Worming a Way Into the Agriculture Sector
For 53-year-old farmer Ros Mao, it’s not just the early bird that catches the worm. The Takeo province farmer has raised millions of earthworms for eight years in Tram Trak district, selling the slimy red creatures and using the manure they create to grow his crops. “I earn [$1,000 to $1,250] a year just from selling earthworms to my customers,” Mr. Mao said, adding that he keeps about half his worms to breed and raise more worms for his next batch of fertilizer. … Hean Vanhorn, Deputy Director of the General Directorate of Agriculture at the Ministry of Agriculture, said yesterday that his department was encouraging the use of worm-based fertilizers to meet a government goal to export 1 million tons of milled rice by 2015. …
