

Fortunately, in this decade, synthetic pesticides like dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), endrin, and others entered the market. Another spectacular discovery was that of the high-yielding hybrid wheat and rice. The high-yielding wheat was discovered by Norman Borlaug (Nobel Prize winner) and was rapidly adopted by India largely due to the pioneering work of Dr Swaminathan and MV Rao.
Swaminathan is remembered as the ‘father of Green Revolution’ and Rao as the “wheat man of India”. With hybrid varieties and synthetic fertilisers and insecticides, the production of rice per acre increased to 40 quintals from 10 quintals, a tremendous victory in fighting hunger. There were also some setbacks during the 1960s and 70s. India’s budget (read agriculture) is dependent on the monsoon season, as George Curzon pointed out in 1905. Due to drought from 1964-70, India had to import food and became heavily dependent on the United States for wheat supplies under the Public Law 480 agreement. At one time, we were eagerly waiting for the arrival of a ship full of wheat at the Mumbai port. The late former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri gave a call to “miss a meal” on Monday nights as a part of the Jai Kisan movement. Green Revolution Ultimately, the Green Revolution was initiated. The theme of the initiative was to boost food grains production of rice and wheat using any method and at any cost. Success followed many setbacks. Biologist-turned-science-writer Rachel Carson published a seminal book called Silent Spring, focused on the harmful effects of pesticides, primarily DDT on our health and environment. DDT was found to be non-biodegradable and its remnants were traced everywhere — in our body, soil and water. Studies showed its effects on liver and kidneys, including causing cancers. Scientists rapidly found alternatives and advocated Integrated Pest Management (IPM). IPM is a need-based use of pesticides, alternating crops, intercropping as well as usage of bird perches where birds rest, detect insects on crops and eat them. After DDT, other insecticides like monocrotophos, metasystox, cypermethrin came into use but these are equally harmful to humans, livestock and fish. The “turn to nature” to get pesticide-free food has become a priority. The order of the day is organic farming — natural farming or zero-budget agriculture — which is welcome and most wanted in the agriculture sphere.Not without setbacks
The first and foremost sound solution is the usage of organic manures from compost, cow dung and ploughing and mulching of leguminous plants. Several plant-based botanical pesticides were discovered. Neem oil, neem kernel extracts, which contain azadirachtin, is the active principle discovered by Germans, the United Kingdom and US. Neem revived the hope of using harmless pesticides but its availability is very low. Several commercial formulations were available in India. Karanj oil (Karanjin active principle), several leaf extracts like Adathoda and garlic-buds aqueous extracts are found to be effective to some extent as active repellants but they cannot replace synthetic pesticide. There is a growing awareness in India to cultivate the crops by natural fertilisers such as cow dung, leguminous green manures, compost, vermicomposting and biopesticides fungi, bacteria and virus-based pesticides like Bacillus thuringiensis, Pseuedomonas aegle, Trichoderma verdi. These bio-pesticides are chiefly produced from diseased insects and soil, among other things. However, it only has limited use on too few fruit and vegetable crops. The problem with the bio-pesticide production is that it is confined to a small industry with no standardisation and doubtful efficacy. Several symposia are held by non-governmental organisations, ideal farmers and governments. Many agricultural magazines hail the miracles of higher yields from organic farming. Particular mention should be made about jeevamrutham — a recently designed concoction called Ramabanam, which gained prominence. These concoctions are made from jaggery, ginger, cow milk, cow curd, cow dung, cow urine, asafoetida. All the ingredients are mixed and fermented for a week, diluted and sprayed on crops. It is claimed that the product can be used as a fertiliser and a pesticide. The farmers who experimented were quick to endorse the products. Their studies on organic farming presented in symposia on organic farming, however, were confined to few vegetables like tomatoes over a limited area. The yield, the farmers said, is high but not quantified with randomised block design studies. The active principle of such concoctions is unknown and doesn’t stand scientific security. Moreover, the cost of these concoctions is as high as pesticides and starting products like cow dung are not available in plenty as of today. For about 90 per cent Indians, rice or wheat are almost exclusively the staple food. So, encouragement of organic farming in a country like India will be meaningful, if applied for rice / wheat. Studies on these crops should also be prioritised. The inconvenient truth, as many farmers put it, is that the land is infertile now without urea in the first few days of rice plantation, and with no application of synthetic pesticides, the entire crop is prone to pests resulting in no yield. The challenge for agriculture scientists is how to maintain the current volume of yield (40 quintals per acre) with organic farming. We need to take with caution some sporadic success stories of organic farming on vegetables and fruits grown in an acre or two. Thus, all the available tools we have with us, like bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, green manure and vermicompost, their limitation is discussed herein. Constraints of sustainable organic farming are: None of the organic farming tools are available, especially for organic farming of rice that is the staple food in India. Importantly, the whole organic farming depends on cow dung, which is dwindling even as we are particular about their protection (gosamrakshana). The staple food for cattle is rice straw. While we claim rice production is high and in surplus, the cost of rice remains very high and is not affordable for the poor man. Thus, the increase of cattle population is linked to paddy by rice production. Both are interlinked. Quantification for pesticide residues in food should be done by High Performance Liquid Chromatography / Mass Spectra / Mass Spectra (HPLC / MS / MS) method. The sophisticated method has been adopted by advanced countries but is still not in use in India. The real structure of crop production is dependent on high-yielding hybrid seeds. Continuous research on high yielding varieties by cross breeding with pest resistant wild varieties is essential.Compost from urban areas and vermicompost, in particular, don’t seem to have been examined for pesticide residues and harmful trace elements such as arsenic, cadmium, mercury and lead is needed by using HPLC /MS / MS method and atomic absorption spectroscopy.
