Self-Employ 100 Women in Organic Farming in India

Summary

Massive corporate agriculture and the cost of pesticides and genetically engineered seeds have put many small farmers out of business. In order to survive, organic farming has become a necessity.

What is the issue, problem, or challenge?

Large-scale, corporate-owned agriculture is destroying traditional family farming in India. Genetically engineered crops are putting small farmers out of business. Pesticides and chemical fertilizers are degrading the soil and increasing the cost of farming. Indigenous seeds and produce are becoming extinct. Husbands and sons are forced to migrate to the cities for work while the women remain behind to hold the family together, often with very little income or food to feed their families.

How will this project solve this problem?

Women will be trained in organic farming practices, particularly vermiculture and will create a seed bank to preserve local seed varieties and provide them access to non-genetically engineered seeds.

Potential Long Term Impact

To provide 100 women in Bihar, India with small loans and/or grants for income generation activities, such as goat rearing, backyard poultry, and vegetable cultivation and vending.

Project Message

For these women, organic agriculture isn’t about making a statement or producing a better tasting tomato. It’s about survival and preserving a way of life. It’s about being self-empowered.
- Balu Iyer, IDEX Asia Program Director

Additional Documentation

This project has provided additional documentation in a Microsoft Word file (projdoc.doc).

Resources