Suhana Safar

Many times, a short outside town tour also refreshes you. The same feeling I had during my recent visit to The Suhana Organic Farm. It is run by The Eco Factory Foundation. Sitting in the chair surrounded by all nature was really a serene start of the tour.

Agro tourism is really picking up the pace in India. And I find it good in many ways as, urban people get chance to be with nature and understand the agriculture. Whenever you are with the nature, it naturally feels good. Also it is nature friendly and serene.

As we started our tour in the farm, we got to know about circular economy. The whole farm was self-sustainable. Right from seeds, organic fertilizers, nutrition, water etc. everything was grown inside the farm. Bi-product or the product itself during the whole lifecycle of plants, trees, insects, animals, fruits, vegetables etc. everything was utilized. That is, whole circle of life, birth to death is utilized and again rebirth with the same resources happens. They say, a jungle doesn’t need Annual Maintenance, it sustains on itself. That’s what is the circular economy or self-sustainability we call. It was really remarkable to see that people were following it and showing the results as well.

Their trials and research were also fascinating. It included how to grow 5 different trees just adjacent to each other which will complement each other for better growth; growing60 KG of Banana stem (Normally it is 20-30KG). The way they had used the waste from adjacent Suhana Spice Factory should also be appreciated. Every waste from the factory was recycled. Garlic leftover from the factory was heavily used for soil nutrition.

After the tour in the farm, they showed us the training center where they give training to Farmers to increase the efficiency and productivity. Along with this, they also teach about allied businesses a farmer can do. I believe this training would really be useful for every farmer. For me empowerment does not lie in spoon feeding but enabling one to create his / her own silver spoon. Trainings they were providing was empowering for farmers.

Then the last part was, sort of waste management museum. Here, they had showcased different waste management techniques available in the market. Few were being used by them and few were just for demo. Checking those things at one go motivated me to implement few at my home and persuade my management to implement at my office.

Overall, the visit and day was well spent. New knowledge, motivating implementation, and food for the mind made the day. Immediate takeaway for me was, I can build my Pot using waste Cold Drink Bottle. My next in-house plant will be in the recycled Pot as learnt from the visit.

I wish many such places should emerge and create as much awareness as they can.