Organic farmers develop rating system

Vijaysinh Parmar TNN/Ahmedabad: In a novel initiative, state farmers have established their own system for organic certification. Vadodarabased NGO Jatan and farmers associated with it are responsible for the venture. Interestingly, technical knowhow has been provided by non-resident Indian PhD student of Stanford University, Neil Patel. “He has designed a special software for the certification programme. It will scientifically evaluate organic farms giving marks for each crop,” explains Kapil Shah of Jatan. Certification will cost only Rs 20 for one acre of dry land and Rs 50 for irrigated land. Currently, the charges are so high that farmers can’t afford them. Certification should help farmers, but it has become a business. That’s why we wanted to establish farmers’ own system,’’ he adds. Jatan has been working in this field for 25 years. On Saturday, 25 farms of 12 farmers will be issued ‘Sajivkheti Pramanpatra’ by Jatan Pramanan Samiti at a function at Gujarat Vidyapith. “We have spent six years to develop the programme. Now, we will be able to implement it. Using this system, farmers will monitor and evaluate farms in their area. They have been trained for the task,” he says. Farmers who practise organic farming have been selected as evaluators. A seven-member state-level committee has been formed to give final certification to farms. Field-level monitors will recommend farms for this purpose. “For consumers, organic products are those in which chemicals and fertilisers have not been used. For us, organic farming is much more. We see it as a sustainable approach keeping environmental welfare in mind. Our ultimate goal is to conserve natural resources,” stresses Shah. Ramesh Patel, secretary of SRISTI, which promotes organic farming and traditional knowledge, feels the initiative will be very beneficial for small and marginal farmers in the state. “The best part is that farmers themselves are involved in the process. Traditionally, organic farming is done in Surendranagar, Dangs and Kutch. Since, this certification is cheap it will be accessible to small farmers too,” he adds.