In this article, we write about the Biomass Cooking Stove innovation that is being nurtured by the Villgro foundation.

Context and problems with LPG

Micro and small establishments that provide boarding services to 40 – 100 individuals in rural and semi-rural areas face the three pronged problem of not having the access, both financially and in terms of availability , to LPG, having to incur the costs of large amounts of biomass required to run their relatively inefficient stoves and dealing with the associated health impacts that inefficient, outdated stoves generate.
Unlike small households, micro and small establishments rely on purchasing fire wood and not on collecting biomass. These costs average around 2000 Rs. / ton. As such the inefficiency of stoves used by this category of users has a direct impact on their expenditure and thus on their income and savings. When compared to households these establishments utilize their stoves for much longer (upto 10 hours a day when catering to 100 customers) and thus the impacts on wood consumption and health issues are
exasperated.

Burning wood creates CO2 and other greenhouse gases. Establishments, based on size, generate between 20 – 80 tons of co2 a year. While small when considered at a national or global scale, this contributes to climate change in its own way.

Enter Biomass Cooking Stove, an innovation by Svati Bhogle of SustainTech India Pvt. Ltd.

The Biomass Cooking stove is an application specific high efficiency wood burning stove specifically designed for a range of cooking needs. The innovation offers to the end user: saving in fuel costs, by being up to 50% more efficient than conventional stoves and improved health impacts. The features that make the stoves innovative are, optimum air fuel ratios controlled by efficient vents, well designed combustion chamber volume resulting in high combustion and heat transfer efficiencies, good insulation to prevent losses to the walls and an optimally designed chimney to vent the flue gases away from the breathing zone of the cooks and designed to reduce heat losses to the atmosphere.

Who is impacted and how?

Owners of micro and small boarding establishments, including semi-portable food vendors will be impacted. This covers a range of individuals with daily revenues between 500 to 5000 rupees per day. A market survey revealed that the total number of tea shops, small & medium hotels and street food vendors to be 73,650 in the state of Tamil Nadu alone.
On the lower end of the economics scale – this includes street side food vendors who spend considerable amounts of their income on firewood. These individuals were shown to spend upto 30,000 Rs. annually on firewood with monthly take home incomes of around 7000 Rs. On the higher end of the economics scale – this includes proprietors of small size ‘hotels’ catering to the needs of approximately a 100 customers a day.

Environmental, social and economic benefits

SustainTech India Pvt. Ltd. (SIPL) is reaching out to the needs of a fuel stressed segment of society – initially the street food vendors, who operate on push carts and where cooking is done inside the cart or on railway platforms, roadside shops and small hotels who with a roof and some seating capacity.
A survey conducted shows that these stoves are in operation for about 10 hours every day and each unit caters to about 100 clients every day. The 65,000 fuel efficient wood burning stoves (considering only the tava, frying stoves and tea kettles) that would be sold by SIPL in the first five years would therefore offer a safer, cooler and healthier working environment to at least 65,000 cooks and 6.5 million people who would eat
around these stoves every day. India has a high incidence of respiratory ailments and a smoke free working environment would reduce the medical expenses of the affected people working around wood fires.
The survey data also shows that 38% of the street food vendors and tea shops use kerosene for their cooking needs. Very limited kerosene is available in fair price shops and this is inadequate. Very often the sector uses unfair means to procure kerosene creating stress and tension besides eroding the profitability.

Moving to a biomass stove would reduce the stress associated with procurement of kerosene, improve profitability of the business and show that it is possible to replace a fossil fuel with a renewable energy source.
At the global level the movement to a fuel efficient wood stove would significantly abate CO2 emission. A survey conducted in the project area shows that stoves are in use for about 8 -14 hrs every day and for 300 -350 days in a year. Data has also been collected about fuel consumption patterns in conventional stoves and performance of improved stoves tested and some of them certified. With a projected stove life of 5 years, the carbon abatement potential of the venture through installations in the first 5 year planning period would be 3.7 million tons of CO2. (1 kg of firewood saved = 1.5 kg of CO2).
Firewood is purchased by the end users of SIPL products at Rs 2000 / ton. The saving in fuel costs, because of energy efficiency should enable the end user to payback the cost of the stove without financial stress in 12- 18 months. Each stove purchased would on an average save Rs 20,000 – 30,000 of fuel cost every year.

