Bengaluru engineer couple starts organic farming in Kanpur; builds farm-to-fork brand

When Rashmi and her husband, Ankur Sachan, returned home to Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, in 2021, at the peak of COVID-19, they had no idea what life had in store for them. Since 2014, the couple had been living in Bengaluru, where Ankur worked as a software engineer while Rashmi was a mechanical engineer.

“We shifted to my husband’s hometown, Kanpur, during COVID, and decided to use our ancestral land for farming. Though agriculture was new to us, we were certain that we did not want to use any chemicals ever. Organic and natural living, we believe, are essential for overall well-being,” Rashmi tells 30Stades.

The beginning of organic farming

As COVID receded, Rashmi began attending workshops on chemical-free and organic farming. These sessions covered intercropping, crop rotation and preparation of organic manure and biofertilizers on the farm.

“In 2022, we prepared our land in Chaturi Purwa village for plantation. We purchased a truck of natural red soil (lal mitti) from Rajasthan as it contains iron and essential nutrients that improve soil structure and promote healthy plant growth,” Rashmi says.

Apart from red soil, the couple also purchased vermicompost, a seaweed-based organic bio-stimulant, cow dung manure, and neem and mustard cakes and mixed everything. “We put 10 kg of this mix in every pit before planting,” she adds.

Rashmi and Ankur planted 35 varieties of trees for fruits and timber. “We planted some of them only to promote biodiversity like tamarind, banyan and sacred fig (peepul). The fruits included papaya, banana, pomegranate, sweet lime, karonda, lemon, chikoo, gooseberry, mango, jackfruit, and neem,” she says.

As part of financial planning, the couple also planted 250 trees of sagwan (teak), kadamb and mahogany along the farm’s boundary. They are sought after for their wood, which is used to make furniture. 

“Typically, they can be harvested for wood after 20 years,” Rashmi points out.

Also Read: Five trees that can fund your retirement

Intercropping to boost soil health and yields

“Then every year, we started filling the farm with more plants. We added 800 plants of papaya in 2023 and began multiple cropping and intercropping on 5.5 acres out of our 15 acres of land,” says Ankur, who continues to work from home for an IT company.

They began planting seasonal crops around fruit trees. “We started with local vegetables in the space between trees. Right now, we have mustard (sarson), which is sold as a seasonal green and also used for oil extraction. Then we have gram (chana), peas, fenugreek, beetroot, radish, other seasonal vegetables, mostly sown beginning October,” he adds.

Also Read: How crop rotation can increase farmers' incomes 
 

Once they are harvested, the couple plants green gram (moong) and urad (black lentil). These pulses improve soil structure, aeration, water retention, and fertility due to nitrogen fixation. The decomposition of their leaves adds organic matter to the soil.

They currently cultivate wheat over 1.5 bighas (about 0.75 acre) and process it into dalia (Rs90 per kg) and flour (Rs60 per kg) sold under the Tuhi Farms brand.

Ankur and Rashmi prepare biofertilizers and biopesticides like Jeevamrut, and Dashparni Ark (a natural, cost-effective biopesticide made from the leaves of ten different plants, cow dung, cow urine, and water), on the farm. They also use khatti chaas (sour buttermilk) to which copper has been added for 21 days, cow dung manure and vermicompost.

Also Read: This Maharashtra farmer clocks Rs 21 lakh turnover from organic turmeric farming

“These are cost-effective methods to keep the soil fertile and chemical-free,” Rashmi says. They use a combination of drip and sprinkler irrigation depending on the crop and farm topography.

Farm-to-fork model

The most interesting part of their farming is the farm-to-fork model, where the produce reaches customers without any middlemen. The couple is a proponent of processing and value addition to farm produce. 

“It is essential for farmers to reach customers directly by eliminating middlemen to improve income,” Rashmi says.

Their farm’s fresh fruits, vegetables and other groceries are sold to buyers in IIT Kanpur and residential societies. “We also send them to customers in Bengaluru and Delhi,” the agripreneur adds.

“We grow turmeric in one bigha (around half an acre) between trees of guava and bael trees. It is the Pitambari Haldi variety, and we procured rhizomes from the Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP) in Lucknow,” Rashmi says.

Also Read: 67-year-old woman turns barren land into empire of dragon fruits, juice and saplings 

“We did not harvest it in the first and second years. Last year, we processed the fresh turmeric by boiling and polishing. It resulted in three quintals of powder, which we retail at Rs600 per kg under the Tuhi Farms brand,” she says.

The wholesale rate for organic turmeric is Rs 400 per kg. The couple has put up machines for processing turmeric, mustard oil and other organic produce. “We sell chana dal (Rs 160 per kg) and also process it to make besan (Rs 180 per kg),” she says.

While organic sesame oil sells for Rs 600 per litre, black mustard oil is priced at Rs 250 per litre and yellow mustard oil at Rs 280 per litre. “People are willing to pay a premium because it is organic,” says Rashmi.

The couple is planning to expand beyond 5.5 acres and does not plan to sell through stores right now. “We have a dedicated customer base and will continue to build on that,” she says.

(Rashmi Pratap is a Mumbai-based journalist specialising in financial, business and socio-economic reporting).

Also Read: Puducherry farmer saves 800 varieties of native vegetable seeds; sells across India

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