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Training farmers on sustainable agricultural practices in Bandhavgarh

Picture this. It's 4:47 pm, you forgot to carry your lunch; there are hunger rats wreaking havoc in your tummy; deadlines are impending, but you cannot think straight. You could perhaps eat an organically grown mango that costs R140 apiece, or, for half the price, you could order in a seven-inch pizza using an app that's dolling out discounts like mithai at a baraat. The point is, not everyone has the luxury of stocking up on A-grade produce from a farmers' market each Sunday simply because it comes with the promise of health. But the bigger point is, why does an organic mango - grown naturally without having incurred any costs on pesticides or other chemicals - cost more?

Training farmers on sustainable agricultural practices in Bandhavgarh

"It shouldn't," chef Michael Swamy tells us, ahead of The Value of Thinking Local, a talk he has put together in collaboration with the Indian Network on Ethics and Climate Change (INECC), which hopes to acquaint attendees with the excesses of the food industry and the urgent need to rework it for sustainable eating habits. "In cities, whenever one hears of 'sustainable food' the mind invariably conjures up images of heavily-priced and smartly-packaged organic stuff at swanky stores. In many ways, this image trivialises the issue. Sustainable food is more than just a health fad," he explains, adding that the subject of food sustainability should include a note on food sovereignty, fair pricing, justice and environmental conservation.

"The goal is to establish healthy communities and regional agricultural economies. The idea of sustainable food must include a vision of what the agricultural system is going to fa­ce," he adds, referring to the challenges of a growing population intensifying the competition for scarce land, water and energy resources, and the threat of climate change.

In November 2018, Swamy - who is known for his work with indigenous communities in Aarey Colony, Bandhavgarh and other regions in Maharashtra - attended an INECC event. Their endeavour fit perfectly with Swamy's work and set the ball rolling.

Michael Swamy

"Many establishments call themselves farm-to-fork restaurants, but that's where it ends. Nobody is actually going to the villages and educating people at the grassroots level. Even in the cities, take the example of a housewife who has a cup of tea or coffee each day. She might be consuming chemicals. I might know all the theories, but at the end of the day, I eat what my cook prepares. Now, I have no clue where she got the coriander from. So, until this knowledge trickles down to the layman, things won't change drastically," the chef elaborates. The aim of the talk, he adds, is to empower attendees with information that can then be passed on to a larger audience through them.

And in a bid to acquaint attendees with a holistic approach towards sustainability, the talk, which is happening at a Vile Parle venue tonight, will see panelists from all walks of life, including chef Rohit Rudradevan of Toast and Tonic, Ruchi Jain, founder of an organic superfood company, Ganesh Nakhawa, who has been championing the cause of marine conservation and has founded a company that supports sustainable fishing, and chef Swamy.

An image was taken by Ganesh Nakhawa, who has been working for marine conservation

Speaking about the role chefs can play, and how they can reconcile their deliverables to their employers with their commitments to the environment through the food that they cook, Swamy tells us, "You have to take a decision and say, 'enough of listening to the customers and owners'. If a patron says they want to eat dal makhni, let them. But encourage them to try something else, too. You can start small, maybe with one dinner in a month, but it will go a long way."

On: May 1, 3 pm to 6 pm
At: Avion Hotel, opposite Mumbai Domestic Airport, Airport Road, Vile Parle East.
Call: 26116958

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