Natural Farming Impact on Farmers' Income: Evidence Reported from Mandi District of Himachal Pradesh, India

Abstract

Agriculture is a major source of income for farmers in the mountainous state of Himachal Pradesh, which is located in the North Western Himalayas. A sample of 60 farmers was selected for the current study, which was carried out in the Mandi district of Himachal Pradesh, India, to examine the effect of Natural Farming on farmers' income. In contrast to Conventional Farming, where wheat, peas, maize, and tomatoes are produced, the study found that farmers in Natural Farming practiced mixed cropping, growing cereal-pulses, cereal-vegetables, vegetable pulses, and cereal-vegetable-pulses. In contrast to Conventional Farming, where cultivation costs ranged from Rs. 52,686 to 79,008/ha, Natural Farming had lower cultivation costs, ranging from Rs. 41,857 to 52,966/ha. Cereal-vegetable and cereal-vegetable-pulses combinations during the Kharif (36.5q/ha) and Rabi (34.56q/ha) seasons produced the highest yield in Natural Farming. With a high output-input ratio and a high relative economic efficiency ranging from 2.57 to 22.73, natural farming also provides large net returns. Thus, natural farming becomes a practical and profitable practice for farmers to maximize their yields without much investment in mid hills of Mandi area.