You might not be aware of it, but a raft of popular products and enterprises are linked to His Majesty's ingenuous work in sustainable economic development.
Rainbow trout and crayfish served at Bangkok's most luxurious hotels; Bresse chicken that originated from France; temperate climate cash crops including vegetables, fruits and flowers -- all of them found a place in Thailand due to the late King's efforts to raise the welfare of his people.
These products and more made their way to the country on account of the royal projects, initiated by the King throughout his 70-year reign to spur sustainable development while helping to address other social and economic issues.
Some have gone on to become lucrative enterprises.
In 1969, His Majesty breathed life into a programme as part of his royal project to replace opium poppies with cash crops while also working to halt the destruction of precious forests and watersheds in the North.
Opium poppy cultivation was rife in northern Thailand during the 1960s, when an average of 150 tonnes were being produced each year.
The royal project also operates a non-profit organisation which purchases products from hill tribe farmers, after which it grades, packages and markets them.
Many fruits and vegetables once considered luxuries to locals are now readily available to Thai consumers.
Every year, the royal project returns some 600 million baht in proceeds to farmers, a figure that swells into the billions if one takes into account goods created under the principles set down by His Majesty, but marketed through their own channels, people familiar with the project told the Bangkok Post.
The royal project's organic products are used by at least 30 fine restaurants, many of which are located in five-star hotels across the capital. Numerous eateries across the country also seek out the products due both to their superior quality and the knowledge that they were cultivated for a good cause.
What follows is a list of notable products and successful business models given life through the King's efforts.
Rice:
Throughout the 70-year reign of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej, much support was given to the agricultural sector. The King always turned his attention to poor farmers, who account for a majority of Thai citizens, by providing them with water security to allow for both productive and lucrative harvests.
Rice farmers and the rice-related sector were particularly singled out for the King's support.
Early on in his reign, the King spent a lot of his time surveying and building major reservoirs across the country to secure water supplies for farmers. He recognised early on that Thailand is an agricultural country and water is the heart of crops, especially rice, which needs a lot of it.
"We must grow rice. In the next 20 years, the number of our citizens could rise to 80 million and our rice supplies will not be sufficient by that time. If we continue to reduce the level of rice planting, we will not have enough rice, and may even have to import it. This is no good; it is something Thais cannot accept. Thais must have their own rice. Although rice grown in Thailand might not be the best compared with that grown in other countries, we still need to grow it," His Majesty the King said in a 1993 speech.
In 1951, the Agriculture Ministry started developing Thai premium grade rice strains through the pure line selecting method.
Through those efforts the Thai Hom Mali rice was born. The fragrant jasmine rice, which can only be grown once a year on a specific plateau in the northeastern region, has limited production capacity of 8-9 million tonnes a year -- 30% of Thailand's 25 million tonne annual rice crop.
"That has boosted the price of Thai Hom Mali rice as it is recognised as premium grade rice," said the president of the Thai Rice Exporters Association Charoen Laothammatas.
Thai Hom Mali rice, along with other premium grade white rice strains, generate billions of baht in export value annually, crowning Thailand as the world's biggest rice exporter.
"The King not only created many things that help support rice production, rice quality and the food security of the nation, but he also fostered the morale of millions of Thai rice growers. Those efforts are best exemplified by his initiative to revive the ancient Thai Royal Ploughing Ceremony," said Mr Charoen.
Fruits and Vegetables:
After hill tribes could grow enough fruits and vegetables to meet their own household needs, in 1981 the Royal Project Foundation began selling the surplus at wet markets in Chiang Mai.
The produce immediately made a splash, being recognised for its high quality and freshness. Then the fruits and vegetables were introduced to Bangkok, before making their way across the country.
The Royal Project Foundation is now responsible for marketing the produce, which is sold under the Royal Project and Doi Kham labels.
Currently, the foundation recommends that the hill tribes grow a variety of fruits and vegetables to meet consumer demand.
The living standards of 25,000 hill tribe households have been boosted by the scheme.
Today, they can grow various vegetables, fruits, mushrooms and flowers as well as coffee, tea and herbs. Up to 1,700 fresh and processed products have made their way on board Thai Airways, as well as to hotels, restaurants and supermarkets both at home and abroad.
Nongchanok Stananonth, assistant vice-president for marketing at Sizzler, said the restaurant chain first bought Japanese pumpkin from the royal project in December 2009.
The restaurant chain has so far bought 87 million baht worth of products from the project, and expects to buy 18 million bath more next year.
"We are glad to help hill tribe people be happier and have better living standards. They can plan their lives and know how much they will earn a year before selling their products to us," she said.
