Godrej Agrovet launches Samadhan, a one-stop solution center for oil palm farmers

Mumbai, January 21, 2023:  Godrej Agrovet’s Oil Palm business has introduced a ground-breaking initiative called Samadhan, a one stop solution centre that would provide a comprehensive package of knowledge, tools, services and solutions to oil palm farmers. ‘Samadhan’ aims to be a critical enabler in Palm Oil industry and assist oil palm farmers in optimising their yields by adopting latest agricultural techniques and boosting their productivity. With the focus to provide knowledge and access to contemporary technologies, ’Samadhan’ will enable famers to make informed decisions about venturing into oil palm cultivation thereby enabling sustained growth in their income.

Since the launch of National Mission on Edible Oil – Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), in August 2021, Godrej Agrovet Ltd., a diversified agri-business company and a pioneer in the Oil Palm sector in India, had established a goal to add 60,000 hectares of additional oil palm plantations over the course of the next five years to support the long-term sustainable development of oil palm in India. The company has developed Samadhan in order to achieve this goal.

Each Samadhan center intends to support the planting of ~2,000 hectares of oil palm and help farmers achieve a sustained productivity in mature gardens through the use of modern agricultural technologies and expert advice. Through this initiative, Godrej Agrovet Ltd. plans to share global best practices with the Indian oil palm farmers, and help the farmers to adopt these practices across geographies. It will also help to support farmers to avail developmental finance, Government subsidies/schemes & other benefits.

Speaking about the initiative Mr. Balram Singh Yadav, Managing Director, Godrej Agrovet Limited said, “With more than thirty years of experience in the oil palm business, we have been working with and educating farmers on sustainable palm oil plantation processes. With the help of Samadhan, we hope to provide solution for industry’s expansion and prosperity. We are aiming to provide a variety of resources, services, professional guidance and latest technologies to these palm oil farmers. We have recently opened two centers each in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, and by March 2023, we intend to expand it. By 2027, we plan to establish 50 more centers similar to these.

The National Mission on Edible Oil – Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) has generated a new sense of excitement and momentum in the oil palm industry since its launch in August 2021. The program is a landmark initiative from the Indian government that aims to promote the long-term sustainable development of oil palm and provide additional support to new farmers, particularly in the Northeast region, to help them overcome the challenges of starting a new farm. The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare has set a goal to cultivate 1,000,000 hectares of oil palm by 2027 under the NMEO-OP scheme. The program’s introduction of the Viability Gap Payment (VGP) for long term sustainable development and increased incentives for new farmers are two key features that make it unique and supportive of the industry.