There is no one answer to the burdens of climate change, but many farmers agree that there is one ally: soil. The earth, which houses and nourishes crops, also has the ability to retain water during droughts, keep away pests, trap the pesky carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and grow healthier foods. But for this, you must farm not just to produce food, but also to nurture and service the soil it grows in.
Broadly, this approach to farming is understood as regenerative farming. It is not one singular method–it is a term for a range of practices that focus on conservation and rehabilitation of the soil when farming.
As a philosophical model, regenerative farming asks of us to factor in and incorporate how all aspects of agriculture are interconnected through a web of entities that grow, enhance and sustain each other. It holds no strict rule book, yet its holistic principles are rooted in addressing inequity, climate inequality and making sustainability a reality rather than a distant dream.
Small and marginalised farmers, particularly in India and other parts of the Global South, often lack secure land ownership–and this prevents them from investing in long-term sustainable practices.
Small and marginalised farmers, particularly in India and other parts of the Global South, often lack secure land ownership–and this prevents them from investing in long-term sustainable practices. Historically, land ownership in the country has remained categorically limited to upper caste and upper class households as well as wealthy landlords, leaving landless labourers in the pits of land inequity, without recourse. Regenerative farming seeks to thus root itself in addressing the inequity of high-cost fertilisers that both impoverish soil health and hold back small-scale farmers.
This method of farming aims to restore and enhance the health of ecosystems while producing food. Unlike conventional farming, which often prioritises high yields at the expense of rapid environmental degradation, regenerative farming focuses on replenishing soil fertility, promoting biodiversity, and reducing carbon emissions. Its goal is to create a self-sustaining system that benefits both nature and humanity.
Core guiding principles
At its core, regenerative farming tells you to work with nature rather than against it. It emphasises practices like crop rotation, cover cropping, reduced tillage, and integrating livestock into farming systems. These methods aim to mimic natural processes. Cover crops, for instance, protect the soil from erosion, while reduced tillage minimises disturbance to soil organisms. Livestock, when managed correctly, can contribute to soil fertility through natural fertilisation cycles. In nature, wild herbivores move across landscapes, grazing in one area and then the next. This prevents overgrazing, allowing plants to regrow and the soil to recover. Farmers replicate this by rotating livestock between pastures. Moreover, as animals graze, they deposit manure, which enriches the soil with organic matter and nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen–thus reducing the reliance on synthetic fertilisers.
Crucially, regenerative farming prioritises soil health. While modern-day farming addled with chemicals has desensitised many farmers to poor soil health, regenerative farming brings it back into focus as it hopes to reverse the soil degradation that’s amassed abundantly. The word regenerative in itself suggests a sort of gentle healing–to slowly undo the harm we have done to the soil.
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The guiding principles of regenerative farming are rooted in keeping the soil surface covered with a duvet of growing crops. This reduces soil erosion and also helps the earth retain carbon from the atmosphere. Thus farmers ensure that there is no disturbance to the soil, be it through heavy ploughing or excessive fertilisers.
This duvet of crops, regenerative farming says, should be diverse. After all, monocultures aren’t organically occurring–so, the act of cover cropping can heavily improve soil health.
All of these processes aim to patiently bloom some life back into the soil, making it healthier.
Merits of regenerative farming
The benefits of regenerative farming extend beyond the farm. But what does this mean? How can soil help a warming planet?
Regenerative farming actually holds the potential to mitigate climate change. By enhancing the soil’s capacity to store carbon, regenerative farming can act as a natural carbon sink, offsetting greenhouse gas emissions. The global effort here is to reduce carbon footprint, and this sort of farming does exactly that.
Additionally, regenerative practices enhance biodiversity by creating habitats for insects, birds, and other wildlife. Diverse plantings and minimal chemical use foster a balanced ecosystem, reducing reliance on synthetic fertilisers and pesticides. Farmers have reported economic benefits, as healthier soils often lead to higher yields and lower input costs over time. The improved water retention of healthy soils can make farms more resilient to droughts, an increasingly pressing concern, especially in countries like India.
Regenerative farming isn’t solely a respite for farmers, but for consumers as well. For consumers, regenerative farming offers the promise of healthier food. Studies suggest that produce grown in nutrient-rich soils contains higher levels of vitamins and minerals. Not only is regenerative farming a net positive for agriculturists but there could be a potential market waiting to usher in regeneratively produced food – much like organic produce.
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Challenges to overcome
Despite its promise, regenerative farming is not without challenges. The scientific consensus on the effectiveness of regenerative farming in sequestering carbon is still evolving. Certainly, studies reassure, healthy soil holds the potential to trap carbon, but they also caution that the extent to which soil can store carbon may be limited and heavily dependent on local and regional conditions. This indicates that regenerative farming alone cannot deliver sweeping climate benefits–there are conditions to how it should be practiced, to reap these benefits.
Another limitation is scalability. Implementing regenerative practices on a global scale requires widespread systemic changes in land management, supply chains, and agricultural policies.
In the same vein, realistically transitioning from conventional methods to regenerative practices can be costly and time-consuming, particularly for small-scale farmers. It often requires significant investments in education, equipment, and experimentation, which not all farmers can afford. However, studies have shown that while the net margin from a regenerative farming system may be lower than conventional systems in the first year, it can exceed conventional systems by the sixth year. This long-term profitability, coupled with environmental benefits, makes regenerative agriculture a viable option for Indian farmers.
Despite its challenges, regenerative farming practices form a historical corpus in the subcontinent. Techniques such as mixed cropping, crop rotation, agroforestry, and the use of local varieties have been integral to Indian farming for centuries. The traditional Barahnaja system (translating to “twelve seeds” in Garhwali) belonging to the Himalayan region is a testament to this history. Under this system, farmers would cultivate 12 or more crops together in a single field, using no chemical fertilisers. This makes sure soil erosion is at a minimum, soil health is bolstered, and an ecosystem of insects, worms, and weeds is created. The practice struck the much-needed balance between food security and ecological sustainability–something regenerative farming promises, too.