The India Ag Scene

The past year has been tough for Indian farmers, and the hits just keep coming. New farm laws. Protests. The pandemic. Low rice exports. Fertilizer price increases. Some context: Mid-March marked four months since farmers have been protesting new farm laws that they believe will allow corporate interests to take advantage of them. Their fear? The eventual elimination of subsidies that have been critical to Indian farmers making ends meet and helped India grow enough food for their 1+ billion population. So to commemorate the continuation of the protests, farmers decided to picnic on India’s train tracks, blocking and delaying over 50 passenger and commodity-filled trains. And as if battling their own government wasn’t enough, farmers were dealt new blows last week as:

• Currency woes led to a 20%+ drop in rice export prices.

• Fertilizer companies raised prices by ⅓ to offset global potash and phosphate price even though the Indian government said, “Not now.”