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Organic farming is increasingly popular among the farmers of Kathmandu valley. However, the organic growers have been facing issues in production, organic certification, and product marketing. To date, little is known about the challenges faced by the organic growers in Kathmandu valley. This study aimed to explore the status of organic farming, attitudes of farmers towards organic farming, their suggestions for improvement, and strengthening the value chain of organic products. Face-to-face interviews were conducted at Agriculture Knowledge Centre, Lalitpur, Nepal during December 2019 with 37 organic growers directly or indirectly involved in organic farming. The results showed that organic growers face challenges in marketing and institutional recognition. Challenges in product certification and marketing were reported by 45.95% of the total interviewed organic growers while following organic practices (transitional organic). Our study suggested that reducing the cost of production through easy access to organic inputs like organic seeds, fertilizers, and biopesticides are highly desired by the growers. Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) or group certification along with collective marketing could be the policy implications to address the issues. Organic farming in Kathmandu valley is limited to a niche market; however, due to increasing consumer demand for safe, fresh, and local food, the popularity of organic products is extending to other regions within the country.
Dilip Nandwani; Dinesh Jamarkattel; Khem Dahal; Ritikshya Poudel; Suman Giri; Toya Joshi. Attitudes of Fruit and Vegetable Farmers towards Organic Farming in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. Sustainability 2021, 13, 3888 .
AMA StyleDilip Nandwani, Dinesh Jamarkattel, Khem Dahal, Ritikshya Poudel, Suman Giri, Toya Joshi. Attitudes of Fruit and Vegetable Farmers towards Organic Farming in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (7):3888.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDilip Nandwani; Dinesh Jamarkattel; Khem Dahal; Ritikshya Poudel; Suman Giri; Toya Joshi. 2021. "Attitudes of Fruit and Vegetable Farmers towards Organic Farming in Kathmandu Valley, Nepal." Sustainability 13, no. 7: 3888.
Agriculture is the principal economic activity of Nepal contributing about 35 % to the national GDP and engaging about 66 % of the population. Existing low productivity of agriculture has resulted in food insecure and food deficit nation. Degradation of resources, mainly land, water, agrobiodiversity, and forest, is believed to be the immediate cause for the low productivity. Therefore, agricultural practices those conserve and promote productivity level while regenerating the degraded natural resource are of paramount importance in Nepal. Organic farming has been proven as one of such practices as it promotes and maintains soil and human health, manages and enhances biodiversity, and offers better nutrient cycling and mineralization with favorable microclimatic regimes, and thereby less risk to farmers. Till the recent past, agriculture in Nepal was organic with self-sustained method of production relying on integration of local biodiversity using traditional knowledge and wisdom. However, for the last three decades, use of high yielding exotic crops/varieties and agrochemicals, introduced under the banner of Green Revolution Agriculture (GRA), has become pervasive. Although, GRA served its short-term propose to some extent to increase the production of major food crops, over the time, the indiscriminate use of external non-organic inputs resulted in soil degradation, loss of biodiversity, food poisoning, environmental pollution, and threat to sustainability and food security. This devastating scenario compelled the stakeholders to think of alternative resilient practices as a long-term solution to conserving the resource base and salvaging the environment. Organic agriculture, as advocated and promoted by International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM) based on worldwide research results, can be instrumental to address the current as well as long-term problems of agriculture in Nepal. The practice of organic agriculture is not new for Nepalese farmers because it is a traditional mainstream food production system from the time immemorial. However, as a movement, organic agriculture has emerged as a new intervention in farming in recent years. Development of addictive sense toward chemical-based farming made difficult to convince farmers about immediate and long-term advantage of organic agriculture. Therefore, non-government organizations are involved to advocate, promote, and popularize organic farming with policy support from the government. Growing health and environmental consciousness against chemical farming among consumers has helped the movement advance faster. At present, many conscious farmers, entrepreneurs, and academic and development institutions are focusing their efforts to promote organic farming in the country. Government has also formulated some policies favoring the shift from chemical-based farming to organic farming. This chapter focuses on general features on the past and present of Nepalese agriculture; its resource base; declining productivity and sustainability; and the role of organic farming as a viable option for food security and livelihood sustainability in Nepal.
Khem Raj Dahal; Krishna Prasad Sharma; Dila Ram Bhandari; Basu Dev Regmi; Dilip Nandwani. Organic Agriculture: A Viable Option for Food Security and Livelihood Sustainability in Nepal. Sustainable Development and Biodiversity 2016, 137 -168.
AMA StyleKhem Raj Dahal, Krishna Prasad Sharma, Dila Ram Bhandari, Basu Dev Regmi, Dilip Nandwani. Organic Agriculture: A Viable Option for Food Security and Livelihood Sustainability in Nepal. Sustainable Development and Biodiversity. 2016; ():137-168.
Chicago/Turabian StyleKhem Raj Dahal; Krishna Prasad Sharma; Dila Ram Bhandari; Basu Dev Regmi; Dilip Nandwani. 2016. "Organic Agriculture: A Viable Option for Food Security and Livelihood Sustainability in Nepal." Sustainable Development and Biodiversity , no. : 137-168.
While impacts of climate change on agricultural systems have been widely researched, there is still limited understanding of what agricultural innovations have evolved over time in response to both climatic and non-climatic drivers. Although there has been some progress in formulating national adaptation policies and strategic planning in different countries of South Asia, research to identify local-level adaptive strategies and practices is still limited. Through eight case studies and a survey of 300 households in 15 locations in India, Nepal and Bangladesh, this paper generates empirical evidence on emerging agricultural innovations in contrasting socio-economic, geographical and agro-ecological contexts. The study demonstrates that several farm practices (innovations) have emerged in response to multiple drivers over time, with various forms of institutional and policy support, including incentives to reduce risks in the adoption of innovative practice. It further shows that there is still limited attempt to systematically mainstream adaptation innovations into local, regional and national government structures, policies and planning processes. The paper shows that the process of farm-level adaptation through innovation adoption forms an important avenue for agricultural adaptation in South Asia. A key implication of this finding is that there is a need for stronger collaborations between research institutions, extension systems, civil society and the private sector actors to enhance emerging adaptive innovations at the farm level.
Gopal Datt Bhatta; Hemant Raj Ojha; Pramod Kumar Aggarwal; V. Rasheed Sulaiman; Parvin Sultana; Dhanej Thapa; Nimisha Mittal; Khemraj Dahal; Paul Thomson; Laxman Ghimire. Agricultural innovation and adaptation to climate change: empirical evidence from diverse agro-ecologies in South Asia. Environment, Development and Sustainability 2015, 19, 497 -525.
AMA StyleGopal Datt Bhatta, Hemant Raj Ojha, Pramod Kumar Aggarwal, V. Rasheed Sulaiman, Parvin Sultana, Dhanej Thapa, Nimisha Mittal, Khemraj Dahal, Paul Thomson, Laxman Ghimire. Agricultural innovation and adaptation to climate change: empirical evidence from diverse agro-ecologies in South Asia. Environment, Development and Sustainability. 2015; 19 (2):497-525.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGopal Datt Bhatta; Hemant Raj Ojha; Pramod Kumar Aggarwal; V. Rasheed Sulaiman; Parvin Sultana; Dhanej Thapa; Nimisha Mittal; Khemraj Dahal; Paul Thomson; Laxman Ghimire. 2015. "Agricultural innovation and adaptation to climate change: empirical evidence from diverse agro-ecologies in South Asia." Environment, Development and Sustainability 19, no. 2: 497-525.