Turning Your Table Scraps With Organic Fertilizer

Map And Directions To The Lord's Garden

The red landmark is The Lord's Garden Organic Farm. The blue landmark is the Mahamaariaman Temple. Click on the landmarks for more information. View Larger Map

Farm Visit By JustLife Retail Trainees

Thursday, September 4, 2008

Early as 5 minutes past eight, group of 6 Justlife retail trainees departing from warehouse going on a day farm visit to the nurturing Lord’s Garden organic farmland. Yagappu, the humblest down-to-earth organic farmer I ever known, he is the owner of this farmland. I met him once in the Climate Change campaign event at Bkt Jalil on last August 9-10th. So much little I know about him and this trip has brought me another surprising heartfelt waiting for me to discover more, how the agriculture been produce in uniform ecological way.

Around 35mins ride on North-South Highway exiting to Rawang Toll from Kota Damansara, we cruising along in country-hill like place reaching on Batu Arang rural estate. I was never thought of his guiding the way to his farmland house, the sign board appears to be so small yet noticeable while lucky you found it in sudden turning corner lot; glad I found his farm site or getting lost in rural estate.

We were warmly welcome by his great personality, as it was like the Lord’s Gardener hug bearing around your arm! Taking a short hour profiling chat with him was the greatest moment you shall experience. He shares lots on his inspiring philosophy to sustain organic grown farming, his family and the only one servant. Congratulate to him as his wife were giving a newborn child on 31st August.

Yagappu first got his inspiring on organic farm since young. He loves philosophy so much which leads him to study abroad on New Zealand and graduate as respected Christian father. According to him, the organic farmland took 5 years to make a life-sustain harvest. He facing many critics from conventional farmer, friends and family whom seeing organic farming was a way of out-fashion agriculture. The food we eating now, has never been change for past 5 thousand years ever since agriculture develop, he emphasize organic farming is the only way human should continue cultivate in order to support every living life on earth.

He is the youngest twin brother among his 4 brother. He marrying his wife just last year ago and his mom was past away recently. To me, he is the strong man which his strong faith has guided him who he is. Yagappu says “I feel more like chosen to be, not what I am choosing way of life”

His farmland has more than 12 existing local fruits and vegetable. Namely some like Ladies finger, longbeans, Bayam, Tapioca, Radish, Papaya, Banana and etc. Most of the vegetable is grown on integrated ways. Taking for example; Kangkung, Radish and Sweetcorn are sharing to grown in same soil only distance for few centimeter apart from each other.

He made his own compost and soil fertilizer by utilizing neighbors’ cow shit adding with charcoal, wild grass, vege garbage and yeast is covered layer by layer to left ferment for 1-2 weeks. There’s a 20 feet well nearby where he made it by himself, which taken 3-4 days to dig in order to keep rain water and underground water for farmland use and drinking water. He says those underground water are the most filtered high mineral water we should drink. Charcoal was added to alkaline and balancing rain water where he built on his house rooftop to collect the raindrops.

The farmland area is about 1.3 acre or 0.6 hectare. He always emphasizes to grow diversity farming method so the soil is well crafted for balancing harvest flow. There are a few herbs grown on the farmland. For example, the medicinal Nim’s tree, wild ginseng plant, misai kucing and etc. Farming is simple not is never been easy to manage for good harvest, climate change, soil pH values, microorganism activities, rotating plantation is some of the key to organic farming.

We manage to enjoy a banana leave lunch at his handbuilt house. Eating with bare finger hands is yet another best taste experience. The lunch is a simple 3 meals, just a fresh cook bayam, spicy onion longbeans, and curry cook raw banana cubes. Papedam and one sour sup being added too for good digestion. According to Yagappu, usually yogurt is served after meal to have for a well balance healthy diet in Indian eating lifestyle. Herbs and diversity of spices is the fundamental to gain a healthy body diet, a must for especially those with vegan diet.

A heavy downpour afternoon rain has caught everybody under one roof; it was heartfelt to leave such a simple, down to earth living place. Around 1.30 after rain started to reduces and finally we greet him off cruising back to warehouse office.

To Yagappu,

We have faith on you...keep on the Lord's spirit! Cheers!
Alex Tan
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For The Love Of Nature

Wednesday, April 30, 2008
By: Meera Murugesan

Yahqappu says organic farming is the way of the future, while Lee wants to create awareness on the benefits of organic farming.

For a farmer to toil the land is understandable but what made an architect and restaurateur become organic farmers? MEERA MURUGESAN finds out.

Ng: The first few years were very difficult.

