Keeping People at the Center of Soil Health in India

Despite a lot of exciting momentum behind regenerative agriculture, it remains necessary that that enthusiasm reaches farmers and leads to real outcomes. But how does that information get shared in a county like India with several million farmers? In this episode we are joined by Subhadra Gupta, the regional field sustainability lead for the Asia Pacific region based in India, and Gaynor Pais, the executive director for International Resources for Fairer Trade (IRFT). We talk about how the soil health conversation is only valuable if a farmer sees how it can fit into their own unique operation. This is a big enough challenge in a place like the United States with major established infrastructure and lines of communication, but imagine building farmer networks in a place like India that has several million smallholder farms that are spread throughout the entire country. 

“ The kind of engagement and the kind of partnership and the kind of trust that we have been able to build, and we are still building with our farmers when it comes to enhancing soil as a primary and a very, very significant aspect of smart agriculture practices. I think we are very much on the right track. Every year we can see slowly, and I think this is a journey.” - Subhadra Gupta

Together Gupta and Gaynor discuss the very important topic of farmer outreach and engagement when it comes to sharing information about soil health practices. It's critical in conversations about the science and economics of these soil health practices, that we don’t forget the human component in adopting and implementing them.

This Week on Soil Sense:

• Meet Subhadra Gupta, the regional field sustainability lead for the Asia Pacific region based in India, and Gaynor Pais, the executive director for International Resources for Fairer Trade (IRFT)

• Discover the value and strategy in creating farmer engagement with new soil health practices in India

• Learn about the cultural challenges and the social impact soil health practices can have on the Indian agricultural producers

• Explore the collaboration between Syngenta and IRFT to provide training on regenerative practices and create more equitable supply chains