This article dovetails with the article titled “Progress update as on 08 October 2021” dated 21-10-2021 (read article) and provides further deep dive into Farmer Consumer connect imitative. Since that time a greater number of farmers have joined the initiative following the festival flowers imitative (read article).
Farmer connect, the origins:
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Food is one of the main strands of the Saptha Patha principles based on which Organo’s eco habitats are designed, built and operated. The concept of locally sourced food is integral to ensuring that living in the eco habitats is sustainable as it benefits both the local producers (farmers) of food and consumers of food (Eco habitats residents). The producers get a fair price for their produce and the consumers get genuine, locally sourced and witnessed food.
Locally grown, sourced and consumed food has it’s set of benefits as it is fresh, the genuineness of the source is verifiable and most importantly it is seasonal. We at Organo envisage residents of our community to be prosumers. It means that they are both producers and consumers of food.
Most of the vegetables, leafies, gourds etc., are grown within the community. Since all the food staples consumed by the residents of the eco-habitats cannot be produced within the farmland available inside the eco habitat, Organo is working to establish ways to source food staples such as pulses, grains etc., locally. One such method is to work with farmers near Organo Antharam to adopt safe agricultural practices and ask them to grow pulses and grains.
Who will buy the produce?
This is the first question that pops up in the farmer’s mind whenever we discuss about growing safe and witnessed food. After putting in all the effort, if the produce is fetching the same price as mandi and there are not many takers then the entire effort runs the risk of being futile from the farmer’s perspective. In order to instill confidence in the farmer and test the approach Organo has reached out to a total of 13 farmers from the villages of Antharam, Nowlaipalle, Hasthepur and Venkannagudem. They have agreed to produce Saff flower, Pearl millet, Foxtail millet, Wheat, Bengal Gram, Coriander pods, Jowar, Red chili, Onion, Black Gram, Green Gram etc.
If the current and future residents of Organo Naandi and Antharam respectively along with their friends and families support these farmers who have come forward for this initiative, a fair market ecosystem can be created at villages near Organo Antharamproviding access to safe and witnessed food to Organo Eco habitat residents. The quantity and variety of crops that can be sourced locally will increase manifold if this initiative is successful.
Stay stuned for more articles on how the entire process in done and how Organo is working with the farmers to ensure that they are following safe farming practices.
