Happy Farmers Co Ltd is providing free technical support to the Paksong Orchid Project in Champasak province. Many villagers in Paksong District eke out a living by harvesting wild orchids from the forest of the Dong Hua Sao National Biodiversity Conservation Area. These orchids are sold to tourists and traders from neighbouring countries. This activity is illegal and is resulting in rapid depletion of wild orchid populations. Villagers already complain that they now have to walk for many hours, even days, to find orchids that were once abundant in their villages only a few years ago.
Tourists from Thailand buy wild orchids in Paksong
The “protected” forest is gradually being
destroyed to plant cash crops like coffee
and rubber. Eventually there will be few
orchids left.
In 2008, Paksong Orchid Project will establish a micro-propagation laboratory and nursery that will sustainably produce many thousands of orchid seedlings. The seedlings will be supplied to villagers for growing in their backyards and subsequent sale when mature. These plants will be certified according to CITES regulations so their trade will be legal.
Paksong Orchid Project welcomes financial support from individuals and organizations interested to promote orchid conservation while also helping to alleviate poverty by providing a new source of income for rural people.
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We can be contacted by email [info@happyfarmers.com] or phone 021-216697 (or +856-21-216697 outside Lao PDR).
