Farmer profits increase with regeneration
Farmers earn 37% more per are on regenerative plots than on conventional ones, with the Astungkara Way price premium included.
Astungkara Way regenerative rice data bank
Regenerative farming
Rice fields that work like ecosystems again. Regenerative rice farming in Bali
Since 2020, we have worked alongside Balinese rice farmers to move away from chemical-intensive farming. Together, we test practices that restore ecosystems and make farming more viable.
Why farming has to change
Many rice farmers depend on purchased fertilisers and pesticides while facing pressure on soil health, harvests and income. Changing how they farm takes practical support and a way to manage the risk.
Removing synthetic inputs is only part of the transition. Farmers need a system that works in their fields and supports their livelihoods. We combine training, field support and research to find what makes that change last.
For young people to see a future in farming, it needs to offer a decent livelihood as well as a connection to the land.
How we got here, including what failed
The method we teach today is the third one we've tested. We share our failures too, because they are an essential aspect of our ongoing learning journey.
2018Living the Rice CycleTim Fijal creates a course for Green School Bali families to farm a rice season alongside local growers. Course fees help farmers cover the risk of trying chemical-free methods.
2021A method that did not holdEarly trials show us how difficult changing methods can be. Lower yields and extra weeding make the transition hard to sustain, and push us to look for an approach better suited to local conditions.
2022Complex Rice SystemsA Zero Foodprint Asia grant, with reNature, brings us to Dr. Uma Khumairoh. We start with about 20 farmers. Within a year more than 200 are involved.
2025RecognisedAstungkara Way becomes a Food Planet Prize finalist, while our field research and hands-on learning programmes continue to grow.
2026From proof to partnersThe Astungkara Trail is voted National Geographic Best of the World 2026, Readers' Choice. Hospitality and programme partners help fund the next stage of our work with farmers.
The method
Complex Rice Systems
Complex Rice Systems brings rice together with elements such as ducks, fish, azolla and border plants. Developed through research by Dr. Uma Khumairoh and university partners, the method helps a paddy function as an ecosystem. We have adapted it with Balinese farmers since 2022.
Duckseat weeds, insects and snails, and their movement feeds oxygen to the water.
Azollafixes nitrogen from the air and shades out weeds.
Fishhelp manage some pests and weeds while adding another source of food or income.
Border plantsshelter the predators of rice pests and feed the compost.
Rice strawis returned as compost to feed soil life.
Our regenerative rice data bank
Learning from the fields, cycle after cycle
Since 2022, we have collected observations on yields, costs, income and farming practices, alongside soil, water and biodiversity tests. The data helps us understand what changes, where farmers need support and which practices work in different conditions.
Yield through the transition
Average harvest in kg per are, by crop cycle. "Before" is the same farmers under conventional practice.
In this dataset, average yield dips during the first three cycles, returns to the conventional baseline in cycle four and reaches about 14% above it in cycle five. This pattern helps explain why support through the early transition matters. Cycles six, seven and eight are being recorded now, with the support of Imaginal Seeds.
Source: Astungkara Way Data Bank, all tracked farmers. The bars start at 40 kg per are so the change between cycles is easier to see.
What the research found
Rice yield in tonnes per hectare, six years of on-farm trials in East Java.
Complex Rice Systems
7.6 to 10.0
Conventional
6.9 to 9.5
Organic, compost only
4.7 to 5.6
04812 t/ha
The study also found that complex systems could perform more reliably in difficult weather and reduce labour requirements. These research results inform our work; outcomes in Bali depend on local conditions and practice.
Source: Khumairoh, U. (2019), On complex rice systems, Wageningen University and Research.
Regenerative Academy and Data Bank
Building the evidence for regenerative rice
With the support of three funders, we are building the first and most detailed regenerative rice data bank in Indonesia: 338 farmers, followed field by field and cycle after cycle.
The aim is to prove, and then share widely, that regenerative rice can replace conventional farming, that it pays farmers better, and that its benefits for the environment and for the people who eat the rice are large.
1It can replace conventional farmingIn our data, yields dip in the first cycles, return to the conventional level by cycle four and reach about 14% above it in cycle five.
2It pays farmers better+31% income per are against conventional plots, with our price premium, and less money spent on chemical inputs.
3The land and the table gainEvery 100 kg of rice a month keeps about 500 kg of chemical fertiliser and 150 L of pesticide out of the paddies each year, and the rice is grown without them.
Lilyput Holdings
Cycles 3 to 5Lilyput HoldingsFunded the continuation of our field data collection, following the same farmers into cycles 3, 4 and 5.
Field results
What our research found
Since 2022 we have tested soil, water and pests on rice fields moving to regenerative practices, beside conventional neighbours. These are our most significant findings.
These findings show what we have observed, rather than a promise for every farm.
Regenerative soils hold more nutrients
In 22 of 24 plots, regenerative soil held more nutrients than the conventional plot next door, in all three farming communities we tested. That soil keeps potassium, calcium and magnesium for the rice, instead of losing them with the water.
July 2025 · 27 plots in Pedahanan, Ketapang and Uma Lambing · Udayana University soil laboratoryRegenerative fields take heavy metals out of the water
Lead, copper, cadmium and iron reach the fields in irrigation water at many times the safety limits. In the water leaving regenerative fields, none were detected, in all three farming communities we tested. We repeat the test in April 2027.
June 2025 · one sample per field outlet in 3 subaks · Udayana University analytical laboratorySame pest damage, without the chemicals
At the grain-forming stage, 26% of rice stems were attacked on regenerative fields, against 29% on conventional fields. Ducks, fish and flowering borders keep pests in check instead of synthetic pesticides.
May 2024 to December 2025 · 96 field checks on 78 farms, 30 hills counted per check
Healthier fields. Stronger farming livelihoods.
FarmersLower input costs, support through the transition and opportunities to sell the harvest.
The landPractices that support soil life, biodiversity and better water quality.
The people who eat itRice grown without synthetic inputs, from fields you can visit.
How it is funded
Who pays for the transition?
Farmers told us they wanted to change how they farmed, but could not carry the risk alone. We bring together the people who benefit from healthy landscapes to help support that transition.
Since 2021
Travellers
When you walk a trail or join a Farm Experience, your booking supports local hosts, farming families and the wider work of Astungkara Way.
Since 2024
Hospitality
Hospitality partners fund training and field support for local farmers, with opportunities to source their harvests and involve guests.
Since 2026
Funders
Companies and foundations walk with groups of farmers through their two-year transition, as sponsors.
Since 2026
Programme partners
Organisations such as Rikolto work with our field team on farmer engagement, training and impact measurement.
They fundfarmer training and practical supportto supporthealthier fields and measured resultsand encouragemore farmers and partners to join
How the movement grows
Regenerative Services
For hotels and landowners: farmer outreach, training, impact tracking, local sourcing and guest experiences.
Explore the services
Regenerative Farming Academy
Practical training, field support and peer learning for farmers through a two-year transition.
How the Academy works
Regenerative Rice
White, red and brown rice from our partner farmers, in hotel and restaurant kitchens across Bali, and online for home delivery.
Buy regenerative rice
Regenerative rice
Eat the rice these farmers grow
White, red and brown rice grown without synthetic inputs by our partner farmers. Every order helps build a reliable market for their harvests.
For your home, restaurant or hotel kitchen. Message Winona with your order or questions; she usually replies the same day.
"We chose to work with Astungkara Way because of their genuine commitment to regenerative hospitality and their deeply grounded, on-the-ground approach."
Raj Ratheesh, General Manager, Bambu Indah, Bali