Agriculture attracting professionals : the grass is greener again 

Since the dawn of history, the agriculture sector has been a major pillar of the Mauritian’s economy. However, since late 1980s, the contribution of agriculture began to decrease from 16% to 6%. The younger generations began to show less interest. Now in the 21st Century, there are only a few professionals who are delving in this field. Insight. 

Freelance Consultant Swatantrenand Motah explains why the new generation has distanced itself from this field. According to him, the reasons are found in our own Mauritian culture. “In our culture, we tend to imitate our neighbors. For instance, if my neighbor’s kin is a doctor or a lawyer, so why cannot mine be the same?. Statistics has proved that the youngest person in this sector is aged not less than 45, this explains the situation in this sector.”

He says that the planter’s community toils hard to earn enough so as to send their children to universities so that they can have a brighter future. “There is a trend in our present education system whereby everyone is eager to earn a certificate, a diploma and a degree. For them, these will open more doors to employment.”

He further believes that only a few people show interest as the scarcity of land for agricultural development is one big problem for small planters. “The private sector, that owns hectares of land, has swopped from sugarcane to mass vegetable production. They have land, the latest technology, water resources, you name it. They produce for their own pockets, from one to the other, meaning that they need these vegetables and staples for their hotels. Another very good example is the tea sector: we have changed the ownership of this industry, this is now China owned.”

Innovation can be the method for production, highlights the Consultant. “There is need for a variety of the staples produced. Innovation has a cost and we pay this cost in the production process. Innovation has to go in line with customer demand. When we innovate, we do produce good quality that will satisfy our customers. This quality that everybody is looking for, but for sure we need to do it according to cost, a price that everybody can afford.”

Commenting on the organic products, he remarks that “labeling a product BIO does not mean that the product is really BIO. BIO production is a complex process. We have established standards worldwide where the product undergoes scrupulous analysis. The level of chemical elements in products is defined safe when they are within the limits prescribed. Nature itself contains chemical elements in most forms, in the soil, in the air, in water. As humans, we add these elements in excess to hasten growth, thus going against nature.”

On the question of revamping the sector, he states that we need to change from the conventional habits to modern demand. “Our present generation is looking for easy and at hand availability. People are looking for facilities. So producing quality at any cost and offering the staples in a certain form ready for use is a must. Moreover, price is not really a problem as long as it is affordable. As people are health conscious nowadays, so the product needs to be in line with this concept, using fewer pesticides, less chemical fertilizers. We need bio production staples, healthy products but the real ones, not the fake ones with just a label.”

Nishta Jooty : from pharmaceutical to farming 

Nishta Jooty, a pharmaceutical consultant by profession, launched herself in farming last year. Nishta possesses more than nine years of international working experience in the pharmaceutical and management field. She is a holder of a Master’s degree in Engineering, specialisation in Management of Clinical Operations and Data Management, from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Montpellier, France, and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the Open University of Mauritius. Despite having a promising career in France and as a freelance consultant, what could have pushed the young lady to jump in a sector which is on the decline? 

She started farming to produce fresh vegetables and spices for customers from all regions in Mauritius. “My family has been into farming since five generations and it was normal for me to join my brother in this family venture. I started by helping my brother in doing PR activities to find new clients a few years back. Since start of 2016, I followed courses at FAREI for hydroponic farming, one of my ambitions being to have a farming business of hydroponic vegetables. But due to financial constraints, my hydroponic project is on stand-by and since Jan 2017, I am doing traditional farming with limited use of pesticides and chemical products.”

Nishta has also followed courses for Biofarming and MauriGap level 1, offered by FAREI. “I am concerned about safe and healthy eating and I want to sensitize planters to use less pesticides and chemical products on plants. I am also aiming to move towards more efficient and sustainable production practices and to get our farm certified MauriGAP (Mauritius Good Agricultural Practices) Level 1, which is the basic standard for bio farming.”

The young entrepreneur highlights that the sector is full of challenges that she needs to overcome. “Firstly, there is financial implication. It costs a lot to move from traditional farming to innovative sustainable types of farming like hydroponic, aquaculture and biofarming. Besides, we do face nepotism. I applied for a grant for sheltered farming in 2016 but up till now, my application is on stand-by whereas other people who have applied after me have got their grants. There is also a lack of workforce and I have experienced all kinds of issues linked to weather conditions from water shortage in periods of droughts to excessive rainfall during cyclones.”

She argues that if today the sector is unable to attract new blood, it is because in our society, farming is considered as a low status job and hence does not attract the new generations. “It is also very easy to get discouraged as the whole plantation can be ruined due to weather conditions (droughts/cyclones) or if there are any diseases in plants. We suffer great losses and we have to start all over again. Small planters face unfair competition from private sectors that produce in a large scale. There should be more incentives by the government to encourage youth to join this sector.”

The young entrepreneur believes that in order to revamp this sector, there is need to change the mindsets of people by creating a culture of agro-entrepreneur. She underlines that we need to develop the sector by making it a vibrant field with the use of innovative techniques. “Agriculture is crucial to the survival of the population. It is a noble job and farmers must be given their due respect. We need to have enough farmers to be self-sufficient in vegetables in Mauritius. We have to move from traditional farming towards innovative sustainable practices like hydroponic, aquaculture and biofarming. Farmers should be given the right opportunities to develop in this sector.”