The enterprise projects that through its intervention and in their life time, the stoves installed in the first
5 years period, it would conserve Rs 4000 million in fuel costs thus creating wealth for a very needy community.

Urban India is glaring at a huge waste management problem with no clear policy examining waste as a part of the production-consumption-recovery cycle.  In India, over a million people find employment in rag picking and recycling of waste; and this is an unorganized sector.

Most of the rag-pickers are poor, illiterate and belong to rural immigrant families. Many commence their profession at the young age of five to eight years. Most of them have never attended any school. While collecting rags they are subjected to chemical poisons and infections. Due to malnutrition, they suffer from stunted growth and anemia. These rag pickers have been weaned out of our social fabric and as begging is being abolished more and more beggars are becoming a part of this scavenging community.

Conserve  India, an organisation in Delhi founded by Anita and Shalabh Ahuja  was born of a desire to reduce India’s mountain of waste. Their team, after a lot of research, struck upon the idea of Upcycling by washing, drying and pressing plastic bags into sheets.

Handmade Recycled Plastic (HRP) is  made from  polythene bags picked from Delhi’s streets, rubber from old truck tyres’ inner tubes, old denims and saris. The processes used to make ‘Conserve’ bags and accessories have been specifically developed to be as energy efficient as possible and to keep out polluting dyes and chemicals.  This not only helps the environment, it also cuts costs, giving the organisation more money to invest in other social projects.

Ragpickers enjoy working for Conserve as it directly implies that they, perhaps for the first time in their lives, will have enough to feed their families and rent homes that they can be proud of. On an average, a conserve ragpicker earns around $70 a month compared to a ragpicker who earns somewhere around $25.

The ragpicking community is unorganised; it is hard for them to protect their rights. By giving them ‘Conserve Employee Cards’, Conserve India helps them have a voice in the society. Conserve India has also started a campaign called Recognition for Ragpickers. As part of this, the organisation is trying to persuade the Delhi government to create an official register so as to recognize Delhi’s 150,000 ragpickers and give them their right to a fair wage.

Conserve also offers training to its workers so they can do better jobs in their organisation. Conserve supports schools in slums where many of its employees live. With an initial funding from Asian Development Bank, Conserve is now starting two new projects for tracking the general welfare of its workers and providing health clinics for those who have no access to healthcare.

In collaboration with top designers, Conserve India makes high-end fashion items like handbags, wallets, shoes and belts from the handmade recycled plastic.

Conserve India has collaborated with Fair Trade for marketing its products, which are available in stores across US, Japan, Europe . Their products can also be bought online through the Conserveshop.

By buying Conserve’s products one not only gets to be a trend setter in fashion, but also gets to help some of India’s poorest people and its environment.

For more information visit their website http://conserveindia.org. Infact if you want do something about the waste clogging the streets of your city, you can set up your own Conserve and be the change that you want to see in the society. Mail Conserve India at info@conserveindia.org or call on +91 11 43095301.

This is the story of a land that was at one time lying ravaged, drought stricken and forsaken. It was a committed revolution led by a couple, Bablu Ganguly and Mary Vattamattam, which has now transformed this land into an agro forest habitat. The unproductive soil was rejuvenated, rain water was harvested, trees were planted, crops were cultivated and the entire land blossomed.

Twenty years ago, Bablu and Mary set their foot on this barren land in the district of Anantapur in Andhra Pradesh. People had given up on this land, of which Bablu and Mary decided to buy 32 acres; probably the last thing one would expect from a young couple.

The spark that triggered this initiative was a book – ‘The One-Straw Revolution’, by a Japanese author Masanobu Fukuoka. The book carried a very special message on how humanity can live an enriching life hand in hand with the nature. Bablu and Mary carried this spirit and conceived their vision for this land that they called ‘Timbaktu’, meaning ‘Where the earth meets the sky’. Their aspiration was humble and they wanted to keep everything simple – get closer to the land and help it regenerate itself.

They knew there was potential in the land of Timbaktu which was once part of the rich and powerful Vijayanagara Kingdom. Its forests were considered to be the finest, its fruits were savored across the country and various armies fought to keep control of this once fertile land. But everything was destroyed by ruthless deforestation and use of environmentally damaging pesticides and fertilizers.

