A peasant currently affects some 30 rupees 0

"We lost this year of 10-15 of our farmers, who have abandoned the bio to the genetically modified cotton," said Rajeev Baruah. Mountains in yet more, discourage this large forecastle, with his wife Rituh, moving 500 kilometres northeast of Bombay. The head of the cooperative BioRe would have still happened of this additional obstacle to the conversion of the peasants in the region to organic agriculture. In a small ten years, more than 8,000 small producers have joined this unique structure in India, which combines organic farming and fair trade. For the pioneers of the distribution of ecological clothing, BioRe became a place of pilgrimage. Monoprix leaders come spend, in early November, a few days from Japanese, Swiss and Finnish, distributors all customers of bales of cotton from the cooperative. They are amazed of this utopia in motion proposing as a solution to the most polluting of the cultures of the world.

A land of election

Farmers in the region grow all small plots of a hectare on average along the Narmada River, which discharges its fertility on a few tens of kilometres wide. Cotton found here, as elsewhere in India, a land of election families tempted by non-food crops for a bit of fat in their peas soup. The cooperative has convinced village after village on a simple economic argument: organic farming can greatly reduce the purchase of inputs. Pesticides or fertilizer require a capital which few have. Most farmers do not have access to bank interest rates, but lenders prices out. At the time, Indian retain traditional, marginal farming practices and at the mercy of any attack of parasites. Larger farms attempt the adventure of intensive agriculture, at the risk of bankruptcy.

Form peasants

BioRe has built a training centre to accompany its partners. "We teach them to dispense with inputs, to produce their compost." They are the main 5 or 6 rows of cotton. "After two or three years, they convert all of their production", says Surendra Patidar, young agronomist charge to watch and control operations. Before each converted farm, often a simple hut Adobe lined with a shelter to cows, stand a few carefully maintained compost pile. The peasant learned to pick up a dozen plant in its environment to fortify the cultures. A small parcel is devoted to peppers, garlic and Basil to prepare decoctions to prevent disease. A few feet of corn and shrubs are available to the birds, natural cleaners of unwanted insects. Provide the (sacred) cow urine and excrement, good to make the field. A growing number of cultures also uses drip irrigation to reduce the impact of the enormous thirst for cotton.

With these tips, the operating account reduces. BioRe has created a small research centre in collaboration with the Organization of research on organic agriculture FIBL, the world reference. They compare two years the economic viability of different methods of culture. Early results show, under other international laboratories, that the margins are higher than those offered by the cotton conventional, but lower than the production of GM cotton, fault at lower yields. With contracts negotiated with customers, BioRe attempts to offer other arguments. "We are committed for five years to buy their cotton to the market price and pay a premium," says Rajeev Baruah. A peasant currently affects some 30 rupees (0.4 euro) per kilogram of cotton plus 3.2 rupees. Current conditions benefit producers: "I have never seen an as high market price", considers a peasant from the village of Tangyaplat.

Raise awareness among the

All the contenders do not cross the step of converting full so. "This method requires more work and a higher tech." "Some surrendered or are looking for more comfort in chemical treatments," warns Surendra Patidar. These desertions does not condemn BioRe, seeking less to attract a maximum of producers to build strong long-term relationships. The cooperative takes advantage of the mesh size of the territory to raise awareness among the respect for the environment and social assistance. Its Swiss partner, Remei, and customers have created a foundation to fund 15 schools and social actions, with always for sake of empowering the people. "We are testing the will of each community for one year by installing a provisional school in a farm." If the parents and children are frequent, we fund the 1,000 euros necessary for the construction of a small school and a year of salary of a teacher. "The people then take over," explains Rituh Baruah.

5,000 tons of cotton

BioRe retrieves the raw cotton to the villages of October to January. Its local factory then addresses the wads to extract seeds and slag. The bales of cotton then join weaving and clothing, plants chosen by customers for less polluting methods of transformation. Remei buys BioRe more than 5,000 tonnes of cotton ready to weave a year India and a half additional in Tanzania through an equivalent structure. Quantities that weigh little against the 180.000 tonnes of organic cotton expected this year, themselves representing only 0.55 of the total world production. It is the reliability of the model and the rigour of the Swiss coaching that have seduced several actors in the distribution of textiles such as Coop, Monoprix or Leclerc.