Start of Season III was on a silent note. I decided to skip
paddy cultivation; I wanted to get into this full time; I was realising how
most people in cities were unhappy about the quality of vegetables, grains etc
they were getting and there maybe an opportunity there- a good commercial
opportunity. The entrepreneur in me was working overtime. My brain was now working
more on how I can commercialize the activities at the farm.
I started putting down the major obstacles that I had
encountered during the last 2 years. I realized that the biggest 2 constraints
for me were
Non-availability of labour
Labour is unavailable to work on the field.
They prefer to work in godowns around my farm, where they say “atleast we get
to work in shade, unlike agriculture”. Despite these problems, if one is successful
in getting labour, it is prohibitively expensive.
Production all round the year
During the rainy season, only rice
cultivation and only limited vegetables are possible. In the Summer season,
again only a limited set of vegetables can be grown, considering the heat and
limited availability of water. That leaves out close to half the year not very
favourable for vegetables
The optimum solution for the above mentioned issues is
polyhouse.
Wikipedia describes polyhouse as “A polytunnel (also known as a polyhouse, hoop greenhouse or hoophouse,
or high tunnel) is a tunnel made of polyethylene, usually semi-circular, square
or elongated in shape. The interior heats up because incoming solar radiation
from the sun warms plants, soil, and other things inside the building faster
than heat can escape the structure. Air warmed by the heat from hot interior
surfaces is retained in the building by the roof and wall. Temperature,
humidity and ventilation can be controlled by equipment fixed in the
polytunnel.”
Though the labour issue is not eliminated here, automation
can be introduced for numerous polyhouse activities, thereby reducing the need
for labour. Polyhouse structure allows for growing of vegetables round the
year, and also helps to increase the yield.
Why vegetables ?
Vegetables are consumed fresh, unlike cereals or pulses.
However by the time these vegetables reach our home, after changing multiple
hands, they lose their freshness. Also the food miles (distance travelled from
farm to plate) is much higher.
I saw this as a great opportunity due to proximity of my
farm to Mumbai. If I grow vegetables at farm and directly sell it to consumers,
I will be able to reduce the food miles and also ensure freshness of the
vegetables delivered.
A quick check with friends and acquaintances around
strengthened my hypothesis. A lot of people expressed their concern that they
are unaware about the source of vegetables. Quite a few folks in Mumbai
mentioned about the vegetables grown alongside the railway tracks. The water
used for irrigating these plots and for cleaning the vegetables was unhealthy.
Even Amir Khan on his show Satyamev jayate had discussed
about the poison on our plate.
So my research for polyhouse and organic farming kicked off .......
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