Over the years, villages in this region have been tormented by chronic drought, unproductive land, unemployment and poor infrastructural facilities. Bablu and Mary decided to build the Timbaktu land by engaging with the villages around and formed an NGO called The Timbaktu Collective. “Our vision is to stop the degradation of the land in Anantapur district and to find ways to reverse it. We want to green the hills and the land. We want to develop alternative lifestyles. Lifestyles that are sustainable and provide more liberty and happiness, than those based on exploitation. The farmers see their land degrade and the wells drying up, but they don’t know what to do, so they just continue their patterns of self-destruction. We want to find a path that leads out of this vicious circle, not without but together with them” – they say.

In 1991, the couple decided to put their first crop in the land of Timbaktu and as everyone around them said, the crop failed. That became even more instigating – Bablu went ahead and bought 7000 saplings. He and Mary brought farmers from the villages to build creative water harvesting structures ensuring that every drop of water was judiciously used. Seed dibbling and such traditional farming methods were practiced – and the colour of the land started changing. Timbaktu was transformed from a barren earth to a lush green forest. It’s heartening to see that birds, snakes and butterflies have come back to Timbaktu and a lost glory is reinstated. This is a true success story of eco-restoration and the experiment is being replicated with community support in a 10,000 acre waste land named as Kalpavalli.

The Timbaktu Collective grew to become a 105 member strong team who serve over 140 villages in Chennekothapalli, Roddam and Ramagiri mandals of Anantapur district. The organization runs two schools, one of which is a residential school for children from disadvantaged families. There is also a thrift credit system for the women which has now grown into a well established alternative banking system. Farmers in the villages are given training in organic farming methods and the Collective supports a Cooperative Society that assists the farmers in marketing their organic produce. With youth development, child rights activities, helping the disabled, cultural activities and many such programmes, the Timbaktu Collective has changed the face of humanity here.

Bablu and Mary stay in Timbaktu, in a house that is built with mud, built by them and built using things available in the land of Timbaktu. Their children studied in the school run by the NGO for the villagers. Their organization has made a difference to the lives of over 12,500 marginalized families. How much more purposeful can their lives get? How much bigger role models do we need to start doing our bit for the world around us?

Visit Timbaktu to know the true spirit of this land. Find information about them on their website www.timbaktu.org. Also, watch this video where Bablu and Mary take you through the 20 years of Timbaktu. You can also write to them at timbaktu.info@gmail.com. 

We have all read and heard about farmer suicides, pesticides in food and issues of child labour. Here is an organization that is working towards the eradication of all of these – Zameen.

Zameen is a unique farmer owned organic cotton trading company working to improve market access for marginalized farmers in India through certification, supply chain partnerships and organizational development.
Cotton farmers in India do not receive a fair price for their produce which leads them to usurious money lenders. Huge debt and inability to support their families leaves suicide as the only dignified option. In the Amravati district of Maharashtra, 5000 farmers commit suicide every year and that is an alarming statistic.

Zameen believes in the ‘trade, not aid’ approach to rural development. Farmers invest their own capital in Zameen and are completely engaged in the process. Zameen has a tie up with AOFG (Agriculture and Organic Farming Group), a non-profit organization, to facilitate the development of independent, legally registered farmer cluster associations that are self managed and are able to sell organic cotton as per strict international standards.

Infamously referred to as ‘dirty cotton’, the commodity accounts for 16% of global insecticide use which is far more than any other crop. Agro-chemicals contaminate local water supplies, degrade soil quality and harm wildlife. Farming communities also face an increased risk of various diseases like cancer. Zameen trains farmers in organic farming which has resulted in drastic improvement in soil fertility and farmers’ health.

As a Fairtrade certified organisation, Zameen farmers are no longer subjected to widespread speculation and fluctuation in market prices. Fairtrade guarantees a minimum price which covers sustainable farming and living conditions. Additionally, a social premium is earned by the farmer community and that premium is democratically invested in community development projects. So far, Zameen’s farmers have invested in wells, their children’s education and ofcourse into their own businesses.

Fairtrade prohibits child labour and encourages movement towards gender equality. Zameen farmers have access to international markets and being organized into an association gives them a stronger collection voice.

Know more about Zameen and their activities.
Website: http://www.zameen.org/
Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hyderabad-India/Zameen-Organic/130739011014/

Every one of us living in these bustling metropolises has always dreamt of a city devoid of traffic snarls, incessant honking and pollution. FreMo, India’s first bicycle sharing programme is a step in that direction.

