Guava, passion fruit, mango, guzberries, coffee. The seeds carried by wild birds among the tea trees sprout and grow into large trees that bear wild-looking fruit. When they are ready to be eaten, you can take all you can get in good with the birds.
India has a population of 1.4 billion. That's a lot! More than half of the population is under the age of 25, and this young labor force is a major driver of India's economic growth, and yet about 40% of the working population is farmers. India has the world's second largest agricultural land area and is a major producer of rice, wheat, cotton, and tea, accounting for 17% of its GDP (about 33 trillion yen). Incidentally, the ratio of farmers in Japan is 2%, or 1% of GDP (about 8 trillion yen). If there are many people, they produce more and consume more. Comparing these figures, we can see that Japan and India are in completely different phases of development.
Although the economy is developing rapidly, the average monthly income of tea stacking workers in this area, for example, is about 12,000 to 15,000 yen, which is very low, about one-tenth of the average monthly income in Japan. However, what we should not misunderstand here is that a high income means a rich life and a low income means a poor life, which simply means “poor” from the point of view of those who are financially well-off. The equation of “high income = wealthy and low income = poor” does not fit in today's world. Life is not that simple.
Not only in Japan, but in other countries that have become economically rich, many people are forced to shorten their time and processes and wear down their spirits to maintain a “decent” life. The destination of economic development is ultimately a life of hardship.” What is the meaning of “development”? As a capitalistic economy, it is only normal that there are economic disparities among the countries of the world due to the rules of the capitalist economy. However, when I received a fresh smile from a tea-picking veteran, it was not unlike the expression on the face of an old man on a crowded train, and I felt that there was a great disparity between our country and the purity of life itself. I thought, “I don't care how much money I have saved, I just want to live a vibrant life, to live on the ground."
Three years after moving to Tokyo, I no longer felt any future in the crowded, noisy, air polluted, bad water, suits, and inconvenient elements of city life. It is natural that there are things for which people are not suited, but in my case, a healthy and organic way of life in the countryside, where I can live on the earth, surrounded by good water, air, and food, while maintaining close ties with the local community, seems to be more appropriate for me. So, even though this is the first time I've been here, I feel strangely at home. I felt like I could live anywhere in the world if I were surrounded by nature.
I digressed, but let's get back to the topic of agriculture. In Japan, almost all farmers are managed by the Japan Agricultural Cooperation Agency (JA), but in India, agriculture is not necessarily centralized, and there are various business models and local self-governing organizations.
For example, there is a supermarket with a cute name, Cherry Berry, in a neighboring town named Coonoor. However, it is not just a supermarket like Maruei or Ozeki. Cherry Berry has its own farm and sells its products directly to the public under the concept of “farm to table. The second floor of the supermarket, a former tea factory, has been converted into a café and restaurant where customers can enjoy local dishes made with fresh vegetables.
At Michi-no-eki (roadside stations) and direct-sale shops in Ishikawa, individual farmers directly sell their products and collect any unsold items from the farmers themselves. In other words, the production risk, such as only being able to harvest once a year, lies not with the individual farmer but with the company organization. Furthermore, taxes on agriculture are exempted in India. Neither corporate tax nor income tax has to be paid. Individuals can then engage in farming without incurring farming costs. I thought it was amazing that a food business, which directly employs farmers, is located in a rural area. In Japan, only agricultural corporations can own farmland, making it difficult for small-scale farmers to enter the industry. In the first place, the negative image of risk-taking and physical labor with little time off is all too prevalent, and the occupation is quite low on the popularity list. Before rice disappears from supermarkets, I thought now is the time to favor agriculture, ease regulations, lower barriers to entry, and increase the number of companies like Cherry Berry in rural areas.
Coonoor is about the size of Yamashiro town ,Ishikawa if you go by our house, and it is not a city by any means. Witnessing the establishment of a local agribusiness in such a small city highlights not only the large population of India, but also the diversity of aspirations and values that exist in the local community.
In the Nilgiri district, there is a private organization that supports organic farmers, holding weekly farmers' markets and providing marketing support. Rishi took me to a market held on Saturdays at 10:00 a.m. in a government building, where there were five or six booths, all with desks full of fruits and vegetables, and farmers were always there after them. I figured it was a farmer's market because the farmers come directly to sell their products. All the customers were enjoying the shopping itself, asking the farmers for their recommendations on how to cook the produce, or asking about details such as when the harvest would be ready.
Above all, the place was full of energy. I arrived a bit after the store opened in the morning, but many people had already gathered. Among them, there was one woman who was very active. She was the market organizer. I was introduced to her because she was an acquaintance of Rishi's. She was a woman in her fifties, with eyes as bright and powerful as those of an animal living in the forest, and she was full of energy.
"Come here !” she said.
She introduced us to the farmers who had set up booths one after another. She is a leader of the organic culture, and I felt very comfortable following her. She is a big mother in Nilgiri who believes in the organic nature of all her crops, the earth, and her body, and plays a role in supporting sustainable farmers who produce small-scale, small-batch, multi-product products in a difficult environment.
Farmers Market. The market is for farmers and serves as an important conduit between farmers and consumers.
The beauty of farmers' markets is that they are not complete after shipping to wholesalers, but rather they are able to hand directly to the people who eat their products, telling them various things about the products because they have made them with great care. If you buy a carrot or a bean at a supermarket, you only pay attention to the price, but if you buy directly from the farmer and get a glimpse of what kind of person produced the product, the value and taste will surely increase dozens of times, and the farmer's joy and motivation will also increase dramatically. It can only be a good thing.
It is often said that there are no jobs in rural Japan. However, this does not mean that there are no jobs, but rather that there are few people who have the sense and passion to look half a step ahead and create new fields of work. In essence, location has nothing to do with creating jobs, and as long as you have the confidence and connections, there may be nothing you can't do even in depopulated areas. This is what I thought as I looked into the eyes of the farmers who are sparking an organic movement in the rural areas of India.
