A day trip to the Thai-Denmark Dairy Farm is not only a relaxing time amid fresh air and greenery, but also offers a glimpse into the heart of the country's milk industry, which was established by the late King Bhumibol.
Located on a 2,700-rai plot on Mittraphap Road in Muak Lek district, Saraburi, the operation is owned by the Dairy Farming Promotion Organisation of Thailand (DPO), featuring an integrated dairy farm, training centre, and milk and processing plant to make a variety of dairy products under the Thai-Danish brand, which has sold 9 billion baht worth of products this year.
The venue is only 107 kilometres from Bangkok.
"It is probably among the very first eco-tourism spots in Thailand," said Peera Chairut, head of the agro-tourism division of DPO.
The number of visitors has increased notably after the passing of the late King a year ago, who brought the dairy farm industry to Thailand in 1962.
Some 130,000 people are expected to visit the farm this year, up from 110,000 in 2016.
Mr Peera also attributed the influx of visitors to the cooperation between DPO and the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) in arranging a one-day trip called "Drinking Milk, Seeing Farm, Following the King's Path".
The trip, starting from Hua Lamphong railway station in Bangkok, takes passengers to visit tourism sites in Saraburi before heading to the farm, where visitors are able to feed and milk cows, goats and sheep, be entertained by cowboy shows and purchase fresh produce.
This tour package has proven a hit and the two state agencies have signed a memorandum of understanding to extend the programme, said Mr Peera.
Also at the site, an indoor exhibition shows the history of Thailand's dairy industry, when the late King and King Frederick IX of Denmark inaugurated the Thai-Danish Dairy Farm on Jan 16, 1962. The inauguration occurred two years after a state visit to Denmark by the late King, who was interested in dairy farming and how it could benefit Thai farmers, as well as promoting milk consumption among Thais.
The Danish government and the Danish Dairy Farming Association then proposed a project to raise dairy cows in Thailand. Muak Lek was chosen as a farm and training centre.
The farm first imported and raised Red Dane cattle, which are reddish-brown, becoming the inspiration for the Red Cow trademark for Thai-Danish Dairy Farm products.
Today there are 16,200 dairy farmers' nationwide, together making 3,300 tonnes of raw milk every day. Of that number, 4,200 farmers are members of the DPO, supplying 600-700 tonnes of raw milk for the DPO, said Mr Peera.
The National Food Institute (NFI) reported these farmers raised 608,000 cattle for 1.08 million tonnes of raw milk in 2015 valued at 16.6 billion baht.
The local dairy industry received part of that supply, while 6.45 billion baht worth of ready-to-drink and processed products were bottled for export.
An NFI study found that the number of dairy farmers declined by 5.8% during 2011-2015, while the number of cattle grew by 2.3%, with higher yields of milk production over the period, indicating bigger farms and better breeders.
To improve the dairy farm business and encourage farmers to develop breeders for higher premiums and milk production, DPO organises an annual dairy cow contest, offering prizes and the King's trophy.
Numerous farmers nationwide join the event every year, hoping to win the royal trophy.
One of the farmers is young Jirachaya Thongsanit from Boonlue Farm in Lop Buri province, who won in 2010 and 2015 after years of hard work to improve his breeding methods.
Raising cows was not his first job, as he started off in the airline industry after graduating from Thammasat University. But the financial crisis put a large number of people out of work, and Mr Jirachaya was among those moving back home and seeking other ways to make ends meet.
"I had no idea what to do for a living at that time as my family ran a very small dairy farm. We only had seven cows and most produced a low yield of milk," he said.
To be a dairy farmer was the furthest thing from his mind at the time. But he decided to do it as his parents were quite desperate and needed somebody to salvage the family business.
Mr Jirachaya applied know-how from other farmers about how to improve the cattle and frequently observed the DPO contests.
"At the contest site, I met a number of farmers who were good breeders," he said. "Most importantly, I came across the knowledge that dairy farming was a career initiated by the late King."
At that time, he vowed to work by learning through every avenue available, investing in good breeders, using milking pipelines and applying numerous techniques to ensure his cows produced high-quality raw milk.
Cleaning the teats before milking and covering them after drying helps improve hygiene, while developing animal feed formulas is essential for increased milk production. All of those efforts have rewarded him with numerous trophies and certificates over the past decade.
Mr Jirachaya now raises 300 cows, producing raw milk to supply the DPO and other dairy producers.
Every year on Dec 5, more than 20 members of the Thongsanit family will gather at a room where the late King's trophies are placed, cleaning them and paying respect to him. The compound around the house is also decorated with flowers to celebrate this auspicious day.
"Though he has passed away, we will continue to carry on the dairy farming legacy as this is a career granted by our beloved King," said Mr Jirachaya.
The sign at the DPO's training centre indicates its year of establishment.
About 600-700 tonnes of raw milk are supplied from DPO members every day. Wichan Charoenkiatpakul
A processing plant in Muak Lek, where a variety of dairy products under the Thai-Danish brand are made. WICHAN CHAROENKIATPAKUL