FreMo derived from ‘Freedom To Move’ gives the commuter freedom to move from one place to another, without depending on the public transport or using their own car/ bike. Various FreMo depots have been established in Thane . All one has to do is register with them, take a cycle from one of these depots and deposit it in the depot nearest to his/her destination.

They have various membership plans, depending on the usage. Every FreMo member is entitled to a personal accident assurance of Rs. 5 lakh.

Here’s an interview with V. Ramesh , Founder CEO & Director of FreMo.

Q: What triggered you to start Freedom to Move?

After visiting Barcelona in early 2008, when I came to India, there was a huge petrol price hike.  And I saw many people trying to cut down their expenditure on petrol as much as possible.  This prompted me to think that making the use of bicycles convenient would make people accept the idea of cycling for daily activities.  Once a person signs up with us, he need not depend on autos or buses and has the freedom to move.  Thus, FreMo (short form for Freedom to Move) was born.

Q :Tell us about the  hurdles you came across while setting up the venture?

The hurdles started with people being surprised that I am moving out of a comfortable job as a CEO in a NBFC (Non-banking finance company) to become a “cyclewalla” and telling me not to do it.

Then came the struggle to get people to accept this as a workable idea.  Getting funds was the worst experience of my life.  All so called ‘venture’ capitalists never wanted to venture in to this social concept.  They were only interested in two things (a) How much will I make out of this investment (b) what is the exit route for me.  This gave me a confirmation that all those guys are only “investors” and not ‘venture capitalists’.  Even the requirement of a small amount of Rs. 2 crores did not find donors. Then I started looking to banks to support this project.  All of them, except one were unresponsive. Finally, Bank of Baroda supported this project.

Then there was a struggle to try and meet up with the government authorities like TMC whose support is vital for the success of this programme.  I drew a blank in their response.

Finally, the struggle was to get staff.  Many of them did not feel that this was a business they wanted to be associated with.  Most of them wanted to work in a call centre or IT or other such businesses which are well known.

Q: What is the general feedback of the customers?

Both customers and potential customers have excellent words to say about this project.  All of them feel that we need this project in the current context since the environmental situation is getting from bad to worse.  Besides, the traffic issues are so many that people traveling short distances are fed up with them.  They are also victims of high unpredictability on their travel time.  If one day they get an auto or a bus in 5 minutes, the next day they may end up waiting for 25 minutes.  Their plans often go awry.

The best aspect of this service is the predictability for a person to reach a station.  Every day, one reaches the station in 15 minutes.  Besides saving time and money.

Q: What is the kind of social impact your organization has succeeded in bringing about?

Social impact from this project is multi-pronged.

1. We will reduce the traffic congestion when more and more people start taking the bicycle route to travel.  Reduction in traffic means immediate reduction in pollution, both air and noise.
2. Health of the people will improve as they will be exercising daily as a part of their travel and also they will start breathing cleaner air.  Besides, since the unpredictability is removed, the stress level of people also reduces.
3. Due to reduction in travel expenses (which is at least 30-40 rupees daily, i.e. about 1000 rupees every month), the purchasing power of the people will increase, thereby improving their living standard.
4. It will release some  parking space in the city because, there will be less and less people using cars for the local 3-4 kms travel.
5. People will save time (perhaps at least one hour daily) and be able to do more things.
6. Finally it will also change the way we live.

Q : What are the future plans for FreMo ?Are you thinking of expanding to other states?

Yes.  Fremo intends to move to all other cities and make this a phenomenon across various cities.  Next we would look at launching it in Pune, Bangalore, Chennai and New Delhi.

*****

We hope the idea is a runaway success and we all get to reap its immense benefits at the earliest.
For further details, please visit their website: http://www.fremo.in/

Everyone knows the benefits of planting trees: cleaner air, good monsoons, no global warming. But most of us don’t get the time or sometimes don’t really have the inclination to go that extra mile to plant a tree. Trees for Free is a wonderful organization that has taken up this initiative in Bangalore. They involve volunteers and companies, inspiring them to give  back to the environment. Corporate houses can become a Tree Planting Member as part of their CSR activity and adopt a cause whose benefits will be felt across the globe for years and generations to come.

