SUTRA 2024 Set to Address Challenges of Smallholder Farmers in Agricultural Commodity Value Chains

IDH’s flagship event, ‘The Sustainable Trade Summit (SUTRA) 2024,’ is set for October 17th and 18th at The Oberoi, Gurugram. The Summit will focus on “Accelerating Responsible Sourcing in Indian Markets,” addressing critical issues such as sustainable sourcing, climate resilience, and the challenges smallholder farmers face in agricultural commodity value chains.

Sustainable trade has become increasingly important on a global scale in recent times, as stakeholders have realized the positive impacts that supply chains may have and how far-reaching they can be. Collaboration between companies, government, and civil society is important as India sets itself up for a leadership role in both domestic and export markets. Market systems, laws, and investments need to be shifted toward net-zero, climate resilience, and balanced social and environmental sustainability. Smallholder farmers play an important role in the agricultural supply chain, thus this is very important.

In our country, small and marginal farmers with less than two hectares of land account for 86.2% of all farmers but own only 47.3% of crop area. The limited land ownership restricts their ability to achieve high productivity due to the lack of economies of scale, reduced capacity to invest in modern equipment, quality inputs, or diversified crops. The need of the hour is to address their challenges and ensure that companies reliant on agri-products offer adequate support. This would enable smallholder farmers to adopt climate-resilient practices, integrate technology for farming, counter biodiversity loss, and increase their income.

Jagjeet Singh Kandal, Country Director, IDH India highlighted, “Responsible sourcing is imperative to cement India’s position in global trade. As climate change intensifies and markets evolve, we must act swiftly to make our supply chains resilient and sustainable. Cross-sectoral learning and partnerships are critical in forging pathways to implement these catalytic changes. SUTRA draws upon IDH's 15-year legacy of fostering multi-stakeholder collaboration across textiles, manufacturing, and agricultural sectors in India and brings together visionaries, innovators, and decision-makers to reshape our approach to sustainable trade.”

SUTRA 2024 builds on the collaborative spirit of the inaugural summit, which launched pre-competitive dialogues on responsible sourcing in December 2023. The forum continues to foster cross-sectoral collaboration, helping companies meet responsible sourcing targets across commodity harvest cycles. The event's comprehensive agenda, spanning two days of intensive discussions, masterclasses, and panels, will be critical in advancing dialogue and innovative ideas for sustainable development in India's agricultural and manufacturing sectors.

IDH serves as a convener, bringing together businesses, governments, and civil society organisations to facilitate joint actions. Participating organisations span sectors encompassing agri-businesses, think tanks, impact investors, and recycling aggregators.

IDH's work in agriculture exemplifies its commitment to inclusive solutions that create value and advance sustainable trade globally. Through stakeholder collaboration, the organisation drives efforts to improve farmer incomes, job quality, environmental sustainability, and gender equality.

This approach in agri-commodity value chains complements the organisation’s initiatives across manufacturing, apparel, and other sectors where it promotes sustainable and responsible trade and helps create safe workplaces.