Mushroom Nurse and Vanilla Teacher

Dear Reader,

Most people begin retirement planning in their fifties. They look forward to travelling, pursuing their hobbies, returning to family and friends at their native, or simply living a quiet life close to nature.

But for some others, there is no such thing as ‘retirement’. The end of a job gives them the freedom to choose what they enjoy. For Indulekha, it was growing oyster mushrooms after bidding adieu to her position as a nurse with the Kerala Health Department. 

She has set up a high-tech mushroom farm on just 600 sq ft in Alappuzha and sells oyster mushrooms at Rs400 per kg, writes my colleague Chandhini. The turnover was Rs 5 lakh in the first year while using only half of the unit’s capacity. The amount is set to more than double this year. Do read this piece. It reiterates that age is just a state of mind, and it is never too late to start over. 

Last week, I spoke to Camerina Rabha, an M.Ed. and a school teacher in Goalpara, Assam. After her school day ended at 2 pm daily, she had enough free time. The COVID-19 lockdown in 2020 increased her idle hours, and she decided to use them productively.

Her husband learned about vanilla farming from a newspaper, and the couple brought some plants from Meghalaya. What began as an activity to use time better now gives them Rs12 lakh annually from just one bigha of land. 

Camerina told me she has learned to prepare cuttings from vanilla vines and sells them to farmers across Assam. She also trains them in farming vanilla, which fetches up to Rs 12,000 per kg as dried beans. And yes, she continues to teach in the school and spends time with plants after returning home.

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My colleague Anu spoke to two brothers, Rajesh and Tejas Powar, who have built a jackfruit snacks business in their early twenties. While growing up in Gaganbawda tehsil of Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district, they witnessed large-scale wastage of jackfruit, which grows in plenty in the tehsil.

They began making jackfruit chips and sweet ‘poli’ and now earn Rs 12 lakh a year. More importantly, they are helping farmers earn a good rate for their produce by buying from them directly. The brothers are busy setting up a new unit that will also make papads and laddus. This is Gen Z – knowing exactly which business can work where.

Our weekend feature is on growing your own herbs indoors. My colleague Riya, with a rising interest in home gardening, writes that some basic herbs can be grown at home without spending on pots, soil or seeds. With mint stems, leftover basil, and kitchen scraps, you can build an indoor herb garden for almost zero cost. 

Happy Reading!

Warmly,

Rashmi

Retired nurse starts mushroom farming; earns Rs5 lakh from 600 sq ft in first year

Rs12 lakh a year from 1 bigha: Assam teacher’s organic vanilla success

How 2 brothers in rural Kolhapur built a Rs12 lakh jackfruit snacks business

How to grow mint, basil, and curry leaves indoors at almost zero cost