Discovering Cardamom as a livelihood Option: A tale of Green Salakpur

by Sony KC

In the past one decade, Salakpur village of Jirmale Village Development Committee (VDC) in Ilam district has gained its popularity due to a new species of cardamom farming. The species of cardamom is well known as Salakpurey Alainchi, thus giving a trademark to this village. Every agriculturist and cardamom farmers and experts blindly mention Salakpur as a top cardamom-producing village in Ilam. The popularity has spread widely across Nepal, since farmers from many districts including Kathmandu, Gorkha, Dhading, Dolakha, Dang and many others buy cardamom saplings from nurseries in Salakpur. 

A view of Mirik, India across Mechi River from Salakpur’s cardamom farm

Apart from this, there were other species of cardamom such as, Bharlang, Chibesai, Ramsai, Golchai, farmed in Nepal since the 19^th century. However, these species became extinct due to disease. Today, Salakpurey cardamom is the main species of cardamom farmed in Ilam and other districts.

The tale of farming and practice in Salakpur was not the same ten years back. Salakpur used to be a village prominent for ginger and oranges production and export. Overall, Jirmale VDC used to be the number one producer of ginger for export. Besides, households also produced rice for subsistence use. The agriculture and production fate of this village changed when disease infestation in ginger became uncontrollable and inevitable. Farmers lost their ginger to disease, despite efforts to save it and quickly adopted alternative measures, mainly cardamom farming. 

Raw cardamom before drying, Salakpur

The actual story of how farmers in Salakpur managed to plant and flourish this species of cardamom is unknown. However, reflection from farmers reveals, while the battle with disease in ginger was on, few farmers who went to India [across Jirmale VDC is Darjeeling and Mirik, India] for a visit unknowingly brought saplings of cardamom. Since then almost every households in Salakpur are engaged in cardamom farming for livelihoods. Besides cardamom, farmers still produce and export oranges as a major fruit-crop.

While in one hand farmers took cardamom farming as an alternative to disease inflicted ginger farms, one the other hand they voluntarily replaced some crops. For instance, farmers shared about replacing rice fields with cardamom farms. While rice required excessive water for farming, cardamom requires less water. Also, the return from rice was very low compared to the high return from cardamom. When farmers could buy more rice by selling less cardamom, they chose cardamom over rice farming for better income source. This can be proved with the reported fact that 1 kg of rice would cost Rs 300 while 1 kg of cardamom would cost Rs 2000 and above.

“What could I do producing rice? It would only be enough to feed the household members. I can produce cardamom and not only buy rice but also oil, salt, clothes and meet other household expenses. Rice is rice but cardamom is more than only rice,” replied a cardamom farmer when asked why she replaced her rice farm with cardamom farm. 

Aama (mother) separates cardamom from flowers – harvest season in Salakpur

Overall, the return from cardamom seems to be more satisfying for the farmers than any other crops, in terms of livelihood. Farmers in Salakpur only wish to save this crop for long term. A cardamom cooperative was established three years ago in Salakpur with an aim to strengthen and sustain cardamom production. “Though much needs to be done to run this cooperative actively, we are glad we have initiated one at least,” reported the president of this cardamom cooperative. At present the cooperative functions by encouraging members to save along with provision of credit and loans for cardamom farming purpose. Farmers wish to gain more help from the cooperatives in terms of transport of goods to the market and skilled trainings for farms, when required.       

Striving for value addition on commercial potato in Rwanda: the experience of a woman cooperative leader in Northern Province

by Christine Bigler and Chantal Ingabire

The Northern Province of Rwanda is an agriculture high potential region.  The transformation from a subsistence to market oriented agriculture production is in full swing.  One driver of this transformation is agriculture cooperatives. The government of Rwanda support actively cooperatives with agriculture trainings, seed and fertilizer at a reduced price. This intervention helps cooperative members to make the step from home consumption to consumer oriented production. Chantal Mukeshimana is one of few top leaders of farmers ‘cooperatives in the region.  She is the president of  Coabiki  and really proud of herself and her cooperative.  At the moment Coabiki counts 86 members and they cultivate together 60 hectares of land. As she testified, the cooperative has seen a considerable growth in Irish potato production during the last years..  They expanded their potato sales in the capital city of Rwanda but particularly they identified a niche market in some  big supermarkets of the city.

  

Irish potato field, Northern Province 

For the latter, Coabiki members under the leadership of Ms.Mukeshimana came up with an innovation of cleaning and packaging potato.  Hence  with technical support of some NGOs and government institutions,  they have started to wash and pack their harvested  potatoes in local hand-made basket  which was making them even more attractive to  consumers. . With this added value, the cooperative has the possibility to sell the potatoes for a good price to different supermarkets in Kigali. Unfortunately, the market demand for washed potatoes is still small at the moment and  only a part of the crop production is sold to this decent price “ However, Ms.Mukeshimana and the cooperative members  are confident with the development of agriculture in their area and they are convinced that  value addition is one strategy to get more profit. At the moment the cooperative save money to buy a truck. The wish of the cooperative is, to transport the potatoes themselves to the selling point. With this step they hope to gain more accesses to the market and additional market information. 

At work, cooperative members are cultivating Irish potatoes, Northern Province Rwanda

Irish potatoes, Northern Province Rwanda

Journey to the “Care-some” Cardamom Land: Identifying Roles

by Sony KC

Cardamom field in Pyang VDC, Ilam. Sony KC.

