India to promote chemical free farming in states such as Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan etc.

India: The country is following cluster approach to increase area under chemical free farming. Sikkim has turned into fully organic state and now other states in the country have also started earmarking exclusive organic farming zones. Maharashtra is leading the pack and has 932 exclusive organic farming clusters which is followed by Madhya Pradesh with 880 clusters and then Rajasthan (755), Uttar Pradesh (575), Uttarakhand (550) and Karnataka (545).

The government has plans to develop overall 10,000 clusters with one cluster of 20 hectares each across the country and the reason is to promote organic farming and catering the growing domestic demand and to meet the country’s high export potential of organic crops.
Government has, so far, identified around 7,500 clusters and according to this plan around 50 or more farmers can form a cluster. The government under the `Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana' (traditional agriculture development plan) of the agriculture ministry will provide around USD297 to USD300 per acre to a farmer in three years for seed, harvesting of crops and then transporting the produce to the market.

The government has decided to allocate USD44 million under this scheme for the year 2016-17. Apart from this, an additional amount will be allocated to create organic value chain for north eastern states. The aim is to increase the cultivated area under organic farming from nearly eight lakh hectares at present to ten lakh hectares by 2017-18.

According to TechSci Research, India, during 2015-16, had produced around 1.35 million metric tonnes of certified organic products including all varieties of food products, namely oilseeds, sugarcane, cotton, cereals & millet, pulses, tea, medicinal plants, fruits, dry fruits, spices, coffee and vegetables. In order to promote the organic farming in India it is expected that the domestic production of organic products will increase in the coming years which will help in boosting the economy. Organic products are grown without the use of pesticides and chemical fertilisers which helps in safeguarding the environment in a responsible manner and by involving farmers under this scheme the approach will be implemented at the grass root level. Currently, Indian exports its organic products to USA, Canada, Europe, Switzerland, Australia, Korea, New Zealand, Middle East, South East Asian countries and South Africa.

According to a recent report published by TechSci Research, “Global Organic Food Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2020”, global organic food market is projected to grow at a CAGR of over 16% through 2020. Rising lifestyle diseases coupled with excessive contamination of conventional food are driving organic food sales, globally. Retail chains are also playing a major role in boosting sales of organic food by creating awareness and introducing various private label organic products at lower prices. Major retail chains such as Whole Foods Market, Tesco, and Walmart, among others, have also expanded their product lines to include organic food products. In order to offer choice and convenience to health conscious consumers, adoption of organic food is also growing considerably across hotels and restaurant chains. Segment wise, organic fruits & vegetables continue to dominate the global organic food market, followed by processed food, dairy products, pulses & food grains, and beverages segments.