How to SAVE Agriculture Produces from Being Spoiled.............by an Agri-Post-Graduate

FARMERS BUSINESS MOVEMENT (FBM)

WHY FBM ? 

Pigeons eat grains from stacked sacks at the
APMC market yard, Ahmedabad

India is the planet’s largest producer of food grains such as wheat, rice etc but at the same side maximum quantity (around 6 million tons) is still being wastage due to shortage of warehouses, lack of proper value addition, etc. However, it’s bigger than the total production of many countries. Lack of storage and improper management leads to a situation where a significant proportion of agricultural produce is spoiled before it reached to market. Government is forced to buy the production of farmers on MSP even though there is already tones of food grain are stored in their warehouses. The curcuminstences leads to increase the problem in entire country.

  

WHAT IS FARMER BUSINESS MOVEMENT

Farmer business movement is an idea in which a group of farmers works together as a joint enterprise developed and supported by the government or any financial organization for not only to create employment to farmers on their own farm but also to generate additional income to government with win n win condition.

Government will play a crucial role for the implementation of this movement. A small scale enterprise can be established by support of the supporting organization and after a technical capacity building of the applied group of farmers. The overall cost can be managed by government, a financial body and some percent by the group. With the creation of root for this movement, a same brand or business with small sized enterprises can be successfully operated by the different group of farmers.

Such as- flour mill for wheat, Dal mill for pulses etc.

The marketing of the produce can also be done by the government under the same brand with same quality. Government will buy the products from such enterprises and sold them in domestic and foreign markets.

HOW THIS IDEA CAN HELP TO SOLVE THE PROBLEM?

The Enterprise may works on a particular crop and they can process that to prepare a value added product of the brand and quality decided by the body. The explanation of this movement can be explained by the following examples:

1.   Farmers of bundelkhand region grows soybean in kharif season. In this region, a group of farmers can produces and process the soybean and prepare value added product like Tofu [soya paneer], soya milk, soya biscuit, etc, and export those products in other states as well as other countries by support of govt. or other organization.

2.   Maximum farmers of panjab region grow wheat. A chain of small scales mills can be established like flour, Suji, Maida, Bread etc under a same brand managed by different groups of farmers in their own separate units.

The crop can be selected based on particular region, available resources and skills of farmer’s groups. Apart from crops, the group of farmer can also produce - Honey, Lac, gum, resin, silk etc.

BENEFITS 

1. Farmer’s can generate additional income not only for them self but also for government.

2. Wastage of produce can be easily mitigate in great extend.

3. Farmer’s can get work in offseason will reduces migration too.

4. Enhanced the nutritive value of produce. etc

 

Lakhan Patidar

M.sc. Agronomy

Jawaharlal Nehru Agriculture University,

Jabalpur, MP