Can You Still Live In Thailand After Reading This?

[IAmMarchHare]

Don't use ice cubes in your cocktails.

Might I suggest that if the alcohol isn't killing the germs, then there isn't enough alcohol in the drink?

[Pez]

Any farmers out there like to enlighten us as to how widespread this is in Thailand.

Shit - particularly human shit - in the raw state to fertilize crops will probably cause sever stomach problems to those not acclimatised to it - its full of animal fat and low in fiber. I read a long time ago that some villagers in Africa that don't keep live stock use their own shit to help grow the veg, for travelers this was baaaad news.

When I was young it was normal to use the solid product from the sewage treatment works on the land - the smellllllll aghhhhhh. Howere, before it leaves the works it does go thro a bacterial/aerobic digestion process and it is this that makes it safe.

But, animal shit is better for the garden as it contains much higher levels of fiber which does a lot to condition the soil - elephant Pooh is fantastic!

Sorry for th crap story but I could go on and on ..........

[Jingthing]

Just poo eating? Big deal. I thought you were going to say that Thai people were racist against farangs or something like that.

[PapiRico]

Just read this today, http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D92KLN780.htm

Can you still live in Thailand after reading this?

Half of all food produced on farms near 70% of all cities in the developing world don't have access to water so they irrigate thier crops with untreated human waste.

Surely this includes Thailnd.

I really wonder if I can now live in a developing country. I mean, drop a lettuce in your, no, another man's toilet, wash it off then serve it up. Could you eat it?

I'm looking forward to the posters who will say, "hey, don't worry about it, I've never been sick" but really? You don't mind?

I love living in Asia, but not at the expense of eating a daily diet of Somchai shi.t.

Any farmers out there like to enlighten us as to how widespread this is in Thailand.

Is that why most of the vegetables and fruits here in thailand are small and "crappy"?

[Scott]

Well, I eat sh*t at work all day from my boss, so I kind of like the idea of chosing what sh*t I am going to eat!

Actually, I think the OP needs to remember that this material is broken down in the soil into nutrients for the plant. It's been done for a long time and in a few countries they will advise you not to eat the parts of the plant that are below the surface--such as carrots or potatoes--unless they are cooked.

[Seizhin]

Close one eyes and bears with it.

Though some areas doesnt really do so, I wonder if CP use such water for their farms.

[PhilHarries]

Well, I've seen human waste being spread on veggies here in Vietnam and seen them wash the salad in a puddle by the side of the road. So what? I wash my raw produce very well, just as I would do in Europe. Do you really for one second believe that the stuff you get back home (wherever that is) is always squeaky clean?

Add to that they dry the rice spread out on the roadside hard shoulders where the odd bicycle, motorbike, cow/buffalo etc drives/walks through it. Then they sweep it up back into the sacks for distribution.

The average open market here make the Thai ones look hygenic by comparison.

But we survive but I would emphasise the importance of washing thoroughly fresh produce to be eaten raw. Having had an infestation of ascaris I can vouch for that. FYI ascaris is a parasitic worm that has an interesting life cycle, google ascaris for more info, and it is estimated that around 1.2 billion people worldwide, principally in developing countries, are infected.

[geriatrickid]

Oh, and for those that think things are so great elsewhere, take a wild guess at what fertilises a lot of farms in Europe ?

True, but the difference is that there usually is a food inspection agency that checks for dangerous substances. As well there are strict quality regulations. Ask any EU food processor or farmer, and they will tell you that these rules are enforced.

Oh and by the way, the United States has more e. coli virus issues than we do in Asia.

NO. The reason there are known e. coli issues is because there is a surveillance system. Would you rather a situation where a problem is made public as in the USA or never picked up or made public as is the case in Thailand? Yes the system in the USA is full of deficiencies but at least there is an effort and a mechanism to try and protect the public. One need only look at the major jalapeno scandal this past summer with the FDA in respect to imports from Mexico. Today in my email alerts I received a notice about he Canadian Food Inspection Agency crisis response advising of one death and 17 serious illnesses arising from the products coming from one meat plant in Toronto. The culprit is listeria monocytogenes. The plant has been shut down and a massive recall is underway impacting public facilities and several major fast food chains. This was a well respected large national company that was regularly inspected. Imagine what happens at a plant or packing warehouse where there is no supervision.

One should not discount the dangers of food poisoning, Hundreds of people die every year from it in North America and the EU, despite the vigilance. I would anticipate the numbers would be in the thousands in Thailand because there is no surveillance system to speak of. Just because no one knows about it does nto mean it doesn't exist.