GOING green may involve simple lifestyle changes for most of us, but for three men, it meant changing life as they knew it Chee Yee, Lee Ong Sing and Yahqappu Adaikkalam are three average Malaysian men with a strong commitment to protecting the environment. When they decided to try their hand at organic farming, they were prepared for some challenges, but soon realised just how difficult it was to walk the road less trodden.Family members thought they were out of their minds. The challenges of farming organically and seeking a market for their produce also made them want to give up many times.Despite predictions of failure and the lack of support from those closest to them, they proved that there can be success in working with Nature and moving at her pace.

The three men were speakers at a talk on organic farming last week, organised in conjunction with the Justlife Earth Day Carnival at Ikano Power Centre in Mutiara Damansara. When Ng first went into organic farming 11 years ago, awareness on the benefits of organically-grown food was still low. “When I brought my produce to the market, customers used to scold me because there were holes in the vegetables. They assumed the vegetables were of poor quality,” said Ng. A draughtsman by training, Ng, faced stiff opposition from his family members when he voiced his intention to become an organic farmer. His other siblings were all professionals and his family members didn’t see any justification for Ng to leave his office job and toil the land, more so in organic farming which they felt would not yield profits. But Ng’s love for nature made him throw everything he had into starting his 4.4-hectare farm on the outskirts of Klang. The first four years were highly challenging and he suffered heavy losses. He also faced problems with workers and even thieves targeting his farm. But 11 years down the road, things are taking a turn for the better and today, he grows 22 varieties of fruits and vegetables.“But the market for organic produce is still limited. My customers are mainly those from middle class and upper middle class families or those who are health-conscious.” The fact that organic vegetables cost more is always an issue with consumers, said Yahqappu. Few people realise that they are paying for products packed with value and farmed through labour intensive methods. There are no short-cuts in organic farming because Nature and the way she works is respected, he added. Organic vegetables also have more minerals in them. That’s one of the reasons why they require less salt or seasoning during cooking to bring out their taste compared to conventionally farmed produce. The vegetables are also less fibrous and have a natural sweetness to them.

“People must realise it’s similar to paying for a work of art. There is more love, care and concern put into these products. We don’t simply mass produce to keep prices down,” said Yahqappu.When Yahqappu started working on his 0.6-hectare farm in Batu Arang, Selangor, four years ago, he, like Ng, faced opposition from family members. Given that his previous job involved running a restaurant and he had no experience in agriculture, his family members thought he was making the worst decision of his life. “I crawled through the process, learning things as I went along but I also learned humility. Touching the soil and knowing that it’s Mother Earth who has my fate in her hands, was a humbling experience. It was also very fulfilling to do something that I believed in,” he said. Yahqappu believes that organic farming will soon become the norm given that people are now seeing the adverse effects brought about by the high use of pesticides and other chemicals through conventional farming. He said nature has been shortchanged nature for far too long and the problems are cropping up now, like the global food shortage.“Organic farming is the way of the future and prices of such vegetables will eventually be lower than conventionally farmed ones,” said Yahqappu.

Unlike Ng and Yahqappu, Lee comes from a family of farmers in Cameron Highlands, but even he faced opposition when he wanted to try organic farming.“My father and grandfather were both conventional farmers and they went bankrupt. When I said, “let me try organic farming’, family members called it a suicidal decision,” said Lee who has been in organic farming for 12 years.He was determined to venture into the field after tasting organic vegetables and becoming convinced that they were better for both the consumer and the environment. “Your stomach will never lie and that’s why besides running my farm, I also have a restaurant where customers can get a taste of organic vegetables.”But Lee knows it takes effort to convince the average Malaysian of the benefits of buying organic produce and supporting organic farmers. “While there are people who are willing to spend a few hundred ringgit on one dinner outing, they will balk at purchasing RM20 worth of organic vegetables,” he said. Given his commitment to promoting awareness on organic vegetables, Lee doesn’t just run his farm. He also organises visits for anyone who is interested in seeing how organic farms function and their benefits. “As for the long-term success of organic farming, creating awareness is crucial and I’m trying to do my part in achieving that.”

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Food Philosophy

Saturday, February 14, 2009
Stories by LEONG SIOK HUI

With today's fast food fad, we have become disconnected from food. How does one eat mindfully, make wise buying choices, and re-connect with food?

I prepared a simple lunch for the family. The bok choy was lightly blanched and topped with fried garlic and a dash of Braggs liquid amino (a healthier alternative to soy sauce).

Cubes of fresh cucumber and jicama were slathered with sesame paste sweetened with molasses. The chicken was steamed and served with ground chilli seasoned with vinegar, garlic and raw cane sugar. Hijiki (seaweed), sliced shiitake mushrooms, carrot and burdock root were simmered in mirin (sweet rice wine) and soy sauce and stirred into brown rice.