Meanwhile, Doi Kham Food Products Co was established in 1994 by the Crown Property Bureau following a recommendation from his Majesty to set up a business that buys produce from the Royal Project Foundation and farmers in Chiang Mai at fair prices.
It produces a variety of products including fruit juices, jams, honey, mushrooms and dried fruits.
Doi Kham has processing plants in Fang district, Chiang Mai; Mae Chan district, Chiang Rai; and Tao Ngoi district, Sakon Nakhon. It currently boasts 30 Doi Kham shops operating nationwide.
Coffee is another high-value agriculture product that originated in the Doi Tung development project in Chiang Rai. Twenty-nine hill tribe villages currently grow Arabica coffee and macadamia nuts.
Coffee beans from Doi Tung are known for their high quality, while the Doi Tung coffee shop chain was later rolled out to help deliver the coffee to Thai people.
Livestock and aquaculture:
Throughout his reign, His Majesty the King had paid special attention to the well-being of his people, especially improving the livelihoods of the poor.
It hence came as no surprise when His Majesty moved to establish a research and experimentation centre for new plant varieties such as mulberry and para rubber, plants for soil improvement and herbs. The centre, on the grounds of his Chitralada Royal Villa in Bangkok, also studies insects and pests, rears livestock such as cattle, goats and sheep, and has a breeding centre for fish and poultry.
Regarding fish, His Majesty started with an experiment on the Java tilapia species, which he reared himself before settling on the tilapia nilotica (Nile tilapia) species that was presented to him by then Crown Prince Akihito of Japan in 1965. The King gave the fish the Thai name nil, taken from its scientific namesake of nilotica, and promoted the fish species among Thai farmers.
In 1989, Charoen Pokphand Group was granted royal permission to develop pla nil by crossbreeding it with premium foreign breeding stocks from the US, Taiwan and Israel. CP Group developed the hybrid of Nile tilapia in 1998, to which His Majesty the King bestowed the name pla thapthim (red tilapia).
Pla thapthim today is widely known among consumers and provides numerous jobs in the agricultural industry.
Currently, Thailand produces a combined 300,000 tonnes of pla nil and pla thapthim, fetching sales of about 15 billion baht a year. Of the total output, exports come to 30,000 tonnes a year.
Apart from pla nil, His Majesty the King also advised local people to raise milkfish, known locally as pla nuan chan, as a supplementary occupation to increase their income.
Milkfish, or Chanos Chanos, is native to tropical waters and the Pacific Ocean. It is an important source of food in many countries like the Philippines and China because they grow quickly, are disease resistant and taste good.
As the fish feeds on both plankton and algae, they are cheaper to farm than meat-eating varieties.
In Thailand, the fish is mostly found off the coast of Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chumphon, Phetchaburi and Trat. His Majesty the King first observed milkfish aquaculture at a fishery station in Prachuap Khiri Khan in 1965. He found that the fish grew well even in ponds with low salinity and fetched a good price.
The King then used his own money to buy a number of milkfish for release into the Khao Tao reservoir in Hua Hin. At that time, however, milkfish farming was not popular as locals understood that the fish only spawned in marine ecosystems.
Over the past several decades, the Fisheries Department conducted experiments to propagate the fish in response to royal determination to promote it.
In 2005 the department found success in breeding the milkfish on a commercial basis through improved breeding techniques. Milkfish farming has now become more popular, mostly in Prachuap Khiri Khan.
In 1969, His Majesty the King also initiated farming of rainbow trout (Oncorhychus Mykiss) in the northern highlands to supplant income from opium poppy cultivation for the hill tribes.
In 1998, comprehensive experiments with rainbow trout were started in joint efforts between Goettingen (Germany) and Chiang Mai universities with support from The German Academic Exchange Service.
Today, successful broodstock management under specific environmental conditions in the highlands of northern Thailand has been achieved at the Chiang Mai Inland Fisheries Research and Development Center (Royal Project Foundation). Due to the relatively high farming and production costs, however, the fish is not yet commercially viable for most farmers, although it is supplied by the royal project.
Meanwhile, the state-run Dairy Farming Promotion Organisation, which manufactures Thai-Danish dairy products in Thailand, is perhaps one of The King's most successful initiatives.
Initially, the King had intended to promote dairy farming to help Thai farmers to raise their standard of living. But the venture continued to grow over the years and soon became lucrative.
This year alone, Thai-Danish dairy products have generated 8.6 billion baht in sales.
Milk products are made by the Dairy Farming Promotion Organisation of Thailand, a project initiated by His Majesty the King. WICHAN CHAROENKIATPAKUL
Fruit and vegetables produced by farmers in the North are available at a Royal Project Foundation shop in Chiang Mai. Products from the project are also distributed to airlines, restaurants and supermarkets to help local growers. PATTANAPONG HIRUNARD