[srisatch]

It has been a common practice all over Asia for centuries. I believe the Chinese refer to it as 'The Great Manure'

[Cuban]

Sudden shock thought !

It has just this minute occured to me that sneaky Somchai lets out a green gas emission a few hours after eating that super spicy Som Tom, that is mixing with the air that we are breathing, also all those buffalos are also passing fermented grass gases at a massive rate, all adding to the rich reek of fresh air. Note to self - stop breathing!

[thaihome]

Sound like another NGO publishing sensationalist articles in order to drum up more donations.

TH

[hanno]

But we survive but I would emphasise the importance of washing thoroughly fresh produce to be eaten raw.

And having your Hep shots might come in handy, too.

[PEP]

Just read this today, http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D92KLN780.htm

Can you still live in Thailand after reading this?

Half of all food produced on farms near 70% of all cities in the developing world don't have access to water so they irrigate thier crops with untreated human waste.

Surely this includes Thailnd.

I really wonder if I can now live in a developing country. I mean, drop a lettuce in your, no, another man's toilet, wash it off then serve it up. Could you eat it?

I'm looking forward to the posters who will say, "hey, don't worry about it, I've never been sick" but really? You don't mind?

I love living in Asia, but not at the expense of eating a daily diet of Somchai shi.t.

Any farmers out there like to enlighten us as to how widespread this is in Thailand.

Yes! I do happily live in rural Thailand and I can assure you that within some minutes of our Septic Tanks (and any others in the district) being pumped out by one of the local contractors that the entire contents are emptied into any accessible roadside rice paddies. Anonomous owners are happy to recieve the free rertaliser!

[ade100]

Well I am pleased to say that here in Singapore we are not in the developing world, so no poo-poo for us...Hold on a minute are there actually any farms in Singapore?...oh no this means we must be importing our veggies from the grubby, squalid little Third World countries that surround us. Right that's it. I am living on cocktails alone from now on.

Singapore prides itself in it tap water, which they claim is drinkable. It comes from the sewer system, biggest system of it's kind in the southern hemisphere. Had a special on the system on TV very impressive 48KM sewer pipe big enough to drive through. All goes into the treatment plant and is converted to pottable water and piped to your home for batjhing drinking etc.

Don't use ice cubes in your cocktails.

Darling I make my ice cubes from Perrier water.

In fact most of the Singapore tap water comes through a large pipe from Malaysia. Every now and then the two countries have a bit of a squabble and Malaysia threatens to turn the tap off. This causes widespread panic among the squeaky clean Singaporeans. I reckon most Singaporeans have stock piled a few metric tonnes of water in their bomb shelters.

So, yes, to reduce the dependency on their neighbours for tap water they have, as you say, started to re-cycle raw sewage. However they assure us it's 100% clean and free from bacteria and if the Singapore government tells me something, I believe it.

[Mosha]

Back in the 60s, dad used to buy fertiliser that was being made by the local sewerage works. Now I wonder what that was made from?

[grantbkk]

This is old news. The vegetarians among us probably cringe while they are eating a plate of fruits and vegetables. It is common practice that the septic tank cleaners make money by spreading "night soil" on crops for the farmers. Gives me the creeps but I try not to think about it. The tourists would freak if they knew about this practice. That Bt8,000 dinner for two at the 5 star hotels includes human waste in the growing process. I would like to call in the Heath Ministry to spend Bt1 billion to get the "night soil" warning placed on all menus. Yep. That would further the goal of the Tourism Authority of Thailand to stop tourism completely in the Land of Smiles.

[chickencurry]

This is old news. The vegetarians among us probably cringe while they are eating a plate of fruits and vegetables. It is common practice that the septic tank cleaners make money by spreading "night soil" on crops for the farmers. Gives me the creeps but I try not to think about it. The tourists would freak if they knew about this practice. That Bt8,000 dinner for two at the 5 star hotels includes human waste in the growing process. I would like to call in the Heath Ministry to spend Bt1 billion to get the "night soil" warning placed on all menus. Yep. That would further the goal of the Tourism Authority of Thailand to stop tourism completely in the Land of Smiles.

I think it's recycling isn't it? We had the same in the UK in Norfolk. Septic Sid, as he was known, used to empty out our septic tank and others, then later you see all the stuff spewing out over the farmers' fields. And the smell... omigod

But all environmentally friendly and serves as a reminder - ALWAYS ALWAYS wash your fruit and veg before consuming.

[dingdongrb]

Don't use ice cubes in your cocktails.

Might I suggest that if the alcohol isn't killing the germs, then there isn't enough alcohol in the drink?

