The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has recognized the Soil and Fertilizer Society of Thailand for its vital work in promoting sustainable soil management with the 2023 King Bhumibol World Soil Day Award on World Soil Day.

"Soil and water rely on each other, and that's critical to feed a hungry world," said Jong-Jin Kim, the Regional Representative for Asia-Pacific for the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). He made the remarks and presented the award at the World Soil Day event' Soil and Water: A Source of Life.'

Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand, an FAO Special Goodwill Ambassador in Asia-Pacific, presided over the event, highlighting the crucial role of soils in ensuring food security.

The Soil and Fertilizer Society of Thailand has been running a campaign to raise awareness among farmers and the public about the role healthy soils play in providing food for everyone. Fertile soils support life, the society said.

The United Nations established World Soil Day in 2013, designating 5 December 2014 as the first official World Soil Day, to honor Thailand's then monarch, His Majesty the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej The Great, who was born on that day in 1927 in the United States and later passed away in 2016. The FAO has named its World Soil Day Award after the King.

"It is a source of pride for all Thais to receive the award this year and for the first time in the past 10 years," Deputy Government Spokeswoman Rudklao Suwankiri told the media.

King Bhumibol was known for founding over 4,000 royal development projects to improve the lives of the poor and rural communities.

King Bhumibol spent considerable time working for farmers, who are regarded as the backbone of Thailand, through researching, developing and testing new varieties of rice, vegetables, other crops and sustainable farming methods at his palace in Bangkok.

Sustainability was central to his approach to farming and life. One of the areas he focused on was protecting and enriching soil through natural and organic methods so that farmers would not need chemicals that damage the environment and eventually render the soil useless.

Photo courtesy of https://www.fao.org/asiapacific/news/detail-events/en/c/1671900/