ITC, USAID launch projects to improve Punjab's farm yield

Farmers of Malerkotla in Punjab are celebrating the success of the buyback programme of high-quality vegetables, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), called Growth-Oriented Micro Enterprise Development (GMED). Farmers had been given technical assistance for this.

GMED partnered ITC to train small-scale vegetable farmers and include them in their supply chain for their new "choupal fresh" cash and carry outlets. GMED experts helped ITC by introducing a package of production and post-harvest practices.

According to a USAID official, GMED is building a value-chain linkage for micro and small businesses. Its focus is agri-business, i.e. vegetables, fruits, organically certified food and broils. It partners commercial firms, NGOs, financial institutions, associations and municipal bodies to help in designing solutions for small businesses and farmers. Farmers involved in this programme have increased their crop yield by 50 per cent, on average, and have lowered the cost of pesticides and fertilisers by 20-30 per cent. They are getting substantially higher prices because of the better quality of products.

ITC, with GMED assistance, has so far established three pilot farmer clusters, at Malerkotla in Punjab, Manchar in Maharashtra and Saneerpat in Andhra Pradesh.

The Malerkotla cluster includes approximately 120 farmers. These farmers, by adopting the production and post-harvest practices recommended by the GMED, passed on to them by ITC field extension personnel, are increasing their crop yields, improving quality, and lowering the cost of production through improved agronomy, including the reduction of the use of fertilisers and pesticides.

ITC is aiming to bring small-scale vegetable farmers into the project in phases as wholesale and retail demand increases.