Producer-Company partnerships for the Marketing of organic horticultural products

Subhash Mehta,
Advisor, Organic, Marketing and MADP, FAO India

The joint paper focuses on FiBL's findings over a period of 21 years of comparative research on Biodynamic, Organic and Conventional Agriculture. This is supported by results presented in the slides of work done in this area by Dr Pathak at his institute.

This paper also looks at a legal business platform which protects the interest of the small farmers as they are stakeholders to the end:

• Business platform as regulated by the Government of India "Producing Company" to protect the interest of the small farmers
• Organic Agricultural know-how
• Group certification for export to developed countries
• Product and market driven, etc.

The Gopa model highlights the numerous responsibilities now shouldered by the farmers but need to move to the business platform (PC) leaving the farmer to his core competence "Farming", relieving him of the commercial risks and the debt burden. The paper also highlights the fact that added value of farm produce and marketing should be the responsibility of the PC and the professionals manning it.

Subhash Mehta
55, Lodi Estate
New-Dheli 110 003, India
Tel: 91 11 246 93 060
E-mail: [email protected]

Currently, Advisor for Marketing and Organic Agriculture to FAO Delhi for the MADP Project being implemented in South Asia. He brings to this project 45 years of global experience as an International Practicing Consultant (Marketing) and Entrepreneur since 1965, now focusing on the numerous platforms and mechanisms essential to make the rural/agriculture business platforms sustainable. In September 1999 he completed the course in Organic Certification and Inspection at CHIEM, Bari, Italy. This gave him the required grass roots working knowledge for the promotion of Organic Farming at the macro level with Central and State Governments and also with multilateral agencies. In 2001 he submitted to IFAD a proposal for conversion of cultivation of Medicinal, Aromatic and Dye Plants from Conventional to Organic which was approved in April 2003. FAO decided to implement this project in May 2002. It is the first Organic Project taken up by FAO and IFAD.