Composting Unit at Regenerative Agriculture Hub, Hyderabad (Telangana)
Nandi/UFCo
India may be known for its tea, but in the Araku region, researchers, NGOs and indigenous farmers are working to grow coffee and restore the soil.
Araku is a hill region in the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh, India, where coffee cultivation has driven economic development for the indigenous community.
Dr Pushpajit L. Choudhary is a soil scientist at the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics and Principal Investigator of ICRISAT’s partnership with Naandi Foundation, an Indian NGO.
“The implementation of regenerative farming techniques and inputs has improved cupping scores (improving the quality and taste profile of roasted coffee) and enabled Arak Coffee to become an international premium brand,” he says. “This has led to increased incomes for farmers and lifted entire communities out of poverty.”
Choudhary explains that they are studying the impact of regenerative soil nutrients and long-term use of soil conditioners by continually monitoring the impact on soil health and crop yields.
The researchers oversaw the collection, testing and analysis of 12,000 soil and compost samples from Araku, conducted quality testing of compost produced at Araku as an important regenerative agriculture input, and compiled a handbook of soil and plant samples in both English and Telugu.
David Hogg, principal regenerative agriculture adviser at the Nandi Foundation, explains that increasing soil microbiomes protects crops from harmful pathogens such as aflatoxins, rust and fusarium.
“This prioritization of soil and crop quality and farmer equity at every step of the agricultural value chain is the essence of Arachnomics – a climate change solution that transforms cropland into carbon-producing ecosystems,” he says.
In 2024, the foundation's work was recognized as one of two Seeding The Future Grand Prize winners, receiving a $250,000 grant from the Institute of Food Technologists and the Seeding The Future Foundation.
Agriculture in the Arak region
Tamarba Chittibabu, a farmer from Arak region and current chairman of the Small and Marginal Tribal Farmers Mutual Aid Cooperative Society, which comprises 30,000 households, explains that in recent years, farmers in Arak have not been getting a fair price for their produce.
“Through cooperation, farmers have been able to escape exploitation by middlemen and improve their income and livelihoods,” he said, adding that they joined the cooperative because it offered them a competitive market price for the coffee they grew, but also gave them the opportunity to gain knowledge and training in regenerative agriculture.
Chittibabu says the project will help farmers produce coffee and other crops using regenerative farming practices without chemical inputs, which will appeal to consumers as demand for organic produce increases.
“We believe this model can be replicated across the country and will gradually help change the mindset of farmers and consumers across the world towards environmentally and economically conscious agriculture,” he said, adding that the existence of a specialized body like SAMTFMACS provides a platform for farmers to be approached and discuss their needs and requirements on a regular basis.
Araku Valley, India.
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Climate-Smart Agriculture in Bangladesh
Elsewhere in the region, Asif Ishtiaq, a Bangladeshi-born assistant professor at Missouri State University, is studying farms in South Asia to understand why they are not adopting agricultural practices aimed at reducing carbon emissions.
Ishtiaq explained that climate-smart agriculture is a set of agricultural practices and technologies designed to address the challenges posed by climate change in the agricultural sector as well as promote sustainability and resilience.
“We have found that a majority of farmers are not adopting climate-smart agricultural practices and technologies, even though these technologies are strongly recommended by governments and non-governmental agricultural organisations,” he says.
Despite the promise of climate adaptive agriculture (CSA) to improve food security in South Asia, most CSA practices and technologies have not been widely adopted.
“Previous studies on the adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices and technologies have mostly focused on case studies and been confined to specific regions, but it was important to view this issue as a localized problem,” he said, adding that large-scale interventions may not be possible if research is done on a case-by-case basis.
