Makluakao Model: An Application of the Concept of Participatory Guarantee Systems (PGS) to Supply Organic Vegetables, Fruit, and Rice to Student Lunch Consumption in Makluakao Subdistrict, Sung Noen District, Nakhonratchasima Province

Abstract

 Currently, organic farming in Thailand is growing and the demand for organic products among the Thai people has increased rapidly. But Thai students have little access to organic food. The main objective of the current research was to apply the concept of participatory guarantee systems (PGS) to supply organic vegetables, fruit, and rice to student lunch consumption in Makluakao subdistrict, Sung Noen district, Nakhonratchasima province. Using the purposive sampling method, the total number of samples was 210 persons: 10 were farmers and 200 were teachers/students from 10 schools in Makluakao subdistrict. This research project started in May 2016 and ended in October 2017. In this study, the authors employed participatory action research (PAR) which involved 5 processes: 1) Identifying problems, 2) defining needs of stakeholders, 3) analyzing and designing the PGS model to supply organic vegetables, fruit, and rice to student lunch consumption, 4) applying the PGS model in the demonstration fields, and 5) evaluating successes and challenges.