Recently I received an appeal from a charity set up by a fairtrade company. They planned to raise money for Indian women intent on setting up businesses to sell compost to farmers producing cotton organically.
By chance, just before receiving this appeal, I had been reading a chapter in Earthworm Ecology, written by Radha D. Kale of the University of Agricultural Sciences in Bangalore. It was about vermicomposting in Asia. Vermicomposting is the process of adding a suitable species of epigeic worm (epigeic worms are found in, or just below the litter layer) to organic matter. Kale believes, ‘the whole human race will benefit if vermicomposting technology is accepted and adopted.’
The Green Revolution came to India in 1961, staving off famine with its high-yielding varieties of wheat and rice, but the ever increasing amounts of chemical fertilizers and pesticides required to maintain crop yields left a legacy of degraded soil. In 1984 a vermicomposting technology was made available by the University of Bangalore but few farmers were interested because at that time fertilizers were heavily subsidised. By 1990 farming using chemical fertilizers and pesticides had become uneconomical and the advantages of vermicomposts, produced at minimum expense, were becoming apparent. By 2000 the technology had spread throughout India and into Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. It is included in the curriculum of Indian secondary schools, has spawned a cottage industry and has proved invaluable for the removal of organic waste generated in residential areas of cities. The Khadi Village Industries Commission supports farmers financially to establish vermicomposting centres in villages.
Regarding the appeal, I don’t have the wisdom to decide which is better: to send money to the charity, or to let Indians continue to do without interference what they appear to be doing so well. Perhaps, in their concern for future generations, they have something to teach us.
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