'Shift focus from productivity to profitability'

Growth at the individual farmer's level would happen only if the focus shifts from productivity to profitability as implied in the term 'agri-business,' experts said at a workshop on agribusiness opportunities in Andhra Pradesh, organised by Fapcci here today.

The approach paper to the 12th five-year plan also lays emphasis on agri-business along with the need for diversification into high-value crops and processing, according to Fapcci president Shekhar Agarwal.

He said Gujarat was able to achieve 12 per cent annual growth in the agriculture sector by ensuring a soil health card for every farmer and making officials spend time at the grassroots level.

P Chandra Sekhara, director, Centre for Agri-Entrepreneurship Development, said private sector participation in extension activities was crucial. This was because around 284,000 input dealers in the country were the most accessible source of information for farmers now. To make sure that the advice they provide is useful for farmers, he said the government R&D institutions need to join hands with them.

CAD has trained 25,000 agriculturists, of whom 9,000 have set up their own ventures, including some innovative ones like agri-media, and agri-tourism. It also led to 17 per cent improvement in yields and 28 per cent growth in income, he said.

According to Ravi Prasad, president, Coromandel International, 40 per cent of Indian farmers want to leave agriculture, indicating that business sentiment has gone down in the sector. India has 120 million farmer households.