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Stevia cultivation catching up with farmers in Uttar Pradesh
Though not as popular as in states like Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana, stevia farming is picking up in UP. The crop has a growing market, as more and more health conscious people are shunning white sugar and looking for organic alternatives.
Ram Bahadur Yadav, 48, a resident of Chhaprey village in Sultanpur district of Uttar Pradesh, was a dejected man about a decade ago. He had been unable to crack the civil services entrance examination and was struggling to find a rewarding job. But today he is one of the farmers engaged in stevia farming in the state and prospering from it.
“I was unable to decide what sort of a job I should take up to lead a rewarding and respectable life. Then one day, I met an agriculture scientist who advised me to go for stevia cultivation,” said Ram Bahadur.
Speaking to Hindustan Times over phone, he said, “He said I should start growing stevia in my farms and it would more than compensate for any monetary loss I might have suffered. Acting on his advice, I began stevia cultivation in 2012 and have not looked back since then.”
Ram Bahadur grows stevia on five acres of land, earning a net income of around ₹2 lakh per acre, per crop. The plant is intensely sweet and has a natural calorie-free extract that is used as an organic sweetener.
“Its herbs get ready for harvesting in three months. This way, I get three to four crops every year,” he said.
The farmer said it was due to this income that he could fund the education of his three sons. “They are all well settled. We also have our own house now,” he said.
New avenue
Stevia cultivation appears to be opening up a new avenue for crop diversification in Uttar Pradesh -- a state that has traditionally been known for sugar production. Several enterprising farmers are experimenting with stevia, which is considered a viable alternative to sugar.
Though not as popular as in states like Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana, stevia farming is picking up in UP. The crop has a growing market, as more and more health conscious people are shunning white sugar and looking for organic alternatives.
Director, horticulture, SB Sharma said, “Worldwide, there is a growing demand for organic sweeteners, including those made from stevia extract, as the number of diabetics is increasing fast. This has opened up opportunities for farmers in UP too.”
He said stevia was already being cultivated in several districts -- although by a limited number of farmers.
“We know at least two farmers in Meerut, one in Sultanpur, six in Barabanki, 12 in Lakhimpur Kheri, and five each in Sitapur and Bulandshahr. They are growing stevia on an area of more than 30 acres in UP,” he said, adding that the number could be much higher. “We do not have a record of all stevia growers,” he said.
Going by what farmer Ram Bahadur shared with HT, the total cultivation area could be much larger than 30 acres. “Stevia, which is 300 to 400 times sweeter than sugarcane, is being grown on at least 50 acres in Bithoor, Kanpur alone,” he claimed.
Lack of awareness a hindrance
Vinay Kumar Shukla, an MBA pass-out and resident of Karnamipur village in Sultanpur, said he had to stop stevia cultivation about six years back when the demand declined following rumours that it contained a carcinogenic substance.
“I switched to medicinal plants and since then have been unable to gather the courage to restart stevia cultivation, although I still feel that it’s good crop,” he said.
While many farmers agree that stevia is more lucrative than sugarcane, they say that a lack of awareness, training and marketing facilities was hampering its cultivation in UP.
Rahul of Shahpur Roheta village of Meerut district, who has been growing stevia since 2014, said, “It has the potential to replace sugarcane as a viable alternative in UP. However, it needs a much-needed push from the government.”
Elaborating further, he said, “Stevia is a fantastic short duration cash crop and seems to have a bright future considering how the demand for white sugar is declining all over the world. But in UP, the problem is that farmers do not get the right price due to lack of awareness and marketing channels.”
Expressing a similar concern, Ram Bahadur said he had been supplying stevia leaves to a trader in Lucknow at a (comparatively lower) rate of ₹150 / kg. “However, from this year on, I have decided to supply the product directly to mills in Himachal Pradesh, which will fetch me a better price (expected to be over ₹300 / kg),” he said.
He also said that the state should set up plants to convert stevia extract into organic sweeteners. “This will help growers get an even better price for their produce,” said Ram Bahadur.
