Organic farming is a traditional and best way of farming as it includes less use of pesticides as compared to conventional farming techniques. It is beneficial in every single way and its benefits were identified by Devesh Patil, who is an IT graduate and started farming in the year 2005. He re-started an organic produce brand, Satva Organic in 2005 and also started the harvesting of turmeric and ginger which gave him an idea to manufacture turmeric pickle, turmeric latte, dehydrated ginger powder, chai masala and others.
When he was asked about his IT degree, he said, “Farming was my passion, but I took up the degree because my family believed that I should have some kind of degree.”
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Presently, he sells 27 products under Satva Organic and packs 15,000 orders in a month. Reportedly, every year he exports more than six tons of fresh turmeric and ginger to the US and Europe. Now, his annual income is more than Rs 1.52 crores.
This organic firm has not only improved Devesh’s life but has also provided employment to more than 200 farmers in the region and Devesh has also taught them about organic farming and its benefits.
How Devesh opted the path of Organic farming?
His forefathers and fathers were engaged in farming and his family owns about 12 acres of land. He was attached to farming and nature since childhood. But when Devesh’s father Ramesh fell ill and started suffering from chronic breathing problems, due to harmful chemicals used in the field, then the family decided to switch to organic farming. Devesh said, “Only when his health worsened did my father realize that increasing yield wasn’t everything. There’s no point making money if one can’t enjoy it. We switched to organic farming.”
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He added, “Dharti maa chhe (Earth is our mother). A farmer should give her what she deserves. My father doesn’t fall sick now. Hundreds of farmers in Gujarat are living healthier lives, largely because of AAU.”
How food is grown?
Bio-dynamic farming is used which growing turmeric and ginger. It is more like a family-run business, where everyone multitasks. Devesh said, “We have a small dairy farm as well, and we use it to make the farmyard manure. This is prepared by fermenting cow dung and adding buttermilk, anti-fungal powder (natural) and organic liquid bio bacteria produced by the local agricultural university. We also have large pits on the farm where we make compost by sandwiching layers of kitchen waste and dry leaves.”
Satva Organic
The official website of Satva Organic read, “We (our family) are involved in bioorganic farming since 1992 in our village Boriavi. (Taluka – District – Anand, Gujarat, India). We believe in reverence for Mother Nature and the land is our mother and that is why we believe in not using chemical fertilizer to ruin it.”
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The main values mentioned on the page are – SUSTAINABILITY, REDUCED WASTE, ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY, ENVIRONMENT, and AFFORDABLE PRICE