Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh department of Horticulture is aiming to give international and national exposure to organic farmers across the state and is organising a four-day Organic-cum-Nursery expo at Vijayawada, said Horticulture commissioner Chiranjeevi Chaudhary. Horticulture department along with Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and International Competence Centre of Organic Agriculture (ICCOA) is organizing the expo in which as many as 135 stalls of organic crops would be on display.
"Around 500 to 750 acres of certified organic farms are present in the state and many farmers practicing organic techniques lack awareness about obtaining a certificate. We will arrange stalls to help such farmers obtain organic certification,” said Mr. Chiranjeevi. Horticulture crops were most profitable to the farmers as they could earn almost 200 percent profit with organic farming and the state has allocated Rs 1463.31 crore towards the development of horticulture crops, says Mr Chiranjeevi.
More than 17 percent of the funds released by the Union government to the horticulture department were allocated to Andhra Pradesh and the state is leading in terms of exports globally," he added. The Central Plantation Crops Research institute (CPCRI) will be set up in a 11 acre land in Samalkot in East Godavari District and a central team will soon inspect this, he further added. State level workshops on organic farming and horticulture will be conducted and Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu is expected to be present.
