Only a small number of governments have established meaningful and effective farmer-centred measures for the implementation of access and benefit sharing of genetic resources. One reason is the highly complex nature of the international regulatory system. This special issue of Farming Matters magazine presents practical ways in which access and...

India is the land of farmers. Agriculture being the prime occupation of the masses, the sector consists of a big number of farmers who are either into the agricultural or allied activities. The present legal system consists of the laws which are scattered both in their application and approach to...

Earthworm compost can increase soil fertility and help increase the production of vegetables in poor and salty soils. Here we will learn about a fast and easy way to make earthworm compost on a small piece of land.

This publication provides guidance on using a common methodology for monitoring pollinator diversity and abundance, as part of the GEF supported Project “Conservation and Management of Pollinators for Sustainable Agriculture, through an Ecosystem Approach” implemented in seven countries - Brazil, Ghana, India, Kenya, Nepal, Pakistan and South Africa. The project...

This policy brief discusses ways to scale up agroecological approaches and suggests actionable advice tailored for various stakeholders, including policy-makers, private sector, financial partners, research and development community and civil society. The brief focuses on how to design scaling up initiatives and provides success as well as failure stories.

Even as many pockets of the state, including its capital, battle the ravages of development and consumerism, a couple of villages visited by the author stand as examples of resilient local economies and lifestyles.  The village is not very old; it all began in 1963 with three families. Nongtraw comprises of...

As part of a Unileveler-funded Project, CABI in South Asia and the Tocklai Tea Research Institute (TTRI) in India organized a workshop on sustainable tea production. Entitled ‘A non-chemical approach to pest management’, the workshop was held on 18 February at the Tocklai Tea Research Institute, Jorhat, and looked at ecological...

Various agro-ecological practices have existed in the region, primarily as an alternative to conventional chemical-intensive farming based on Green Revolution prescriptions. These alternatives are often directed at enhancing soil fertility, through organic matter management and water conservation. Throughout Asia and the Pacific, different terms are used for specific practices including:...

Indigenous Engineering Techniques on Diary Farming - Success story of Tinson, State Ksheersree Award Winner, Aiswara Diary Farm , Kollam 

Despite a growing dairy industry in India, farmers’ lack of access to organized markets and institutional credit remains one of the major hindrances in improving the scale and productivity of dairying. Using data from a survey of 612 households from the state of Punjab, India, this paper evaluates farmers’ choices...

Patents increasingly undermine the strong legal edifice patiently constructed by UPOV (1).The Treaty guarantees free access to the main industrial resource of plant breeders - peasants’ seeds collected from farms across the world. This article argues that broadening the reach of patents over genetic resources is increasingly replacing benefit sharing,...

India faces a dual crisis related to food and agriculture. First is the malnutrition and hunger crisis. Every 4th Indian is hungry. Every third women is severely malnourished. Every second child is “wasted”. This is not “Shinning India” but “Starving India”. The second aspect of the crisis is the agrarian...

Beginning this year, the Indian government is trying to create a unique brand which will be called “Make in India” which can be applied to 25 sectors such as space, tourism and hospitality, wellness, and many more. Food processing is also one the area of focus. Advantages of development in the food processing...

The TheruBeedi Seed Bank and Producer Group facilitate informal benefit sharing mechanisms that can be very effective in protecting biodiversity and encouraging farmers to contribute to the genetic pool. The approaches include offering family farmers incentives to cultivate traditional or rare varieties, providing assistance in the marketing of their products,...

The Soil Health Card scheme is an initiative launched by the Government of India in February 2015. A soil health card is intended to provide each farmer with information regarding the status of his/her soil as well as providing advice on fertilizer usage and other nutrient recommendations that maintain soil health in the long...

A farmers' community in India learned, through the FAO Community Animal Health Workers training programme, how to rear poultry and face the poultry diseases problems.

The report of the proceedings of the New Delhi workshop on the SSF Guidelines (Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication). The workshop brought together 95 participants from 13 states representing civil society organizations. governments, FAO, and fishworker organizations from both...

Odxel, Cacra, Nauxi, Bambolim and Siridao are small fishing villages running from north to south along the western coast of Tiswadi taluka (an administrative district for taxation purposes) of the Indian state of Goa. They lie on the banks of the Zuari river, which, at 92 km in length, is...

The Indian Society of Plant Genetic Resources (ISPGR) and Bioversity International, in collaboration with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Right Authority (PPV&FRA) (Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare), National Biodiversity Authority (Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change), Trust for Advancement of...

Indoor housing is a convenient practice for raising livestock. If stalls are constructed in an appropriate way, they can fulfill several functions. This practice describes in detail how to construct a goat shed and a feeding trough. The feeding trough is constructed outside the stall, making it easier to clean...