Individuals can become a ‘Tree Planting Member’ , by donating  a minimum of 100 Rupees for 1 tree a month.

Here’s an interview with Janet Yegneshwaran, Founder of Trees For Free.

The Better India Team wishes Trees For Free all the best in making this country green.

Contact Details

Site: http://www.treesforfree.org/
Blog: http://treesforfree.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/treesforfree/

Those signature kerosene and petromax lamps at hawker shops have decorated our streets during its busy evenings for years now. They are a hawker’s constant companion and a basic necessity for their shops. But did you know that a hawker has to spend around 250-300 rupees every month for these lights? Parting with this big chunk of money from the handful that he earns becomes quite a burden. Accolades to Urja Unlimited, who understood this difficulty faced by the hawkers and came up with a fine solution – replacing the fuel lamps with solar power.

Urja Unlimited is an organization which was born with a novel idea of providing ‘energy for all’ through renewable energy. Urja aims to serve every village, town and city in India with efficient energy solutions. With its vision in mind, Urja initiated the project to support street hawkers and aspires to reach a million hawkers with their lanterns.

The main aim of the project is to completely eliminate the recurring fuel expenditure on the hawkers. Moreover, as we all know, there are environmental benefits attached to giving up the use exhaustible fuels. Also, the hawker gets to work in a fume free environment.

Over 150 hawkers in Faridabad enjoy the solar power

The first step towards energy efficiency was Urja Unlimited’s solar lantern project in Faridabad. Over 150 hawkers have opted for Urja’s lanterns which have given them a breather with their expenses. The brighter solar lamps have enlivened their surroundings, gotten rid of the risk of health hazards and brightened the faces of the hawkers.

Savitri Pandey, a hawker in Faridabad who has switched to Urja’s lantern, mentioned that she is now able to devote the cost savings on giving up the kerosene lamps to her children’s tuition needs. Saina Bano says that “Ab har mahina mittiktel (kerosene oil) chori se kharidane kay jhanjhat khatam.” Ashok, a hawker suffering from Tuberculosis, said that he is now spending less on his medical expenses.

Support to spread the cause

Replicating the success and spreading awareness across the country is a big task in the hands of Urja Unlimited now. The constraint is that the equipment is slightly priced on the higher side, around 2600 to 3600 rupees. Logically, the amount is equivalent to what the hawkers would spend over a year for their fuel costs and they need not spend any more on their fuels after this initial investment. Also, the lanterns can easily serve the users for almost 5 to 7 years. Urja intends to bring down the cost that could come on the hawkers by entering into partnerships with micro finance institutions, corporates and other philanthropic organizations.

How can you help this initiative?

With more people like you supporting the cause, we are sure that we can make some difference to the lives of more street hawkers. Here are a few things that you can do:

• Introduce Urja Unlimited to your company and encourage a corporate social responsibility initiative
• Contact Urja Unlimited to find out more about the initiative and help them serve better
• Help spread awareness about the use of renewable energy

You can know more about the organization at www.urjaunlimited.in. Urja and The Better India shall assist you in sharing your contributions.

One question that you would perhaps like to answer is “How do I reduce my contribution to the city’s garbage system without altering my lifestyle too much?” Well, let Daily Dump answer that for you.
Daily Dump provides a commercial compost ‘pit’ that you can have at your home. All your leftovers and other organic waste can be dumped into these pits. Within a few months this becomes manure and you can use it for your garden or just sell it off to a needy farmer maybe.

Early Days

Daily Dump, the brain child of Ms Poonam Bir Kasturi, evolved from the question – How can design make a difference? Poonam graduated in Product Design in 1985 from the National Institute of Design. She worked in a small scale manufacturing company after college and then set up a craft based design company called Industree with two other partners. She quit after 5 years and set up Playnspeak, a proprietorship concern, to make products for the home. At the same time Poonam also was the founding faculty of Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology in Bangalore which she in May 2008 to start Daily Dump.

So, what exactly is Daily Dump?

In simple words, this product allows every homeowner to reduce their contribution to city waste. In India, no commerical home composter was available till the Daily Dump product was launched.
It is designed for a single family as the “customer”. It is supported by a service backup and customer support. It actually helps families convert their wet waste into eco-friendly compost. The knowledge base is open-source to encourage micro-enterprises.

