Natural farming is great, but are we ready for it?

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Editor's note: Did you hear Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments at the Natural Farming Conclave in December in Anand, Gujarat? It was a pleasant surprise. Especially so because Indian agriculture is usually dominated by long-standing practices and perspectives. Modi’s view that our agricultural practices need a new (or is it old?) approach and shift away from chemical farming seems like an endorsement of natural farming as an alternative food system. This probably caught the attention of many people trying to access organic food, interest in which has been growing over the last decade. Still, not since a Satyamev Jayate episode brought organic farming into our collective national consciousness a decade ago has there been such high-profile attention on natural farming and organic food. While this expression of support for natural farming is a welcome change, the reasons behind it need to be examined further. Governments worldwide are finally realizing that they can’t ignore the costs of fertilizers like urea and diammonium phosphate (DAP), which have more than doubled over the past year due to a surge in input costs and also oil …