Sujoy Chatterjee

Through his work in development cooperation, Sujoy Chatterjee has travelled to many different regions in Africa and India. During his travels, he met many small farmers who were living in extremely difficult circumstances and often had to struggle with overwhelming debt. One of the maain causes of this development in India is the so-called ‘Green Revolution’, which is forcing smallholder farmers to use more and more expensive chemicals for their genetically modified crops.

At the same time, he discovered an astonishing variety of traditional rice varieties in areas just 100 kilometres from his home town of Kolkata. Most of them were virtually unknown in the city, as they were maintained by female farmers in small fields.

To support these farmers, Sujoy and his non-profit consultancy Soceo developed sustainable approaches that combine positive social and ecological development. This enables small-scale producers to earn a better income while contributing to an intact natural environment and a sustainable world.

Soceo cooperates with various organisations in West Bengal (India) to support female smallholder farmers in their switch towards organic farming. The aim is to incentivise these women to produce in an environmentally friendly way while receiving fair prices for their products. To this end, Soceo is working on several levers, from training in effective organic farming and training in high-yield processing of the produce to creating direct market access for the women farmers.

To create a better future and a more sustainable world with expertise, joy and purpose.

Soceo pursues a holistic approach to support smallholder farmers in their sustainable transition to organic farming. The approach includes components such as production planning, targeted training, continuous support and business stabilisation.

It is based on the following five pillars:

(1) Selection of suitable plants and cultivation methods tailored to the needs of environmentally conscious consumers

(2) Training in the processing of products to create added value

(3) Comprehensive quality training to ensure the products are purchased at a fair price

(4) Business development training to better understand market dynamics and identify the right buyers

(5) Introduction of robust revenue systems and basic financial evaluation models to track performance and identify growth opportunities in the market.

The initiative targets 1,800 female smallholder farmers in three strategically selected areas of West Bengal with high potential for the development and processing of fair agricultural products.