A Vehicle of Consciousness

"We began organic farming with marginal farmers, and gave them all the support, education and supplies that they needed. The scepticism of other farmers was soon dispelled as they saw the ORGANIC INDIA farmers reap the benefits on their fields and receive fair payment for their crops," says Lev, with a sense of pride. The very next year, dozens of farmers joined in and, by the third year, even more.

At this point, the whole community had realized that the benefits were very far reaching- the livestock were stronger, the water supply clean, toxic pollution was eliminated and one could see women and children in much better health. "As a result of our success in Azamgarh, we have been given exclusive rights to preserve over 220,000 acres of national forest which has now been certified organic," claims Lev.

However, we had to fight off dubious organic firms who were on the look out for the slighest opportunity to flood the market with their products merely to boost sales," points out Bhavani. "And, the only way we could expose them was by constantly improving the quality of our products and following the strict certification process," say Lev.

Organic farming involves a rigid 'to do and use' list where the manufacturers have to ensure quality at each and every stage, from seed to product. No chemicals are allowed whatsoever at any point, in the agriculture, processes, procedures, production, in cleaning the premises, and even the way the products are packaged. "Our competitors did not bother to go through this regimen and got exposed," adds Lev. The move to stick to the regimen paid off, and the results were good.

As part of its marketing strategy, ORGANIC INDIA launched its flagship Tulsi tea in six blends in the global market, which was met with resounding success. "We are the first to have brought this extraordinary herb as a tea. Tulsi is a real miracle plant that we at ORGANIC INDIA want the whole world to know about," says Bhavani Lev.

ORGANIC INDIA also markets an extensive range of bulk products including grains, cereals, pulses, spices, herbs, honey, dehydrated fruits and vegetables, through its various outlets in India and abroad. "Our goal is to become a globally recognized supplier of the highest quality organic food and health products the world over in the next five years," says Vinod Pandita, marketing head of the company in Delhi.

The company is also researching extensively on setting up a model organic/bio-dynamic farm at the outskirts of Lucknow, next to Kukrail forest, called Brindavan Farm. Here, it plans to grow all kinds of organic foods, grains, herbs, fruits, etc. "From this model, we intend to develop whole communities which can bring organic dairy products and organic eggs to the market in India. We very much want to be able to provide the people with clean, healthy and safe milk products and eggs that are free of hormones, chemicals and antibiotics," says Bhavani Lev.

They have also set up offices in Israel and USA to market their various products. Their company in Israel, for instance, sells products in seven of its outlets in that country, while Tulsi tea can be procured through their distributors, ORGANIC INDIA USA, in the US. The company has authorized international distribution system in North America, Europe, Eastern Europe, Singapore, and the Middle East. Says Lev, "We also market our products to Japanese buyers, (we have just recently been awarded a very strict Japanese organic certification!), and we are opening up the market in Australia."