The Product and its elements

Daily Dump has designed a product with which anyone can convert kitchen waste into compost at home. The product, made of terra-cotta, is sourced from village potters. It is marketed through word-of-mouth referrals, media awareness, and their website. It is sold through channels including individuals, retail stores, and societies. The designs are ‘open source’, so individuals in other locations can replicate, adapt, build on, sell and use – for wide and rapid propagation of the idea.

The current product works well in independent homes; and they are working on a ‘mechanical composter’ for use in flats. Daily Dump’s vision is to see a composter pre-fitted in every flat sold in the country, as a standard fitting. Daily Dump not only retro fits composters at homes and other establishments but also provides maintenance advice and assistance through its service plans, essentially allowing you to just dump and letting nature and Daily Dump do the rest.

This product, in addition to reducing waste, serves as a way to get over the social stigma attached to waste in our country. Without being preachy it makes the job of taking care of your waste “doable” and “possible”.

The potters who make the terra cotta pots have benefited significantly – their profitability has increased since they started making these products.

The Team

The current Daily Dump team comprises of:
Poonam Bir Kasturi (Founder), Delara Damania (Designer), Savitha, Shwetha, Vinita, Trupti, Sudheer and Anupama

Current Challenges

The challenge faced by the team presently is to create sustainable revenue streams and make money out of all the research and design work that they have done. The team has also learnt a lot and is looking to partner with NGO’s now to make strategic connections to enable waste to be managed better all over the country. Daily Dump has a robust design and an easily replicable one, which can be adapted by most people all over India.

Looking forward, Daily Dump is in the process of prototyping a mechanical composter to be retrofitted into homes in India. For this, they are looking to work with builders and see if this product can then enter into every home as a standard fitting.
The Daily Dump team is constantly trying to figure out:

• How to get builders to retrofit a composter in each balcony and utility?
• How to design a new mechanical composter such that it follows the cradle to cradle philosophy and yet is cheap and fits into the informal manufacturing setup that dots the Indian urban landscape?

Recognition

Daily Dump has received the following awards & honors:

• “Nominated for the INDEX awards 2007 – an international award to improve the quality of life
• Awarded the Green Product of the Year by Anchor Better Interior Excellence Awards 2007
• Made it to the final round of the TATA NEN Hottest Startups 2009.
• Indira International Innovation’s ‘Star Entrepreneur of the Year Award’, 2009
• Made it to the final round of the Sankalp Social Enterprise and Investment Forum Award 2009.

Global Warming. Unemployment. How do you come up with a solution that addresses both these issues? S M Raju, a civil servant in Bihar has done just that. Raju has started a campaign to encourage unemployed village folk to start planting trees. This campaign has been linked with the government’s NREGA (National Rural Employment Guarantee Act) and thus the village people earn money by planting these trees.

Amarnath Tewary writes in this article at the BBC:

An Indian civil servant, SM Raju, has come up with a novel way of providing employment to millions of poor in the eastern state of Bihar.

The article quotes that about 44% of Bihar’s population is under the poverty line. And Bihar has not been able to successfully spend the NREGA funds allocated to them mostly due to lack of awareness. Here comes Raju’s idea of bringing in tree plantation as part of NREGA.

Raju’s program has brought in significant benefits, as he says:

“So the idea struck to my mind, why not involve families below the poverty line in social forestry and give them employment under this scheme for 100 days?

“Under the scheme, each family can earn a minimum of 10,200 rupees ($210).”

Read the complete article here, which lists how Raju conceptualized and executed this successful idea. A special thanks to reporter Amarnath Tewary for writing about this.

Link to original article: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8257563.stm
Link submitted by: Deepak and Prakash

In this article, we talk about a successful cooperative initiative called The Apple Project launched by Shri Jagdamba Samiti (SJS), an NGO led by Mr. L.P. Semwal.

SJS launched this project in Uttarakhand with the realisation that small farmers in a market-oriented agribusiness get further marginalised mainly due to the dominance of mandis, a chain of well-organised intermediaries who control the entire process from credit supply for farm inputs, transportation and marketing of produce. The apple project hence strives to create a model of business-driven, decentralised independent and small-scale production with coordinated arrangements for processing and marketing by providing technical, managerial and investment support to enable farmers collectively to move up the value chain. The ‘collective’ feature of the business model is promoted to save individual time, distribute risk, maintain price assurance, pursue damage control and save on handling costs such as storage and transportation.

