2.5.2 Events for local farmers and food producers

In 2025, Srinakharinwirot University (SWU) provided free events for local farmers and food producers to connect and transfer knowledge. Through workshops, demonstrations, field learning and market events, the university brought local farmers and food producers together with its researchers, government agencies, private companies and one another, so that they could share experience, learn new farming and food-processing techniques and reach new markets. All events were offered free of charge. In Nakhon Nayok Province, the College of Creative Agriculture for Society (CCAS) held a series of events on safe crop production, organic fertiliser, packaging and local food wisdom, and in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province the university organised events on organic waste management and a community product market.

Workshops for farmers on hydroponics and Good Agricultural Practices

On 27 June 2025, CCAS held a free hands-on workshop on hydroponic systems and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) for 37 local farmers, under the project Value Enhancement of Produce through Hydroponic Vegetable and High-Value Crop Cultivation under GAP. In the college's smart greenhouses and demonstration plots, farmers learned soil-less cultivation, resource-efficient water management and the standards needed to ensure food safety and crop quality, and exchanged experience with the college's specialist instructors and with one another. CCAS also ran greenhouse learning sessions on high-value crops for older farmers in Ongkharak District.

Figure 1: Hydroponics training in the smart greenhouse (left) and farmers in the high-value crop demonstration plot under GAP (right)

Figure 2: Older farmers from Ongkharak District at a greenhouse learning session on high-value crops

Source: College of Creative Agriculture for Society, Srinakharinwirot University

Vermicompost workshop for local farmers

On 26 June 2025, CCAS trained 21 local farmers in vermicompost production under the project Knowledge Transfer and Promotion of Earthworm Manure (Vermicompost) Production for Sustainable Agriculture. Farmers practised mixing organic soil and raising earthworms, and learned how to turn community waste into organic fertiliser. Making their own fertiliser helps farmers lower production costs, use fewer chemicals and create new income.

Figure 3: Farmers practising organic soil mixing (left) and earthworm rearing for vermicompost (right)

Source: College of Creative Agriculture for Society, Srinakharinwirot University

Packaging and local food wisdom events for food producers

On 23 April 2025, CCAS held a free workshop on packaging design and community branding for 13 food producers and members of community enterprises. The project worked with the Khon Jai Su Ku Wikrit Thanom Ahan (Resilient Group for Crisis-Era Food Preservation) Community Enterprise in Tha Sai Subdistrict, Mueang District, Nakhon Nayok, to design modern packaging and brand logos that meet quality standards and are practical for commercial sale. In Ongkharak Subdistrict, the college also brought together students, entrepreneurs, local sages and residents to collect and share local food wisdom through community mapping, storytelling and interviews, and turned this knowledge into digital maps and media that promote local food products.

Figure 4: Packaging design with a food processing group (left) and new preserved food products and packaging of the community enterprise (right)

Figure 5: Participants learning about local food wisdom in Ongkharak District

Source: College of Creative Agriculture for Society, Srinakharinwirot University

Organic waste management with Black Soldier Fly larvae in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya

On 1 October 2025, SWU, the Department of Climate Change and Environment, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, and CP AXTRA, makro and Lotus's held a free knowledge-sharing event on organic waste management with Black Soldier Fly (BSF) larvae at the Khok Nong Na Ban Luang Learning Centre, Pho Sao Han Subdistrict, Uthai District. The event connected local farmers and food producers with government and private-sector partners, who shared how BSF larvae can turn food and farm waste into animal feed and organic fertiliser, lowering production costs and creating new income for the community.

Figure 6: Knowledge sharing on BSF larvae (left) and participants with government and private-sector partners (right), 1 October 2025

Source: https://www.facebook.com/SocialServicesOfficeSWU/posts/pfbid0q3V2EPbbctPRxJmdETSwoV5QtbezWHf9eLgaLZsdD9TfBAKapfZBeZhUKae5L7Fl

Community product market connecting food producers with new customers

From 20 to 22 June 2025, SWU and villagers from Uthai District held the Community Product Market and Creative Economy Exchange at Central Ayutthaya, in partnership with the shopping centre and with members of the Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Provincial Cultural Council in attendance. Local food producers sold straw mushroom products, mushroom wine, khai pham (wolffia) and other processed foods directly to customers, and took part in a forum on the Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economy model. The market gave producers a free space to connect with buyers, partners and each other.

Figure 7: The District Chief of Uthai, SWU executives and partners at the Community Product Market, Central Ayutthaya, 20–22 June 2025

Figure 8: Project partners with villagers from Uthai District (left), and producers selling their products at the market (right)

Source: https://www.facebook.com/swufofa/posts/pfbid02nWvfevcfAK1LjwwK5GdsPyhDXEKEiPmYAgnYFtLv6xThGCUgC6rXPPGmJrSLURPZl

Connecting farming communities through ecosystem learning

SWU also ran the project "Conserve the Ecosystem and Local Biodiversity for Sustainable Development", which brought local farmers, residents and young learners together with university researchers and local resource management experts. Through outdoor field learning and workshops, local people shared traditional knowledge of soil, water and natural resource management, showing how conservation supports farm productivity and long-term food security.

Figure 9: Field learning activities under the ecosystem and local biodiversity conservation project

Source: Srinakharinwirot University