About Organic Farming

About Organic Farming Any agriculture system has a duty towards feeding the earth and it has to fulfill this responsibility using safe and sustainable methods and technologies. Organic farming is a set of simple practices which bring into picture a diverse, healthy and sustainable crop production system, without the use of poisonous chemicals like pesticides and fertilisers. It is a responsible way of farming which ensures that healthy, chemical-free food is produced without harming the environment. It is a fallacy that organic farming leads to loss in productivity - it is proven that after a short period of a drop in yields, organic farming is more productive than chemical farming. Organic farming is also cheaper to practice than chemical agriculture. It is turning out to be the only way to farm, taking into account farmer conditions, environmental conditions and the health needs of the consumer. The holistic aspect of organic farming Organic farming is not just farming without using chemicals. It is a holistic way of life that looks to benefit every aspect of nature and life which agricultural practices entail interaction with. Hence, organic farming is also about the environment, agricultural traditions, seed biodiversity, animal welfare, rural communities, self-reliance, sensible energy use, soil and water conservation, and importantly, human health. Organic farming can be considered a spiritual or enlightened practice because of the intrinsic benevolence and nonviolent nature of its methods. Instead of placing unreasonable demands on the plant or soil, organic agriculture works in association with them, not forcing the plant to produce more, but feeding the soil which in turns feeds the plant in a natural way. In organic farming, even weeds and pests are considered part of the system - weeds denote what could be wrong on a farm (a deficiency or an excess of a nutrient for example), and pests are merely part of a cycle - their appearance is followed by the arrival of their natural predators which 'take care' of them. Why organic farming Agriculture has to be considered a way of life, a lifestyle and a communication or interaction with nature. It cannot be treated as an industrial or purely commercial activity. In its current form, chemical agriculture has adversely affected the environment, farm diversity, farming communities, farm animals, food quality, and the lives and health of consumers worldwide. India is no exception. The focus of agriculture today, in its chemical avatar, is on quantity and outer appearance rather than on intrinsic quality or 'vitality' and nutrition. Pesticide and other chemical residue in food and an overall reduced quality of food have led to a marked increase in various diseases, mainly various forms of cancer and reduced immunity. In India, chemical agriculture has seen many negative fallouts, amongst them being : Loss of seed diversity Contamination of water resources by pesticides - the twin controversies in 2003 regarding pesticide content in bottled drinking water and aerated beverages in India hardly came as a surprise to many working with the environment and in farming. Even if we blame beverage manufacturers (and rightly-so) for allowing pesticide residue in their products and treating human health so cheaply, the fact remains that pesticides got into the water supply in the first place only because of the agriculture system which uses them Contamination of water resources by pesticides - the twin controversies in 2003 regarding pesticide content in bottled drinking water and aerated beverages in India hardly came as a surprise to many working with the environment and in farming. Even if we blame beverage manufacturers (and rightly-so) for allowing pesticide residue in their products and treating human health so cheaply, the fact remains that pesticides got into the water supply in the first place only because of the agriculture system which uses them Poorer soil quality Falling ground water levels - agricultural chemicals require plenty of water to respond, hybrids also usually need more water compared to local varieties Greater dependence of farmers for external inputs, and increased risks incurred by them on account of higher crop production expenses and lower net returns

Organic food Organic food does not 'cost the earth' to grow. It should not also cost consumers 'the earth' to eat. At the same time however, assuming that the ruling market prices for conventionally-grown food (read chemically-grown food) are fair, it is only correct that an organic farmer should receive at least a marginally higher price for his produce and his efforts, especially when consumers are aware that organic food is better than chemically-grown food in all respects, including taste, flavour and for their own health, besides that of the earth. Another aspect of the organic food 'issue' at least in India is a common problem faced by organic farmers : the lack of a ready market and often unremunerative prices for their produce. In many cases, the grower does not receive timely payments from middlemen including organic food traders. Interested buyers of organic food on the other hand, cannot find what they need, at least not at reasonable prices. Supplies are often erratic or unreliable and in some cases buyers are not even sure if the food they are buying is indeed organic.

Buy organic foods Satavic Farms has, in early 2006, established a separate division within the organisation to supply organic food and food products in India. This division attempts to link growers and buyers to ensure a fair price for the grower and easier availability of a wide range of organic food at reasonable prices for the buyer. A wide range of fresh and processed organic food is available, sourced mainly from farmers within our network. Certified organic food, ethically-certified organic food (from known NGOs and organisations), and uncertified organic produce (the last only from growers and organisations within our own network) are available. The division does not deal in meat and egg products and the few milk-based items available have been attempted to be sourced from verified humane dairy farmers. You can contact us for more information on our organic food division and the products we have available : Retail enquiries [email protected]

Institutions, bulk / wholesale, importers [email protected] or call +9198300 53601

Sell organic food Satavic Farms' organic food division, established in early 2006, sources a wide range of fresh and processed organic food and food products from across the Indian sub-continent. If you are a grower or processor of organic food in India or outside and would like to supply your produce / products, please write [email protected] or call 09830053601 (+91-9830053601 if calling from outside India). Please note that we do not work with meat, eggs and their products. Milk products are also subject to certain verifications. We are sourcing only certified organic food from growers and processors outside our network. In specific cases, we also procure ethically-certified organic food, subject to the credentials of individual organisations. We are not procuring uncertified organic food from farmers outside our own network. If you fall in this category and would still like to supply to us, you would either have to apply for organic certification or tieup with an NGO or similar organisation. We can guide you further on hearing from you.

Organic farming in India The official position As per a Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) study of mid-2003, India had 1,426 certified organic farms producing approximately 14,000 tons of organic food / produce annually. In 2005, as per Govt. of India figures, approximately 190,000 acres (77,000 hectares) were under organic cultivation. The total production of organic food in India as per the same reference was 120,000 tons annually, though this largely included certified forest collections. Another side to the story There are a number of farms in India which have either never been chemically-managed / cultivated or have converted back to organic farming because of their farmers' beliefs or purely for reason of economics. These thousands of farmers cultivating hundreds of thousands of acres of land are not

classified as organic though they are. Their produce either sells in the open market along with conventionally grown produce at the same price or sells purely on goodwill and trust as organic through select outlets and regular specialist bazaars. These farmers will never opt for certification because of the costs involved as well as the extensive documentation that is required by certifiers. New potential areas About 65% of India's cropped area is not irrigated and it can be safely assumed that high-input demanding crops are not grown on these lands. Fertiliser use on drylands is always less anyway as chemical fertilisers require sufficient water to respond. Pesticide use in these lands would also be less as the economics of these hardy or "not-so profitable" crops will not permit expensive inputs. These areas are at least "relatively organic" or perhaps even "organic by default". While neither of these terms necessarily denotes a healthy farm or a recommended agriculture system, it would at least imply a non-chemical farm that can be converted very easily to an organic one providing excellent yields and without the necessity and effort of a lengthy conversion period.