POTENTIAL FOR ORGANIC
AGRICULTURE IN INDIA
4th National Conference on Organic Farming
Creative Agri Solutions Pvt. Ltd
7th October, New Delhi
1
BACKGROUND
There are very strong views on the organic agriculture
sector in India
 One extreme view is that organic agriculture we will not be able
to feed the growing population, risking food security
 Another extreme view is that conventional agriculture is highly
unsustainable for the soil and environment – we are feeding
poison to the masses and achieving food security at the cost of
nutrition security
Towards the end of the findings – we hope a balanced
view emerges
2
WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES OF THIS STUDY?
 Benefits of organic farming to soil health, farmer health and
consumer health are widely known
 Objective: Holistic perspective of the organic agriculture within the
context of agricultural situation in India:
1. Where is the situation of India in the global scenario for
organic agriculture?
2. What is the truth behind the myths?
3. What are some of the lesser known benefits of organic
farming?
4. What is the vision of the industry players?
5. What are some practical challenges along the organic VC?
6. What are elements of a Strategy for a strong organic VC?
3
What is the Situation of India in the Global
Scenario for Organic Agriculture?
4
SITUATION OF INDIA IN THE GLOBAL SCENARIO
 In 1970s, developed countries emphasized organic agriculture the
down sides of agriculture development through heavy use of inorganic
chemicals emerged
 In India, the main driver for “formalizing” organic agriculture in early
2000s was to meet the increasing demand in the global market –
capitalize on premium prices for organic produce
 In GR areas implications of heavy use of chemical fertilizers was
becoming evident.
 MoA and MoC (APEDA) initiated system for formalizing organic
agriculture – NCOF and NPOP
 Standards, accreditation bodies, certification agencies etc. emerged
setting the stage for initiating exports of “certified organic”
 Promoting agencies (Govt., NGOs and private) emerged
5
SITUATION OF INDIA IN THE GLOBAL SCENARIO
 India advantage: 70% of the cultivable land of 140 mn hectares in the
rain-fed and hilly areas were left untouched by Green Revolution – ease of
conversion to “certified organic”
 Challenge: Third Party Certification was complex and expensive for the
large number of small and marginal farmers who could not participate in
the emerging value chains for organic agriculture
 Solution: Promoting Companies implemented ICS and “group
certification”, emerging state certification bodies to rationalize cost of
certification. Recently PGS also initiated (controversial)
 Outcome: exponential increase in area under organic farming from 48,000
ha in 2003-04 touching less than a million ha in the current year
6
SITUATION OF INDIA IN THE GLOBAL SCENARIO
 About 37.2 million hectares are under organic agricultural management
(end of 2011 for most data).
 India stands 7th in terms of area under organic agriculture
 India leads in the number of organic producers registered for certification
 Area under organic certification is highest in MP followed by HP and
Rajasthan
 The total area under organic certification is 4.72 million Hectare of which
15% cultivable area (15%) forest area is 85%
 In 2012-13 India produced around 1.24 million MT of certified organic
products
 In 2012-13 India produced around 1.24 million MT of certified organic
products, exported 194088 MT, export realization 403 Mn USD
7
What is the truth behind the controversies?
8
WHAT IS THE TRUTH BEHIND THE
CONTROVERSIES?
 Can we feed the increasing population with organic agriculture (NAAS)?
 A negative balance of about 8 MT of NPK in 2020, with continued use of
chemical fertilizers at the present growth rate.
 With most optimistic estimates at present, only about 25-30 % nutrient
needs for India can be met by utilizing various organic sources.
 Proved beyond doubt that on long-term basis, conjoint application of
inorganic fertilizers along with various organic sources is inevitable
 Does organic agriculture have lower yields(UNFAO)?
 In industrial countries, organic systems decrease yields; the range depends
on the intensity of external input use before conversion;
 In Green Revolution areas (irrigated lands), conversion to organic
agriculture usually leads to almost identical yields;
 In traditional rain-fed agriculture (with low-input external inputs), organic
agriculture has the potential to increase yields.
9
WHAT IS THE TRUTH BEHIND THE
CONTROVERSIES?
 Will the PGS system help the small and marginal farmers?
 PGS system has strong supporters as well as critics
 Supporters believe it will be helpful to small and marginal farmers who
are currently left out of the movement
 It has worked in other countries
 Opponents believe it will dilute the rigor and hence quality giving a
bad name to the system
 Balanced view, it is a good first step to involve farmers who can later
on move to conversion
 Is organically produced food better than usual food?
 No such conclusive proof to justify the nutritional superiority of the
organically produced food. Conventionally produced foods have
danger of chemical residues, the organically produced foods also bear
the risk of contamination with harmful bacteria and other organisms
inimical to the health of the consumers
10
What are some other lesser known benefits of
organic agriculture?
11
LESSER KNOWN BENEFITS OF ORGANIC
AGRICULTURE
 Potentially reduce farmer indebtedness by reducing cost of
seeds and other inputs along with reducing the requirement
for purchasing seeds every year.
 Impact of climate change, which is a huge area of concern
can be reduced by organic agriculture – potentially reduce
carbon sequestration as well as reduce GHGs.
 Efforts to support “climate smart” villages have been
implemented by my international agencies – use of crop
residue for mulching etc.
 Impact on women empowerment
12
What is the industry vision for organic
agriculture?
13
INDUSTRY VISION FOR ORGANIC AGRICULTURE
Lead industry players are also the drivers of the industry. Their vision is
based on sound understanding of the system
 Breaking the niche to main-stream the organic sector by targeting 5-10
% cultivable area under organic agriculture – emphasis on rain-fed and
hilly regions where chemical fertilizers have not reached
 India can become a global leader in the market for organic produce
 Driven by our traditional heritage and traditional knowledge of organic
farming, India can become a global leader in R&D for organic farming.
 India can become the regional hub for certification of organic produce
– standards recognized by EU, US
14
What are some key challenges along
the organic value chain?
15
KEY CHALLENGES IN THE ORGANIC VALUE
CHAIN
Research and Development
 Large-scale investments required in R&D to develop scientifically proven PoPs
 Social science research on impact of converting to organic
 Private sector can potentially collaborate with SAUs and ICAR units for
developing quality inputs
Input Level
Capacity utilization and financial viability of input units as organic inputs are yet a
niche market
 Quality and regulations for inputs along with prices
 Credit support for conversion, extension information
Production level
 low yield during conversion,
 high labor requirement,
 low prices during conversion
16
KEY CHALLENGES IN THE ORGANIC VALUE
CHAIN
Aggregation
 Collecting small marketable surplus from a large number of farmers
 Ensuring quality of produce
Processing/Storage
 Availability of processing and storage facilities for organic produce
 Labeling requirements
Marketing
 No specific Price Discovery mechanism for organic produce
 Low consumer awareness
Certification
 Cost of certification
 Different regulations for different regions/countries
17
What are the elements of a strategy for
Strong Organic Value Chain?
18
STRATEGY FOR A STRONG ORGANIC VALUE CHAIN
 Developing a vision document for the sector
 Main steam the organic sector, bring 5-10% of the cultivable area
of the country under organic agriculture
 On the lines of support given to the software industry, give fiscal
incentives, tax holidays to encourage private sector investments
 Develop a strong research and extension system to develop PoPs and
outreach to give information about organic technologies and
production practices
 Support to the organic input industry (R&D, fiscal incentives)
 Support at the farmer level – inputs, technologies, labor (link with
NREGA like in the case of Maharashtra horticulture), price for
organic produce
 Support post harvest processing and marketing – specific facilities
19