Kerala’s Agriculture Enthusiasts Launch “Support A Farmer” Initiative

This initiative will provide the farmers with a market place where the farmers can sell their produce at a fair price and also offer consultancy services to those interested in farming. 

‘Support A Farmer’ initiative is started by a group of agriculture enthusiasts in Palakkad, Kerala. The main Idea behind this startup is to Eat Healthy to Stay Healthy while lifting up the local farmers and Food producers who are the fundamental to the sustainability of Indian Agriculture.  

The consultant head (Operations), Rinoob Bhaskaran’s family is involved in farming, he took up a corporate job that required him to travel across India and abroad and such a hectic lifestyle made his health to go downhill. Eating the home-grown produce during the lockdown improved his health and his interest in farming grew. One day he visited his friend’s farm where he interacted with the farmers in the district. There he got to know the challenges involved in farming and how difficult it is for the farmers to market their produce at a fair price. That is when he decided to startup a business that delivers the products directly from the farms to the consumer. They took social media platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook page of Support A Farmer to facilitate the sales. Sometimes they also post the links so that a customer could watch harvesting and other activities live.  Find their FB page link here. 

Fresh Produce delivered home

They supply vegetables, fruits, fish, eggs and honey among other products. They have tied up with certain certified farmers to maintain the quality of the products. They had to stop the services when the state went into another lockdown but now, they are back in action and have already started taking orders.  

Consultancy services

Support A Farmer also offers consultancy services. After taking the client’s requirement and financial situation into consideration, the team inspects the land to test soil quality, availability of water and other requirements. They provide quality seeds, labour, machinery and other aspects to ensure a good yield. All of which is done by consulting the certified farmers, some of which are award winners. There are 15 certified farmers engaged with them, those include the farmers who do organic farming, coconut cultivation, terrace farming, kitchen gardening, vegetable farms, fish rearing and so on. 

Farm Tourism

Support A Farmer also promotes farm tourism, whereby families or groups can spend a day in farm and engage in farm activities. In addition to this, the farmers can rent out a portion of their land for those who are keen on consuming home-grown produce but don’t own land for cultivation.