Everyone enjoyed the meal. The veggies were crunchy and flavourful. The chicken was tender but lean. The hijiki rice was a playful combo of textures and flavours: crunchy, chewy, sweet, salty and savoury.

So, what was unique about the meal?

I had planned it to be a meal wherein I knew the source of my food. This meant visiting the veggie farms and chatting with the farmers.

I now know the man behind the organic chicken and where in the Kedah hills the shiitake is grown. I also met the suppliers who import the liquid amino (from US) and hijiki (from Japan).

This exercise was meant to answer some niggling questions: What am I eating? Where does my food come from? And how does my choice of food affect my health and the planet?

In his best-selling book, The Omnivore's Dilemma, Michael Pollan, a journalism professor who writes for The New York Times Magazine, traced the food chain back to its original source.

In the process, he unveiled some horrendous things about the American food industry ? from hormone- and antibiotic-loaded livestock and animal abuse in industrial farms, to the proliferation of synthetic additives in processed food that lead to rampant obesity, Type 2 diabetes, diet-related cancers and heart disease.

In Malaysia, we've had our fair share of food scares: Nipah virus infected-pigs, bird flu-afflicted chickens, banned pesticides in veggies and melamine-laced biscuits.Perhaps it's time we too put more thought into our food choices as we look at why food is causing sickness, polluting the earth and changing people's lives.

June Lim is a qualified vegan chef and the force behind the healthy food philosophy at Woods. ? GRACE CHEN

'Food' makes us sick?

Here are some facts to chew on: more than 98% of the 1.2 million diabetics in Malaysia are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. By estimate, 25% of Malaysians will be plagued by this killer disease by 2020. (Source: Malaysian Diabetes Association.)

A diet high in refined carbohydrate coupled with a sedentary lifestyle is the main culprit of Type 2 diabetes. When you gorge on sugary foods and starches, your body can't produce insulin fast enough to convert these foods into glucose for energy. A diabetic may turn blind, suffer from kidney failure or heart disease.

"Food is the major cause of many of our health problems," says Dr Mohamad Zainol Ahmad Haja, a consultant for pharmaceutical companies.

"If you ask nephrologists why our government has set up more dialysis centres, they'd say it's because modern-day food is causing more kidney failures."

Commercially-reared chickens are pumped with growth hormones and antibiotics to promote growth and prevent diseases in the name of profit, Zainol adds.

"Consumers who eat these chickens are fed hormones and antibiotics that surpass the limit a human body can handle," says Zainol, who also studied oriental medicine in the US.

"So when they see the doctor for an ailment, the prescribed antibiotic isn't curing their sickness or they need a stronger dose. Many children are also allergic to commercial chickens these days."

Zainol was so appalled by the quality of chickens that he started a chicken farm for his family and friends' consumption. Today his halal, hormone- and antibiotic-free chickens are being distributed nationwide under the Mumtaz Meat & Marine Foods label (http://www.azzain.com/index.html).

Processed food like chicken sausages contain less than 10% actual chicken meat, he adds.
"Think about it, if chicken costs RM12 per kg, how can a 500gm-package of sausage only be RM2.80? You're basically paying for artificial flavouring, taste and content," says Zainol, director of R&D for Mumtaz.

A macrobiotic counsellor with 15 years experience, June Lim says she is seeing more young patients these days. "I see young people in their 20s suffering from breast cancer, prostate cancer or leukaemia," says Lim, who was trained in macrobiotics in the US and Japan.

Her patients have usually undergone cancer treatment but suffer from loss of appetite or a poor digestive system. Lim helps design specific macrobiotic diets for her patients.

The essence of macrobiotics is living and eating in harmony with nature. A 5,000-year-old philosophy, macrobiotics believes that our body and the environment are closely related. Pure food, without chemicals, synthetic additives and flavouring, is medicine. And we have to eat food in its whole form. Celebrities like Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow and John Travolta subscribe to the macrobiotic lifestyle.

"People don't change their diet and lifestyle until they face a serious health crisis," says Lim, 55, who hasn't caught a cold or cough since embracing the macrobiotic lifestyle two decades ago.

"My advice to my customers is, prevention is better than cure. Food has healing qualities but they work slower than drugs," says Lim who runs an organic vegan restaurant, Woods Macrobiotics in Bangsar.

"It takes time for your body to condition, and it's a slow but steady process."

Saving the earth

Meat-eaters take note. A 2006 United Nations report says the world's livestock generates more greenhouse gases than the entire transportation industry. Industrial meat production is one of the biggest contributors to water and air pollution, and a waste of resources like water and grain.

