Chiang Mai’s elephants were handed a lifeline on Thursday after going hungry for months due to a lack of tourist income during the pandemic.

A project titled “Napier Grass Plantation to Help Elephants in Chiang Mai Province” was launched by the Provincial Administrative Organisation along with the Animals and Agriculture Division and the Thai Elephant Alliance Association.

The project will ease burdens on owners who have borne the expense of feeding some 900 elephants for over 15 months since the Covid-19 pandemic began. Each elephant requires 150-300 kilos of food per day at a cost of 300-500 baht. The lack of income from tourist visits during the pandemic means elephants are facing food shortages and tough times.

Under the project agreement, the Chiang Mai Provincial Administrative Organisation will set aside 93 rai of land to grow Napier grass over the next two years in order to provide a sustainable food source for elephants in the province.

The Nation