Why Don't we Have Enough Vermicompost-Producing Farmers?

Vermicompost is a type of organic compost prepared with the help of earthworms that consume partially decomposed organic matter like cow dung, agricultural waste, or decomposed leaves. It has at least 12 essential macro and micro nutrients and it helps bring life back to the soil as it enriches the soil with organic matter that is teeming with beneficial microorganisms. In theory, an average farmer in India, who does animal husbandry alongside can easily produce this compost for her own farm and can then not be dependent on the market for buying chemical fertilizers.

But attempts from government organizations like Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) and non-profit organizations to promote individual-farmer level vermicompost production have had very limited results. The main reason is that farmers, like urban consumers, are now used to the convenience of purchasing things that they otherwise would produce themselves – it is easier to buy fertilizer from the market than to put time, resources and energy and wait for 2-3 months to get the final compost ready for use—just like it is easier to buy pickles online rather than get into the hassle of preparing  the spices, cutting and drying the vegetable or fruit to be picked, storing it properly and waiting for months for it to be ready.  

It makes more sense then, to have clusters of farmers who produce vermicompost on a larger scale and sell it to nearby farmers. But there are challenges on this front too. Sanjaybhai, a farmer-entrepreneur who has been producing vermicompost for more than six years now in Tapi, Gujarat has had to face a number of them. When it comes to sale, there has been no problem at all—whatever he has produced he has been able to sell quite easily. Since the production unit is located near the highway, buyers come and purchase it from him- the only marketing he has done is put up a board saying “Vermicompost Available” with his contact number near his unit. But he shares that he hardly earns a decent profit. Since it is a natural, time taking process it takes patience and there can be issues like excess rain (like it happened this year) or heat that can lead to problem in production and the worms perishing.  But the biggest problem is that he isn’t able to raise the price of vermicompost even though his production cost rises. This is because there are other producers selling it at a lower cost even though their quality is not quite at par as his. Farmers compare the prices and refuse to pay more. He shares that even though the prices of chemical fertilizers rise by 400-500 rupees, the farmers don’t question it, but when it comes to good quality organic compost, they are not willing to pay. It seems like the solution to this pressing problem is to create a network of farmer-producers who produce good quality compost and set a uniform selling price that ensures that they receive a decent income for their efforts. 

#Vermicompost #Organic #Farmers