The livestock industry is also notorious for animal brutality. Beef cattle in America stand ankle-deep in their own waste and eat a diet that makes them sick. Broiler chicken get their beaks snipped off with a hot knife to keep them from cannibalising each other in confinement, while a laying hen, jam-packed in a cage with thousand of others, rubs her breast against the wire mesh until it's completely bald and bleeding.

The 10% of hens that will die are built into production cost. (Source: The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan)

And let's not forget the hidden costs to the environment and taxpayers in conventional farming, from water and soil pollution, antibiotic resistance to food-borne diseases, subsidised crops, pesticides and water.

The pleasures of eating

In our slapdash and fast food world, we've forgotten to savour the freshness and taste of natural foods. Chef Takashi Kimura (on cover) of Sage Restaurant at The Gardens Hotel in Kuala Lumpur supports local farmers, and uses only their fresh ingredients for his Japanese-infused French cuisine.

"My approach to ingredients is taste comes first, and I believe if it tastes good, it's a healthy vegetable," says Kimura who garnered a cult following among local gourmands when he helmed Cilantro's kitchen (now closed for renovation).

"Then I found that good-tasting vegetables in Malaysia are grown organically," says Kimura, 37.

"Organic spinach is so flavourful when you take a bite; even the stem is sweet and you can almost taste the rich soil where it's grown."

Though Malaysia boasts a large variety of veggies, Kimura finds it hard to source for quality produce. At Sage, he uses locally grown veggies like zucchini flowers, fine beans and herbs like French tarragon, chervil and chives. His farmer friend runs a small farm in Janda Baik, Pahang. Kimura even brought different seeds back from Japan for his friend to plant.

Surprisingly one of his signature dishes, the juicy and flavourful chapon (capon/castrated rooster) comes from a farm in Semenyih, Selangor. And he gets his ducks, guinea fowl and turkey from a farm in Negri Sembilan, while his garoupa and crayfish are from fishermen in Sabah.

"In Japan or France, consumers appreciate local food more than imported ones. Here it's completely different ? people tend to favour imported food," says Kimura, who hopes to change people's perception gradually.

Re-connecting with food

Callie Tai believes that disconnecting from food is the same as disconnecting from life.

"I used to be in the corporate world, and I know what it's like, the rat race, buying branded stuff and expensive make-up," says Tai in her 40s. Her life took a turn when she started a family.

"You want to feed your kids the best you can. At that time, I knew very little about organic except that it's safe and I liked the idea of no chemicals or additives," says Tai who became a vegetarian and later joined the family business, Justlife Group Sdn Bhd, a retailer and importer of organic food.

Today the CEO of Justlife, she is a strong advocate of vegetarianism and saving the earth through food choices.

"I guess once you find something that you believe in and enjoy doing, you change your outlook in life," adds Tai.

A philosophical young man, Yahqappu Addaikalam believes that our spirit, soul and body have to be in harmony. But your body depends on your health, which is affected by what you eat. Inspired by the literature of Tolstoy and St Augustine, Yahqappu ditched the city life to become a farmer six years ago.

"I got to thinking what food was about, why food had become so cheap and insignificant, and realised I had to do something about it," says Yahqappu, now a father of one.

"St Augustine promoted agriculture as one of the foremost work and a noble thing a person can do."

Today his 1½-acre (.6ha) organic farm, called The Lord's Garden (☎ 017-370 8326), in Batu Arang, Selangor produces a variety of veggies and fruits. His family of three live in a one-room, brick house. His water supply comes from the well and rainwater, and he plans to generate his own renewable energy using a bio- digester.

"Our salvation must come from food. With the right method of farming, we can ensure the earth is safe, produce just enough and don't eat more than we need to.

"We take so much from the earth, it's time we give back," says Yahqappu , 35, who also makes fresh organic bread and peanut butter to sell. "By being a living example, I hope to inspire others to think about their way of life."

Less than 200km north of Batu Arang, Chin Yew Wah runs the Simple Life organic farm (☎ 017-483 8387) in Tg Tualang village near Kampar, Perak. Like Yahqappu, Chin is an anomaly in the farming world.

He single-handedly runs his seven-acre (2.8ha) farm, which produces about 40 varieties of veggies, herbs and fruits, and supplies his produce to the villagers. His modest brick house boasts an extensive library that would make a bookworm green with envy.

"Living a simple life means going back to the source, to the way of thinking and doing things," says Chin, 51. He lived in the US for 15 years before returning to Malaysia a decade ago. He lives off the farm except for some staple food like brown rice and brown rice noodles.