My luck has always favored my intrinsic liking for unraveling the paths never trodden. From the beginning to Mid-March I conquered the picturesque Ilam district of Eastern Nepal. This time I travelled for my Phd research to understand men and women’s involvement in the cardamom farming, a cash crop that was brought into farming practice in Ilam from Sikkim, India by Nepali farmers centuries back.

The 20 hours of bus ride was intense yet the entire journey myriad of thoughts occupied my mind. I started questioning myself, what I would do to obtain the information I need, what Village Development Committees would I travel and how would I get hold of them, who do I reach first despite having a list of numerous stakeholders and their numbers with me. The twenty hours was more than enough to think, doze off to sleep and time and again distracted by hoarse voice for refreshment several times and finally for the destination stop, that is 10 am at Fikkal VDC.

In the verge of finding areas with high concentration of cardamom producers, I set my foot to few wards of Fikkal, Pyang, Chameta, Naya Bazaar and Jirmale VDCs of Ilam. Of all these visits and information I acquired in two weeks through my interaction with men and women farmers of cardamom what amused me was the mention of roles and the reason for the gendered roles of this cash crop.

In order to grow cardamom the land is prepared by both men and women and so is the plantation. Cardamom requires irrigation and hence, mostly men do this if they have to irrigate huge mass of land. If the crop is grown in small farm, women water the plants using water sprinkle. As the fruit grows and is ready for harvest, men usually pick the fruit (which has the flower outside) because it requires much labour and the use of a special kind of knife. Few men reported that one has to be careful while cutting the flower consisting of the fruit. “There is a chance of ruining the whole plant if the knife touches the other stem,” said one respondent. One stem is flocked with other stems (6-7 stems flocked as one) bearing the fruit. Very few women are engaged in picking.

Cardamom plant about to bear flowers. Sony KC.

After picking, the flower with cardamom inside, it is then separated by women. This is said to be an easy job, as it requires sitting in one place and using two hands to separate the fruit from the flower. The raw cardamom is then ready to be put in the dryer. From the reports, men mostly perform this job. This is because it requires filling in the doko (basket made of bamboo), carrying it to the dryer and then bearing the smoke that is crucial to dry cardamom. After drying the product is ready to be sold in the market, which is collected by male marketers or taken by men in the households to the nearby market, mostly Birtamod. This is where the actual trading takes place.

Cardamom as a product ready to be sold at the market, Chameta VDC. Sony KC.

When inquired in-depth about why the roles are set as they are, many men reflected, they do not want women to hurt their backs while carrying the load when they produce a lot of cardamom in the households. Also, there were responses, few mixed with humor, from men such as “smoke is not good for women; it will harm their chest”; “how can I let her carry the doko full of cardamom when I am there to do so. She helps with separation of cardamom from the flowers”; “she can go to the market but she is not willing to take the responsibility, one has to sell it and I do it,” “using a knife and cutting the fruit can be done by women but I don’t let her with the fear that she might cut her hands, who will cook me good food then?.”

Few women reflected, “both men and women can do any work related to cardamom together, but we have been doing what our ancestors have been practicing, my grandmother did the separation and so am I, I believe it is more of a tradition”; “my husband does not let me cut the fruits because he says I will hurt myself, he cares or may be he thinks I will ruin the plant; “he is good at marketing, I do not like to go to the market and sell, he can do it better”; “he tells me not to go near the dryer since the smoke will affect me, it affects him too and I try to help but he drives me away.”

The farming has its own beauty, structured roles that could seldom fluctuate but has remained the same for years. Though I could not get to see the actual process of harvesting, picking and selling that takes place between August and November of every year, the interaction gave a picture of the roles taken up by men and women. What can be inferred bluntly at this moment, through interactions is that the roles are taken up by choice and the already set tradition from the past. A lot of care has been emphasized from men to women especially while men take up with roles such as carrying the load for dryer, picking the flower and irrigating the land. There is no notion of women not being able to do any of the works done by men for this crop, but the care that reflects within the households and the entire cardamom land.

This makes me think, for now, since there is more to uncover in the coming days, that may be it is the care shown by men for women.

Field work in Laos

By Maliphone 

The primary data survey of the project we did web search, field visit, and interview. In the Vientiane Capital, we went to Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Ministry of Industry and Commerce. Actually we planted to interview staff in the Ministry of Social welfare to get some information about labor but there was no confirm for the interview yet.  In Champasak Province is in the southern part of Laos. We  went to Paksong and Bachieng district where the plantation of coffee and rubber.  We interviewed the deputy head of department of industry and commerce, Champasak Province.

Between 2-5/10/2014 We also interviewed the deputy head of industry and commerce district to get some overview of Pakxong district. This time we had Christop and Stephanie joining our field trip. We went to visit Dao-Hueng coffee plantation garden in Pakxong, dropped by Rubber and Cassava plantation garden in Bachieng district. 

Meeting with stakeholder, Laos

Rubber plantation, Bachieng district, Laos

Department of Industry and Commerce, Pakxong district, Laos

Coffee tree, Pakxong district, Laos

Coffee plantation, Dao Industry, Pakxong district, Laos

Coffee plantation, home garden, Pakxong district, Laos

Hola, Sabaidee, Namaste, Muraho, Hello !

Welcome to the FATE blog, here we would like to share our project through field experiences and pictures. We hope you will enjoy the visit!

Coffee tree, Champasak province, South of Laos