Avinash Lakohmayya : “I want Mauritius to be known as a chemical free product country”

After having spent 12 years in the UK working in the shipping industry and completed studies in the field of Mechanical Marine Engineering, Avinash returned to Mauritius for family reasons and in unison to contribute to the development of Mauritius. Avinash’s family is in agriculture and indirectly, he got involved with them and at the same time, he helped his parents in their kitchen garden. However, since one year now, he is cultivating organic vegetables and fruits commercially in Britannia, the Pilot project set up by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Why did he choose this sector and not engineering? He highlights that since the salary in Mauritius for an Engineer is not satisfactory enough and that innovative projects are not implemented due to frustration, he chose a pathway where there are immense potentials. “While watching and listening to the Budget speech, I saw an opportunity in organic farming. So, I attended the crash course by FAREI and went through the nerve racking process of application for land and finance. Finally, patience, hard work and commitment paid off.”

Being new to this sector, he truly faced some challenges like scarcity of labour, theft, pests but with a combination of love, hard work and innovation, he overcame all. “As an SME, I would definitely go bankrupt just by producing organic vegetables.  I am associated with Swiss German and now Mauritius Company Phylak Sachsen, which makes Spagyrik products that are plant bases and fully organic. We are conducting research on local medicinal plants and other plants to fight against all these pests and diseases.”

When asked why young people like him are not interested to make a career in this sector, he replies, “Mauritians are after easy money and less efforts and are interested in white collar jobs.  Working for yourself is so much work and when the end product is not satisfactory, you lose faith.  I also think the support from authorities is not enough for the youth to get into.  Someone needs money to start something but no such facilities are available for a beginner.”

He underscores that it is time to educate the population and farmers about organic farming, “There should be price regulation and strict control of where the produce comes from.  The Belle Rive project should be around the island in smaller scales thus protecting farmers and encouraging people to come back.”

He wants Mauritius to be known for its chemical free products and wants to help in agricultural tourism education and health sector. 

Shemida Ramdewar-Emrith : “I want to bring innovation and modernity”

Shemida is a young lady that wears different hats and is very passionate about agriculture. She is a vegetable and fruit wholesaler and distributor as well as vegetable auctioneer at Flacq and Vacoas Auction Market. Currently, she is the President of the Vegetables & Fruits Auctioneer Association and also the President at the Flacq Women Agriculture Club. She recognizes the importance of agriculture in our economy for Mauritius and she believes that the Mauritian farmers need to be valued as well as be respected for this noble job. 

Her adventure in this sector started with her grandfather, Keshwar Ramdewar (KR) who is the pioneer and founder of vegetable and fruit auction at Flacq.  “It is a family business passing down through generations, in the sector now at the third generation. I have joined in around 12 years ago. My family has been working in this sector all the time; we earned money and achieved a lot from it. I will always be grateful to this sector, to our farmers and to our customers. I’m also passionate about agriculture, and I believe that working in a sector that I like would enable me to do my work with my heart, helping the community and not just to doing it for money.”

 As a young entrepreneur, she remarks that unfortunately, people do not value the agricultural sector enough. “We are often being looked down. Working in the agricultural sector means producing food, helping towards food security and contributing to our economy but many take it for granted, without any recognition. Being educated, many people have often asked me why I joined this sector when I could have done better.”

Moreover, the young lady believes that the agriculture sector is being left out because on the one hand, we have an ageing population and on the other hand, this sector does not hold any validity anymore. “The young generation seems to be more interested in working in an office rather than in a farm or a market. Hence, we are not promoting this sector.”

She firmly believes that it is time to boost the sector again. For her, there is need to value and sensitize the population about the importance of the agricultural sector. “Firstly, we have to encourage, recognize and reward our farmers for their contribution to our economy. More help, services and finances must be given to farmers in an ethical and transparent way. Enough of corruption. Classify our farmers in small, medium and big categories and give more support to the small and medium ones. Too often, the big ones benefit from the facilities available to the detriment of the most vulnerable ones. Help farmers to trust our institutions again and go towards them instead of waiting for them to come.”

At a personal level, Shemida wants to promote the agricultural sector, bring innovation and modernity with the help of the government, NGOs and the public in general, hence helping the population to know and value the importance of agriculture for our country. “Pests and diseases are a major issue when producing vegetables and fruits. Instead of just criticising farmers for using chemicals and passing down rules and regulations for them to abide by, we need to help them in a more friendly way to change and adopt organic farming.” 

Amarjeet Beegoo : “I want to make a name for myself in this sector”

An LLB graduate, Amarjeet decided to join the family business of agriculture. He started sustainable agriculture in 2012 after following a course in 2008. He chose this sector as he was able to finance his studies due to agriculture. He highlights that this sector is full of challenges and risks. “At the start, I faced a tragedy. I lost my house and land due to heavy losses. However, I did not lose hope and will power. I came back with force and got everything back again because of agriculture.”

In order to grow in this sector, Amarjeet followed some training at the University of Mauritius. He even went to America in 2011 for advanced training on field production. In India, he followed a course on Zero budget farming. “In 2012, I took the challenge of developing my own farming protocol and became more stable. Now I can say I earn a decent living through farming. I want to make a name for myself in this sector.”

From his experiences, he has learned a lot and he advises young people willing to join this sector not to opt for conventional farming. “We should aim to be an agro-entrepreneur nation and think of growth. We should include the latest technology and involve monitoring. Many young people do not want to get into this field because they prefer to sit in an office. But they are ignorant that with agriculture, they can earn a lot more.”

To be able to refurbish this sector, he proposes the following measures: re-engineering of the sector, SWOT analysis, mentoring and sustainable development.