. It was a real wake-up call for the public who realized that if no one took action, soon there might not be any rice farmers in Taiwan. Director Juang said that even though the documentary could not bring any change to policies, it motivated many young people to rediscover and care more about agriculture.
Fortunately, the depressing scenario described in "The Last Rice Farmer" did not materialize. Thanks to their efforts, rice growers around the island managed to overcome the crisis. They realized that in order to survive in today's globalized market, they should find a niche. "If people are willing to pay more for better quality, farmers will be encouraged to work in this direction," Chen Wen-deh, director-general of the Agriculture and Food Agency under the COA, said. "We should forget the concept that profit depends on large quantity," he added.
Improving taste is one way to achieve this goal. "In the past, we emphasized maximizing quantity, but people's diet has changed and today we must aim for a better taste instead of a larger harvest," stated the AFA's director-general. "The first step to upgrading quality is to develop a suitable breed," he added.
The new strategy motivated the COA's Agricultural Research Institute to create new varieties with richer flavors, though some have a low yield. A good example is the Tainung No. 71, a taro-scented breed--taro is a tropical plant highly regarded as a sweet food and flavoring in Taiwan-- which has proved very popular with consumers and brought millions in profit to rice growers. Established in 1895, the institute has contributed to the local agriculture by developing new plants and breeding techniques.
Organic farming represents another way to upgrade the quality of the rice. Huang was persuaded to turn organic after the documentary was released, though he confessed he did not believe in the new method at first. Huang worried when he noticed that the rice did not grow as it used to due to the lack of fertilizer, but he persevered. His efforts paid off when his rice was awarded first prize in the national rice quality contest in 2006 and saw its price jump from NT$700 for 60 kilograms in 2004 to NT$600 for just one kilogram. "I thank the local agricultural research and extension station for providing technical support, but also for new rice varieties so that now we can grow high quality rice and sell it at better prices," Huang said when he received the award.
According to organic expert Alice Ju, green farming is becoming popular among Taiwan's rice farmers. Ju established Orange Mart--the island's biggest organic retail store--with her husband and published two books about the development of the organic movement in the country. She explained that since 1995, some 30 brands of organic rice have appeared on the market to feed health-conscious consumers. "Even though, organic rice fields account for only 0.6 percent of the total rice paddies, it has become an unstoppable trend," Ju said.
The expert pointed out that growers usually switch to this kind of farming in groups, because no rice paddy can be certified organic if a neighboring field is still contaminated with fertilizers or pesticides. Farmers form communities and support each other, and sometimes even establish a common rice brand. Wan-an in Chishang, Taitung County and Luoshan in Fuli, Hualien County, represent good examples of such "organic" communities.
Some growers went even further by reviving their ancestors' traditional methods, such as raising ducks in the rice fields. Ducks not only are an inexpensive and environmentally friendly way to control pest, their webbed feet stir the soil, and their excrements become natural fertilizer. Moreover, "ducks are very sensitive to toxic substances, and their health is the best proof of a clean environment," Ju explained.
About six years ago, Taiwan Rice Co.'s General Manager Yeh Shu-huei organized the first duck-rice farmers' group in Yuanli, Miaoli County. From a mere 2.6 hectares in 2002, duck-rice paddies have expanded to cover today a total superficies of 100 hectares. In addition, a total of 450 metric tons of duck-rice were exported in 2008 to Japan, Singapore and Russia at US$3,400 per ton, twice the price of rice exported from the United States. "Whoever grows safe food ends up a winner," Yeh said, expressing optimism for the future of duck rice. Taiwan Rice Co. is one of the largest rice trading firms in the country and owns the "Sansuivi" brand.
Developing new growing methods also play an important role in improving quality. Union Rice, a major brand which represents over 30 percent of the island's rice market, approached the problem by doing some research on the usage of fertilizers. "In the past, price depended on quantity, thus the farmers used too much fertilizers to make the rice spikes grow faster and heavier," explained Liu De-long, chief executive officer of the company. They tried using less nitrogen fertilizers and discovered that though the spikes were lighter, each grain weighed more and contained more nutrients.
Lu Shieh Rice-husking Factory Co., Ltd., renowned for its Da-chao brand, adopted the French concept of "controlled term of origin [A.O.C.]." The A.O.C. is a French certification granted to wines and other agricultural products grown in specific geographical areas. The company's chairman, Chen Chao-hau, explained the quality of their rice is predetermined since before planting their fields, they carefully evaluate the quality of the soil and water, as well as their wind and light exposure. Every field also requires a different kind of harvesting.
Like other countries, Taiwan is becoming more health-conscious and some rice farmers are specializing in growing varieties of rice said to benefit one's health. Taiwan's Asia Rice Biotech Inc., for example, developed a cutting-edge technique, unique to Taiwan and Japan, to grow pre-germinated brown rice, which they claim helps reduce cholesterol and treats Alzheimer's disease and diabetes. In 2006, the company entered the market with their own brand, "Just Rice."
Improved marketing, including packaging, also helped revitalizing the rice market, according to Chen, AFA's director-general. "Two tendencies were seen in the market: small packets and creative packages used as gifts," he said. The standard bag of rice used to weigh 5 kilograms, but families are smaller now and singles prefer small packs so that they can eat fresh rice. Rice packets have also become a fashionable gift option since tycoon Terry Guo distributed them to his wedding guests last year. "Surprisingly, thanks to creative designs, rice has become a fancy product," Chen said.
However, the best marketing strategy is probably winning consumers' support. The documentary reminded people how little they knew about rice growing. Some rice farmers have come up with an original solution to this problem by establishing Web sites through which groups of consumers can "rent" paddies. Members of a group collectively provide financial support to the farmers, who in turn grow crops of rice for them, keeping them regularly informed of the crops' progresses. The harvest is then distributed to every member of the group, according to their individual investments.
Huang, one of the farmers pictured in the documentary, rents a few of his fields in Tainan to private firms which organize regular field trips for their employees to check the crops. An organic farm in Yuanli, Miaoli County offers a similar experience to visitors, especially students, interested in learning more about the organic farming of rice.
"The World in 2009," published by The Economist, forecasted that after the year of food crisis, 2009 would be the year of the farmer. "[Farmers] will produce good crops at prices higher than they have been used to for 20 years," it said. This seems to be true for Taiwan. As the AFA's director-general pointed out "farmers have conquered the challenges brought by the WTO through innovation, inciting consumers to care more about the quality and safety of their food."
Write to Amber Wu at amber0207@mail.gio.gov.tw