Organic Farming: Muhammad Becomes the Best Farmer of Kasaragod District

Muhammad, a pioneer of organic farming from Kasaragod's Ariyapady (Kerala) has become the district's best farmer. Agriculture has been a part of Muhammad's life for three decades. At the age of 10, he took his first step towards farming.

He is now 45 years old and is satisfied with his current job. It is the family's sole source of income. His family members also support him and the new accolade in a way is an acknowledgement of their efforts too. 

Muhammad focuses on organic farming and has been successful in attaining optimum yields from the lands he has taken for lease.  He preserves indigenous seed varieties and engages both in rotational paddy and vegetable agriculture. 

Principal agricultural officer R Veenarani visited his farmland and appreciated his efforts. The award-giving ceremony has been scheduled for Monday. 

Status of Organic Farming in Kerala 

In Kerala, the idea of organic farming is gradually gaining traction. Other than those who continued to use traditional methods, many farmers in Kerala have shifted to organic farming during the last 12-15 years.

Those who converted from intensive agriculture to organic farming had to deal with a slew of immediate issues, such as a precipitous drop in productivity.  

Due to the prevalence of modern agriculture in the majority of cultivable areas, it is also difficult to preserve organic purity in the soil and atmosphere. 

Due to the changing worldwide preferences for organic and eco-friendly products, Kerala's rich endowments of wide variety of agricultural crops, including spices, plantation crops, medicinal plants etc. make it an excellent destination for the promotion of organic farming. 

There are so many initiatives from the part of government and various organizations in promotion of Organic farming in Kerala. A State wide intensive action program on “Jaiva Keralam” was started by government. 

Currently there are a number of ongoing initiatives in Kerala, one such is to make Kerala fully organic has begun with the formulation of a draft policy in 2003. Now, there are a number of certified organic farmers in the state those cultivating cash crops such as spices, tea and coffee mainly targeting export market and also non-certified organic farmers who focus on food crops and biodiversity.