LT Foods Inks MoU with ICAR-NCIPM to Train 10,000 Farmers

NEW DELHI:
LT Foods, the 70-year-old Indian-origin global FMCG Company in the consumer food space, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) – National Research Centre for Integrated Pest Management (NCIPM), to train 10,000 farmers in the country on Sustainable Farming Practices.

The move is a part of LT Foods’ larger ESG goals to train 50,000 farmers on Sustainable Farming Practices by 2025. LT Foods has already trained c.20,000 farmers under its Sustainable Rice Production (SRP) programme. The programme aims to bridge the gap between conventional and sustainable rice production through Integrated Crop Management.

With its latest collaboration with ICAR-NCIPM, the total number of farmers trained by LT Foods will reach c.30,000 by the end of the year. ICAR-NCIPM is an apex body for coordinating, guiding, and managing research and education in Integrated Pest Management. As per the
MoU with ICAR-NCIPM, the training would be provided to farmers in the States of Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh (U.P.) and Madhya Pradesh (M.P.).

The farmers will be educated and guided on the optimum use of resources like water, pesticides, fertilizers etc., so as to keep the agricultural process regenerative and support the ESG goals of reducing Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions and water consumption. ICAR-NCIPM will prepare literature related to Integrated Crop Management (ICM) in Rice as a component of Sustainable Rice Production (SRP) and provide consultancy in managing key pests and diseases in rice through ICM. It will also help in the dissemination of rice-ICM technology as a component of SRP to farmers through field schools and training.

Speaking on the occasion, Monika C. Jaggia, Vice President – Finance & Strategy, LT Foods, said, “At LT Foods, our foremost priority is to integrate sustainability across our operations. We firmly believe that the well-being and prosperity of farmers – an important stakeholder in our value chain, are intrinsically linked to the preservation of the environment.

By prioritizing sustainable practices, we are not only enhancing the economic viability of our farmers but also upholding our collective responsibility to protect and conserve the planet’s precious natural resources. Our collaboration with ICAR-NCIPM is an incremental effort to
step up the effort and promote sustainable farming practices in the country.”

Sharing his views, Kevin Parker, Advisor, Farmer Connect Programme, LT Foods, said, “We, at LT Foods, have been providing training to farmers on
Sustainable Farming Practices for long in Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. To date, we have trained c.20,000 farmers. We are now committed to scaling up our efforts and taking it to the next level. Aligned with our ESG goals, we are delighted to collaborate with ICAR-NCIPM to train 10,000 more farmers.”

Dr. Mukesh Sehgal, Principal Scientist and PI, ICAR-NCIPM, for the Project, said, “This partnership reflects our shared commitment to enhancing agricultural practices, promoting environmental stewardship, and securing a prosperous future for both farmers.” Dr. Subhash Chander, Director, ICAR-NCIPM said, “We are glad to collaborate with LT Foods towards a momentous step of equipping our farming communities with the knowledge and tools they need to transition to sustainable farming practices.”