Food and Nutrition

The following article is based on a field experiment in International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), where low cost farming systems that involve use of biological inputs obtained from the field is compared with conventional farming.

Further, the authors offer suggestions for future demonstration and verification experiments, to study the virtues of organic  farming.

This paper was presented at the first National Symposium on System of Rice Intensification (SRI) – Present Status and Future Prospects held in 2006.  The parameters include thirteen soil properties which included six related to cultureable microorganisms, three root-related parameters and yield.

Two of the four systems are low-cost farming methods which are based on traditional and scientific knowledge on using crop residues, farm-waste, compost, Gliricidia lopping, bacterial inoculants, and herbal extracts as nutrients to nourish the soil, and as biopesticides to manage pests.

The third system is conventional agriculture which is the "control" and receives chemical input as suggested by research institutions depending on crop type. The fourth is a combination of the  first three.

This working paper by World Bank analyzes how changes in the prices of land, labor, and food induced by modest temperature increases over the next three decades will affect household-level welfare in India.

Here the yields of crops grown by low-cost inputs including plant biomass are compared with chemical fertiliser-induced production.

The study was conducted over 1999-2004, and the findings conclude that the yields of low intensive biological farming are as good, if not better than chemical fertiliser intensive farming.

This paper discusses the need to shift from chemical intensive agriculture to organic farming. The authors in their vision for a chemical-free agriculture also stress that organic agriculture is a way to achieve food security.

The authors begin with the current crisis in Indian agriculture. Stating that though the Green Revolution made India self-sufficient in food production in the shortest time it also resulted in a host of problems. The indiscriminate use of fertilizers, insecticides, fungicides and herbicides has created problems of decline in the soil fertility, pollution of water resources, and chemical contamination of food grains, amongst the many similar issues now linked to the Green Revolution.

A summary of major recommendations of Working Group are as follows: -

Forwarded to the portal by: Ashmeet Kapoor

Jagriti Foods is a startup working towards creating a brand of natural and healthy products that are staples to the Indian diet. This will be accomplished by working directly with farmers by providing quality inputs, teaching improved farming practices and creating a portfolio of technologies that will boost productivity. The farmer’s produce will be brought at market rates and will then be processed such that it maintains maximum nutrition and taste. Our pilot will be launching soon in U.P. and our initial product will be wheat based.