"My money is my health. I don't need much."

Chin is passionate about teaching people about food's healing qualities. He teaches his customers how to prepare and serve his veggies so the nutrients are retained.

"My formula is organic food plus spiritual food equals whole food ? it's a complete cycle. You're born as baby. Then you grow older and become like a baby again, and people have to take care of you," he explains.

"It's a whole cycle ? if nothing's dead, nothing will be alive. If you live a long, healthy life, you have no problem accepting that death is part of life. But if you get sick, you're afraid of dying because you time hasn't come yet."

Food and life
My own journey to find the answers isn't over yet.

But after the farm visits, being inspired by enlightened farmers, organic proponents and a macrobiotic expert, I have come to understand why the mere act of eating "is an agricultural act", as farmer, poet and author Wendell Berry once put it.

Eating ends the drama of the food economy that begins with planting and birth, and we, the consumers, are passive participants.

"To an extent, how and what we eat determines the health of our bodies, the plants, soil, animals and our environment," Berry said.

Food for thought (no pun intended): we can strive to eat in full consciousness and take responsibility for our role in the food economy.

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Lots Of Organic Fruits And Veggies For Sale

Sunday, June 17, 2007

PETALING JAYA: There will be an array of organic fruits and vegetables for sale at The Star’s Green Fest at the Forest Research Institute Malaysia (FRIM) today.

Organic farm The Lord Garden’s owner Yahqappu Adaikkalam, 33, will have a booth at the green fest.

Yahqappu grows brinjals, long beans, okra, spinach, papayas and bananas at his farm in Batu Arang, Selangor.

He said by not using chemicals, there would be no threat to the environment and the farmer.

“Organic produce is community friendly as it is not focused on generating money; instead it is health-focused.

“These harmful chemicals then do not enter our bodies when we consume organic food,” said Yahqappu, who has been running the farm for four years.

On complaints that organic food is more expensive, he replied: “Although organic food is priced slightly higher than non-organic food, it does justice to the farmer, consumer and environment.”

Green Fest is on from 7am to 4pm today. The booths will open at 9am. Admission is free although there is a small payment for some of the activities. Activities include a forest run, nature treasure hunt and canopy walk.

Local celebrities will also be lending their star appeal to the event while there will be various “green” exhibition booths to educate visitors on the importance of environmental conservation.

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City Boy Finds Peace In Farming

Sunday, October 1, 2006
By K. S. USHA DEVI

RAWANG: Three years ago Yahqappu Adaikkalam left his restaurant business in Kuala Lumpur, picked up farming tips from books and the Internet and started an organic farm in Batu Arang.

Now, he is contented tilling the land and waking up to the sounds of the cock crowing and birds chirping.

BACK TO BASICS: Yahqappu taking time from his farming work near Batu Arang in Selangor to pose for photographs recently.

He feels he has found his paradise.

“After being in the food industry for six years, I decided that I wanted to lead a simple life without the pressures of living in the city,” said the 32-year-old bachelor.

Yahqappu, from Selayang, decided to become a vegetable farmer in 2003.

He was lucky to find a 0.6ha land about 1km away from this town where he also rears goats, chickens and ducks.

“I had gone to the Gombak Land Office to get information on land that was available for farming but was unsuccessful.

“Then a friend of mine told me about the land here,” he said.

There is no television or radio in his farmhouse, which is a small wooden shack he calls home.

He gets his electricity supply from a battery and has all the necessary kitchen utensils.

Water is sourced from a well that he dug with the help of friends and he pays a monthly rental of RM150 for the land.

“It is more of a personal philosophy to live a community lifestyle and to work the earth,” he said.

For income, Yahqappu sells his produce of long beans, brinjals, small chillies, okra, spinach and beans.

He also grows bananas and papayas. To fertilise the plants, he uses cow dung.

“I make at least RM100 a day selling the produce to organic shops, friends and neighbours who opt for organic vegetables,” he said.

“Organic vegetables are not cheap and the market is small,” he said.

Yahqappu said running the farm required patience, diligence and hard work.

He acquired his farming skills through trial and error.

“There have been many instances that the vegetables are attacked by insects,” he said, pointing to a brinjal plant that had been destroyed by red ants.

“I learnt about the planting vegetables and toiling the land from books and the Internet,” he says.

Visitors, including foreigners, have dropped by his farm and that was when Yahqappu realised its tourism potential.

However, he has no intention of turning the farm into a tourist attraction.

“People hear about my farm through word of mouth.

“My main intention is to find a balance in my life and for the farm to remain as it is without any commercialisation.

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