Live Large. Celebrate Ordinary.
“I was a farmer before I was born. My mom worked in the fields carrying me in her womb,” said Mr Oh Yock Lee, 64.
Bent over a cart of gourds, Mr Oh carefully removes dinks and bruises, one fruit at a time.
Mr Oh belongs to a generation of farmers which Singapore hardly hears about, but whose produce are easily found at local supermarkets. The second son of a family of nine children, Mr Oh’s farming lineage traces back to his grandfather Mr Oh Chin Huat.
At its peak in the 1970s, the Oh farming business supported more than 100 family members, who lived and worked at a pig farm.
“Back then, everyone was paid $200 a month. I mean, the pay was not much, but we can’t expect too much, there were so many of us. And many hands make light work. Living was simple, hours weren’t that long.”
Environmental concerns mounted over the practice of pig farming in the 80s, eventually leading to its complete ban in 1989. Mr Oh and his brothers, now chiefs of the family farming business, faced an uncertain future.
It was in such a quandary that the Oh brothers took a stab in the dark at hydroponics - a system of agriculture using only water.
“We knew nothing about hydroponics. We had no plan, no strategy, just try.”
They went to Taiwan and spent a few months at an agricultural college. When they came back, they started one of the first hydroponics farms in Singapore - and seen as a forerunner in agricultural technology back then.
The soil-free technique produces pesticide-free vegetables in shorter times, using about half the water as compared to traditional methods.
After 30 years in business, Oh Chin Huat Hydroponic Farms will finally bow out in June 2020, when its land lease expires. Mr Oh has no intentions to continue the farming business.
“Now the emphasis is all on high tech, using machines and minimal manpower. One person sitting in the office, controlling the whole farm. This kind of farming needs a lot of capital, which only large firms can afford,” said Mr Oh.
“In the past, we used our very lives to fight the battle. Nowadays, the investors simply use money to fight the battle. It’s different when the battle is fought with your own hands.”