TRADITIONAL FOODS
Re-seeding the past for a better future

Tribal communities in Similipal are being encouraged to conserve seeds and water, use bio-inputs and inter-crop millets with other crops. Farmers are optimistic that this can bring them food security and better livelihoods. 

#Adivasis #Land #Agriculture #ODISHA
YIELDS AND LIVELIHOODS
Has precision farming's moment arrived
YIELDS AND LIVELIHOODS : Has precision farming's moment arrived

India needs to grow a lot more food, and do it sustainably to be able to meet its future food security and also keep its climate commitments. Precision farming is still nascent in the country, but could offer a way forward.

#Land #Agriculture
ORGANIC FARMING
What binds every family in this Kerala Panchayat

The thrust on chemical-free cultivation of vegetables that started as an experiment in the 90s has now evolved into a culture in Kerala’s Kanjikkuzhi Gram Panchayat. P N Venugopal traces the growth and success of this initiative so far.

#Livelihoods #Agriculture #Environment #KERALA
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE
Farming for self-reliance in Kalahandi
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE : Farming for self-reliance in Kalahandi

The struggle to feed themselves and their families round the year drives millions of farmers in India to desperate measures. Abhijit Mohanty’s story shows how sustainable agriculture has helped transform the lives of farmers in Odisha’s backward Kalahandi district.

#Food Security #Livelihoods #Agriculture #ODISHA
RECLAIMING THE COMMONS
Food security, courtesy Odisha's tribal women

In 25 villages across Rayagada district of Odisha, tribal village women have reclaimed the denuded commons and achieved a remarkable turnaround in food security and livelihoods through eco-friendly alternatives to shifting cultivation. Abhijit Mohanty highlights a few successes of the project.

#Food Security #Agriculture #Environment #ODISHA
SUSTAINABLE FARMING
Good food from dry land
SUSTAINABLE FARMING : Good food from dry land

Across 20 villages of Bankura and Birbhum districts in West Bengal, 800 families are learning to farm dry land anew in a sustainable manner, resulting in increased income, better health and nutritional outcomes, and food security. Ajitha Menon reports from Bankura.

#Food Security #Women's Health #Agriculture
FOOD TRADITIONS
Looking beyond the spread on our tables

Overcoming our ignorance of the richness of traditional food options, and imbibing the culinary cultures of those who live in harmony with nature could signify a giant step towards food and nutritional security, says Devinder Sharma after his visit to a tribal food fest.

#Adivasis #Food Security #Agriculture
THE COLDIRETTI DEBATE
Lessons from Italy for the Indian farmer
Italian farmer group Coldiretti is ushering in a new paradigm in farming, and has emerged as a powerful lobby for the interests of the small farmer. Keya Acharya reports on the campaign and wonders if Indian agriculture can emulate the same.
#Agriculture Policy #Livelihoods #Agriculture
KITCHEN GARDEN SUCCESS
Vegetables in the backyard
KITCHEN GARDEN SUCCESS : Vegetables in the backyard
A retired physician in small-town Manipal in Karnataka sets an example in kitchen gardening and highlights the many benefits it brings apart from the yield itself. Shree Padre brings us his remarkable story.
#Urban Environment #Agriculture #KARNATAKA
MILLET REVOLUTION
Winning the battle against hunger, silently
Revival of millet cultivation in Medak of Andhra shows how a variety of millets can fight hunger even during drought, keep farmers debt-free, and provide the much-needed nutrition without using pesticides, reports Ramesh Menon.
#Food Security #Agriculture
CHEMICAL-FREE FOOD
Organic veggies in my Inbox
CHEMICAL-FREE FOOD : Organic veggies in my Inbox
In operation now for more than two years, Gorus has a network of about 50 committed families as consumers and 25 farmers as suppliers, and growing steadily. Shripad Dharmadhikary reports.
#Agriculture
AGRICULTURE/HEALTH
Good food, Indian-style
AGRICULTURE/HEALTH : Good food, Indian-style
They are two simple, rural women, living in rural Andhra Pradesh, in an area known for its arid soils, its resultant lack of food and its poverty. And unbelievable as it may seem, the answer to the healthy skins of Chandramma and Narsamma lies in good nutrition. Keya Acharya has more.
#Agriculture #Health
AGRICULTURE
Timbaktu Organic is scaling up
This year, 160 farmers in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district committed 480 acres for organic production. Two complete cycles of procurement, processing, and marketing of organic produce in a number of cities have already been completed. Rajni Bakshi says Timbaktu Organic is expanding.
#Agribusiness #Rajni Bakshi #Agriculture
ORGANIC FARMING
Nothing unscientific about it
ORGANIC FARMING : Nothing unscientific about it

The scientific establishment remains highly sceptical about organic methods. But Dr Tarak Kate and his colleagues at a Wardha-based NGO have collected data systematically, to negate the charge that this alternative is unscientific and unproven. Darryl D'Monte reports.

#Agriculture #MAHARASHTRA
PUNJAB DIARY
Farmers persist with organic, see results

For a number of reasons including frustration with chemical agriculture, improved economic prospects and concern for nature, some farmers in Punjab are growing organic. Kavitha Kuruganti travelled around parts of the state to meet a number of farmers and dealers of organic products last month.

#Agriculture #PUNJAB