Empowerment beyond economic gains

The Centre apparently did have an empowering effect among the community beyond mere economic gains. First, market dynamics and the apple business as such became more transparent and easier to understand for everyone. Thereby, people were enabled to participate actively and accumulate broader ownership instead of depending on traders and middlemen. Also, people were encouraged to view and understand power no longer purely along the lines of traditional class boundaries, but become aware of the power and possibilities for participation they have. Also, the Centre has an empowering effect on women. It was for instance repeatedly noted that women were for the first time participating in public meetings, and daring to speak up in public.

Breaking the prevalent market cycle

A main strategy of the Apple Project is to break the dependency of small and marginal farmers on middlemen through a process of a joint marketing via the Centre. This has both strong economic effects, as it raises the farmers’ direct gains significantly, and empowers them by reducing their risk of being exploited by middlemen. However, breaking entirely away from a highly organised network of middlemen is not an easy task. Middlemen still keep a tight control of crucial stages of growing as well as apples’ post-harvest processing. Sometimes, middlemen also operate transport services and buy apples from farmers at their orchards, but at a very low price. It is hence not easy for small farmers to delink themselves from the system controlled by middlemen. A sustainable, comprehensive alternative system should be in place.

The role of SJS as an external agent

The commitment, entrepreneurial competence and perseverance of the leadership of the farmers’ association and the Centre staff have been the main contributory factors for the success of business operations. SJS as an external agent has, however, played a distinctive role as a facilitator of the process. SJS’s main contribution has been to come up with an innovative business model for small and marginal apple growers and to build capacities of farmers to own and run such a business operation. SJS’s role in this regard has been building capacities of farmers in general and leadership of the farmers’ association in particular. The other important role that SJS has played as an external agent is to mediate power-play in relation to forming the farmers’ association.

Matching economic goals with social goals

The uniqueness of the Apple Project is its business model which is based on the functioning of the business operations whilst at the same ensuring social goals. If economic benefits are only used for consumption purposes there is no clear link to social change. Hence, it is important to monitor what the money is spent for (e.g. education, better health care etc.).

Economic empowerment alongside social interventions is required in order to stimulate long-term social change. SJS is also aware that joint ownership of the business operations alone will not automatically deliver social goals. The new form of collective ownership is an alternative to the form of organisations hitherto established in the village which were dominated by the Sayanas. SJS is cautious that opposing an existent power structure can lead to the unintended creation of another power structure. This is a major concern for the future.

Promoting a value-driven business model

Organising small and marginal apple growers is not simply an economic activity. The story of apple growers in Bawar area suggests that power structures and politics play a major role in village life and an economic activity cannot circumvent or keep aloof from such realities. The new farmers’ association and the Centre promoted a principle of political neutrality and a leadership model which is based on competence instead of party affiliations. Promoting a new form of economic activity with a social goal based on political neutrality and competence had been possible due to the values of inclusiveness and tolerance of diversity, which the Centre stands for. Drivers of change must hence incorporate the values they aim to promote, and these should be reflected in all areas of operation.

Enabling farmers to jointly move up the economic chain

With support from private investors, originating from successful business families, a new model for advancement of small and marginal farmers is now being tested in India and other countries. This model is an attempt to find a healthy entry point for rural development by concentrating on setting-up healthy agro-businesses in which farmers themselves gradually gain economic ownership.
Similar to the self-help groups and cooperatives, the aim is to set-up healthy business in handling, processing and trading farmer’s commodities on a commercial basis. The main difference of the new approach is that the farmers are equal business partners of the investor: they will only gain full economic ownership if the investment is repaid fully. No paternalistic form of aid, but a sound economic partnership between an investor and a (farmer-owned) company. The investor assists the farmers in setting up commercially-run businesses (private Limiteds), based on a solid feasibility and business plan, and makes available a full (guaranteed) loan to the new company. The companies are to generate sufficient profit to pay back the loan, capitalize the company and invest in new profitable business ventures (allowing the farmer to move further up the value-addition chain). Part of the profit flows back to the farmers in the form of better prices for their commodities and possibly dividend payments.Some of the guiding principles behind the projects where the new model is being tested, are:

The above article is excerpted from the original article by CDC with due permission from SJS.
All images courtesy CDC and SJS.