Introduction of transgenic varieties is not recommended for organic and natural farming. Therefore, it is wise to use the first three sprays on crops with natural organic materials and the last two sprays with synthetic pesticides. Research on organic farming should be done using robust scientific methods only. Surprisingly, rice was found to contain high pesticides and trace elements. This technique should be standardised in India. Our slogan should be “natural and organic farming with high yields at an affordable price to the common man”. India’s wheat exports surpassed $872 million (2021-22) and rice exports in 2021-22 is likely to surpass the record $10 million, according to the agriculture department of the Government of India.It was then that Saroja thought of switching over to selling organic food and products. “I was always interested in cooking using millets and other traditional food grains. My husband grew organic vegetables and foodgrains like jowar, ragi, paddy and millets. So, I decided to sell the [harmful] chemical-free produce and traditional recipes using our farm fresh harvest,” she says.
Saroja started the business informally. But it was only after her products were appreciated and received a better value in the market that many farmers approached her. “I started teaching women and men alike to effectively use available farm resources for organic pest management, increasing soil quality and yield,” she adds. Her work was recognised by the agriculture department officials who approached her to promote organic farming. She then joined the officials travelling around 20 villages near Harihar and other parts of the state, guiding farmers. “I became a better teacher, but also learned new techniques to grow crops from other farmers,” she says, adding, “The learning and earnings from agriculture helped me improve my family’s financial condition.” Saroja then felt the need to scale up and promote the goodness of organic food to a larger audience.Her banana flour, too, became an instant hit. “The product is made by drying bananas and making a powder through processing. It is a healthy replacement for maida or other types of flour. The daily use product was unique during those days and received a significant demand. I also shared 15 healthy recipes, including cake and spicy items like thakali (tomato rice), which customers liked,” she adds.
Today, Saroja earns a monthly business of Rs 50,000 and is content with her achievements. “I have employed 20 women working part-time as per their convenience. I aim to promote organic food. Many products available in the market are adulterated and I want to encourage people to choose healthier food,” she says.
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The senior IAS officer said that the APEDA is all set to groom a group of 100 progressive farmers or Farmers' Producer Organisations from Andhra Pradesh and connect them to the global market to export their respective products including horticulture crops and maize.
BANGKOK, July 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Department of Foreign Trade, Ministry of Commerce, Thailand, has introduced a project called "Think RICE, Think THAILAND" to encourage international community to pay attention to consumer health and to raise awareness on the national crop by providing a wider range of knowledge, ranging from national agricultural history, standards and Thai rice quality.
The Ministry of Commerce explained that Thailand, as a leader in rice production and exports, has rapidly expanded its organic rice farming due to the increasing preference for organic food amongst consumers around the world. The country aims to become ASEAN's organic rice production hub with efficient production and product traceability, from grain selection to packaging.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, in cooperation with the Ministry of Commerce, encourage farmers and traders to produce quality organic rice that meets the requirements of international standards including: International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, EU Organic, USDA National Organic Program, Canada Organic Regime, Japanese Agricultural Organic Standard, China Organic Food Certification Center and Ecocert.
To produce Thai organic rice, the country starts with quality grains selection from organic rice suppliers, then, carefully preparing soil to minimize weeds without using chemicals. Next, it is about selecting fertile farmlands with controlled irrigation to prevent contamination from outside water sources and enrich the soil with organic plant fertilizers. Eliminating weeds is done by using non-chemical methods along with microbial pesticides. To prevent and eliminate diseases, a natural balance and proper irrigation to strengthen the rice's immunity to diseases provided. The country relies on natural predators to prevent and eliminate pests. Moreover. Thai organic rice farmers also focus on the chemical contamination prevention, before and after harvest to maintain the organic chain. Paddy rice must be stored in its suitable environment. As for pack milled rice, using either the vacuum packing method or CO2 technique.
Think Rice, Think Thailand.
Visit us: www.thinkricethinkthailand.com
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Overall U.S. organic sales were about $47 billion in 2016. Sales of organic non-food products increased 8.8% to $3.9 billion. Organic food accounted for 5.3% of total U.S. food sales.
Organic fruits and vegetables, the largest organic food category, accounted for nearly 40% of all organic food sales, rising 8.4% to $15.6 billion in 2016. Organic fruit and vegetables made up almost 15% of the produce that Americans ate in 2016.
Sales of organic meat and poultry rose more than 17% in 2016 to $991 million. Organic dips and organic spices, although still smaller categories, recorded double-digit jumps in sales. Organic dip sales increased 41% to $57 million, and organic spice sales increased 35% to $193 million.
More than 60% of all organic businesses with more than five employees reported an increase in full-time employment in 2016.
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Laura Batcha, executive director of the Organic Trade Association. |
“Organic farmers are not just staying in business, they’re often expanding,” said Laura Batcha, executive director of the Organic Trade Association. “Organic handling, manufacturing and processing facilities are being opened, enlarged and retooled. Organic farms, suppliers and handlers are creating jobs across the country, and the organic sector is growing and creating the kinds of healthy, environmentally friendly products that consumers are increasingly demanding.”
She added the organic sector needs help in meeting demand.
“We need more organic farmers in this country to meet our growing organic demand, and the organic sector needs to have the necessary tools to grow and compete on a level playing field,” Batcha said. “That means federal, state and local programs that help support organic research and provide the organic farmer with a fully equipped tool kit to be successful.”
Nutrition Business Journal conducted the survey on behalf of the Organic Trade Association. More than 200 companies responded to the survey, which took place from Feb. 2 to March 31.26-year-old Likitha Bhanu along with her mother Padmaja Bhanu strikes a pose with staff at the Terra Greens Organic Food Company established by the duo in Hyderabad in 2013. (Photo: DC)
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