As the saying goes, if there is a worm at the bottle of the Tequila bottle and it is dead, then drink Tequila and you won't have worms!

[BEENTHEREDONETHAT]

Don't use ice cubes in your cocktails.

Might I suggest that if the alcohol isn't killing the germs, then there isn't enough alcohol in the drink?

As the saying goes, if there is a worm at the bottle of the Tequila bottle and it is dead, then drink Tequila and you won't have worms!

Often wondered why they put the worm in, now I know.

[dingdongrb]

That reminds me, anyone for a toad salad?

[popshirt]

Yes! I do happily live in rural Thailand and I can assure you that within some minutes of our Septic Tanks (and any others in the district) being pumped out by one of the local contractors that the entire contents are emptied into any accessible roadside rice paddies. Anonomous owners are happy to recieve the free rertaliser!

Well THAT explains why the carrots I buy sometimes come dressed with a condom!

[grantbkk]

This is old news. The vegetarians among us probably cringe while they are eating a plate of fruits and vegetables. It is common practice that the septic tank cleaners make money by spreading "night soil" on crops for the farmers. Gives me the creeps but I try not to think about it. The tourists would freak if they knew about this practice. That Bt8,000 dinner for two at the 5 star hotels includes human waste in the growing process. I would like to call in the Heath Ministry to spend Bt1 billion to get the "night soil" warning placed on all menus. Yep. That would further the goal of the Tourism Authority of Thailand to stop tourism completely in the Land of Smiles.

I think it's recycling isn't it? We had the same in the UK in Norfolk. Septic Sid, as he was known, used to empty out our septic tank and others, then later you see all the stuff spewing out over the farmers' fields. And the smell... omigod

But all environmentally friendly and serves as a reminder - ALWAYS ALWAYS wash your fruit and veg before consuming.

You would think it is treated in someway but in Thailand I have it on good authority it goes from the septic tank, into the pumping truck and then onto the soil or crops. It is recycling in some twisted way.

[BFD]

... biggest system of it's kind in the southern hemisphere. Had a special on the system on TV very impressive 48KM sewer pipe big enough to drive through. All goes into the treatment plant and is converted to pottable water and piped to your home for batjhing drinking etc.

Don't use ice cubes in your cocktails.

I'm a nitpicker today (too much time spent marking essays). Singapore is north of the equator by 137 km, according to Wikipedia.org.

Why do I care? I have no idea. I'm going to go eat some more feces, please ignore me.

BFD!

[borracho]

What a stupid OP.

All that waste material is quickly metabolized by the plants and soil.

The OP should be more concerned about how many thai farmers spray pesticides liberally just prior to harvest.

[Tinkelbell]

In my household and other Thai families that I know, before eating FRESH fruits or vegis, they would soak them in a diluted water of potasium-permanganate ( Thai calls = daang-tup-tim), to get rid of bacteria or germ.

[Ijustwannateach]

The chemicals which are useful to crops will be extracted from the 'poo' while plants are growing from something called the 'soil,' which is a rich organic pulp full of all kinds of fungus, worms, bacteria, algae, small mammals- and yes, their poo. So does it matter if the nitrogen in your salad came from human poo or bacterial poo?

[toybits]

Its called Night Soil. Human waste is spread onto rice fields as fertilizer. Usually, untreated. Stinks like hel_l. But this has not stopped me from eating rice.

[mgjackson69]

Don't use ice cubes in your cocktails.

Might I suggest that if the alcohol isn't killing the germs, then there isn't enough alcohol in the drink?

As the saying goes, if there is a worm at the bottle of the Tequila bottle and it is dead, then drink Tequila and you won't have worms!

In the interest of accuracy, there is no worm at the bottom of the Tequila bottle...there is a worm at the bottom of the Mezcal bottle.

Mezcal is derived from the agave cactus...Tequila is derived from Mezcal.

Mezcal bad, tequila good.

[toybits]

Actually, many rural Thai households dispose of human waste in soakage pits behind their toilets. The faecal matter goes down a water-sealed toilet and is dumped into culvert-like sections (as many as 5) that was buried undergrown. The bottom is not sealed to allow liquids to soak away. the culvert walls are perforated to allow liquids to leak through.

Best way is to locate your toilet away from your shallow well. Don't want Coliform bacteria in your well water.

You would think it is treated in someway but in Thailand I have it on good authority it goes from the septic tank, into the pumping truck and then onto the soil or crops. It is recycling in some twisted way.

[toybits]

No! Because Sh_t is NOT human flesh. WOW ! we've got a live one here....

If they use human sh*t as fertiliser does that make us cannibals?