Farmers will be ready to produce organic food if they are able to attract consumers, who are aware of its benefits, to buy it. This was the main contention at the panel discussion on food and health held as part of the eighth edition of the Coimbatore Vizha. Ramesh Chandran, founder of Biobasics and Ananta, Sreedevi Lakshmikutty, co-founder of Biobasics and food activist, Shantini Rajkumar, food blogger, and Anil Kumar, founder of Paal Organic Milk Products, formed the panel. This event was organized by Coimbatore Arts and Theatre Society (CATS).

The speakers said that there were an enthusiastic group of people who have become organic farmers as they have the necessary resources and funds. People who own just two acres of land have ventured into organic farming with a lot of enthusiasm. They invest their valuable time, energy and resources and at the end of the season their produce does not have that many takers.

“The concept of slow seasonal, local, organic and whole food is slowly yet steadily picking up. In the past, organic produce and products had a handful of takers. However, the mindset of people towards organic products has changed and this has prompted several people to give regular products a break and opt for organic products and produce,” Ramesh Chandran said.

“Rice for an example which is the staple food of this region is available in thousands of varieties and each variety requires a different set of temperature and soil condition for its growth. People must be educated about the health benefits of the different variety of rice. People must become more conscious of what they eat,” Sreedevi Lakshmikutty said.

Agreeing with her was Shantini Rajkumar who added that the black variety of rice was the best to make the South Indian dessert payasam. She added that the sticky nature of this rice did not require ghee to be added while preparing payasam. There were people who took the trouble and effort to grow such products. However, due to the serious lack of awareness among consumers about such products, farmers who grow such products suffered huge losses as such products did not find an attractive market.

When it came to consumption of organic products, Anil Kumar shared the opinion that the end consumers needed to be educated about the products.

“I have had customers who purchased milk from us and brought it back complaining that it went bad in few hours time. We explained to them that it is good milk, and so does not have a long shelf life.” Anil Kumar said.

He is confident, like other experts, that if the public was made aware of the goodness and advantages of organic products, more and more people would begin using such products.