Organic rubber farming deepening roots in Kerala

KOCHI: Organic farming of rubber is slowly gaining traction in the state as an alternative to traditional methods using chemical fertilizers, said experts in this field. However, the spread of this method is much unorganized as individuals, rather than farmer groups, are implementing it driven by the long-term merits of the switchover.
“I know about 25 farmers who have opted organic farming,” said Mathew Sebastian, executive director of Aluva-based Indocert, a certification body accredited to the National Programme for Organic Production.
According to the supporters of organic farming, there is a significant reduction in farming costs in addition to higher yield. Kurian Varghese Myladoor from Muttom in Idukki district said he had experienced up to 25% increase in productivity while costs came down to one third of traditional farming costs. “If you use the conventional style, annual farming costs would be Rs 25,000 – Rs 30,000 per acre, where as it is only Rs 10,000 in organic farming,” said Myladoor who first tried organic cultivation in 2.5 acres of land and later scaled it up to 20 acres.
Bobby Issac, director of the Indian operations of Germany-based certification body, Lacon, also has noticed this growing trend among rubber farmers. “There are a number of farmers with a proactive thinking and innovative ideas turning towards organic rubber farming,” he said. However, a ready market for organic rubber-based products is absent in India, he noted. “Organic rubber-based products have good demand in the Europe, but this awareness is yet to catch up in India,” he added.

Organic farming grew 29 times in five years

Organic agriculture in the country has grown 29 times in the last five years, according to Tariq Anwar, the Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing Industries. Worldwide, 35 million hectares of agricultural land is managed organically by almost 1.4 million providers.

“Eleven states have drafted policies for promotion of organic farming. Of them, four intend to go 11 per cent organic,” he added. In 2011-12, the country exported over 300 organic products under 19 categories, to the tune of Rs 839 crore, Anwar added. He was at the fifth edition of BioFach India 2013, an International Organic Trade Fair.

The minister further said farmers would be brought on a common platform under the already existing Savayawa Yojana which was aimed at encouraging organic farming. “We want to develop network groups so they can share their knowledge.”

At a micro level, networking would be done and federations formed. Also, a State-level federationswould be formed for easy communication. “We will also hold micro-level fairs in seven municipal corporations across the State,” he said.
Minister for Agriculture, Krishna Byre Gowda, said that to encourage pure organic farming, farmers had to be assured of a stable market — something possible only by organising micro-level organic produce fairs.

Gowda, who had earlier announced that the State would have 100 acres of land dedicated to organic farming to set a model for farmers, said that a network system for farmers would also be built.

At the fair, more than 45 stalls exhibiting various organic produce were set up. The stall by farmers from Nagaland was the centre of attraction. While many well-decorated and fully furnished stalls had a handful of visitors, the village hut-style stall set up by farmers from Northeast attracted many people.

Tomato trees

From the world’s hottest chilly to the sweetest pineapple, one could find it all at the stall. There were many surprises as well. For example, if one believed that tomatoes would not grow on trees, the stall was the right place to get the belief debunked.

“It grows at a height of seven feet,” explained Abea Mero, a farmer from Nagaland. Wild apples, the Naga garlic, spices of the east and a variety of tomatoes were on also display.