The VFPCK initiative seeks to assist farmers select genuine inputs for their crops

With serious doubts being raised regarding the authenticity of organic vegetables grown and sold in the State, the Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK) is establishing an Organic Input Centre to help farmers select genuine inputs for their crops.

The VFPCK project is intended to fill a yawning gap in the organic farming and marketing sectors.

The centre, which will come up at Kakkanad in Ernakulam district, will focus on production and marketing of organic inputs including biopesticides using technologies developed by scientific institutions, VFPCK chief executive officer Saji John said. The primary target consumer groups are self-help farmer groups under the VFPCK.

“A major constraint in taking organic farming forward in the State is the absence of quality organic inputs. Though there are numerous products in the market today, quality wise they are suspect. The VFPCK centre is an intervention in this direction,” he said.

Three brands of biopesticides developed from tapioca leaves by the ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute (ICAR-CTCRI) at Sreekaryam here will be produced and supplied through the proposed centre.

The VFPCK had successfully procured the technology from the CTCRI recently. Other products include micronutrient inputs developed by the ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Bengaluru, and a number of organic technologies developed by Kerala Agricultural University (KAU).

Planting materials will not be a part of the Organic Input Centre. The VFPCK already has separate units that exclusively cater to seed and seedling requirements.

Limitations

According to Mr. John, the State faces two limitations today in organic farming and sale of the produce. One, there is no way for the consumer to ascertain whether the produce is genuine or not. Two, the farmer himself has no way to ensure that the organic inputs used on his crops are authentic. ‘Organic’ biopesticide samples from the market tested by the VFPCK, for example, had revealed the presence of multiple chemical pesticides, he said.

In many ways, the VFPCK could not have chosen a better moment for its plan. On Thursday, the State Human Rights Commission ordered the State government to screen organic vegetable shops for pesticide residues. In December, the Agriculture Department had informed the Assembly that pesticide residues were detected in samples collected from private outlets claiming to sell organic produce.