372 Anand Ethirajalu - Harvesting the clouds: how to transition over 10.000 farmers a year, reducing input costs and increasing profits

Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food

A conversation with Anand Ethirajalu, farmer-turned-ecologist and project director for the Save Soil movement.

We don’t talk about it much, but we should: a remarkable transition has been unfolding on the Indian subcontinent over the past few decades. Hundreds of thousands- if not millions- of farmers have been trained in regenerative practicesand have successfully made the switch. Yes, with higher yields and greater profits, largely due to significantly lower production costs.

In the conversation, we focus on one region where the Save Soil movement, led by Sadhguru, has been training more than 10,000 farmers per year.

There are countless lessons to be learned. Soil can recover quickly, but shifting farmers’ mindsets often takes much longer. One key strategy: don’t risk the whole farm. Start with just 10%, and show immediate financial results—higher profits. Provide crucial support in the early years, especially during the first growing season.

More and more farmers are also joining programs to plant permanent crops like timber and fruit trees, both as a form of insurance and with the broader goal of planting enough trees (currently over 12 million a year) to begin “harvesting the clouds”.

More about this episode.

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In Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food podcast show we talk to the pioneers in the regenerative food and agriculture space to learn more on how to put our money to work to regenerate soil, people, local communities and ecosystems while making an appropriate and fair return. Hosted by Koen van Seijen.

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The above references an opinion and is for information and educational purposes only. It is not intended to be investment advice. Seek a duly licensed professional for investment advice.

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Chapters

1. Anand Ethirajulu (00:00:00)

2. What should smart investors, who want to invest in Reg ag and food look out for? (01:08:51)

3. What would you do if you were in charge of a 1B investment portfolio tomorrow morning? (01:12:57)

4. What do you believe is true about regenerative agriculture that others don’t believe to be true? Inspired by John Kempf (01:17:58)

5. If you could wave a magic wand and change one thing in the agriculture industry from a sustainability point of view, what would it be? (01:19:13)