The maiden voyage of Frontier’s Well Earth program took three members of our staff around the world to the outskirts of Bangalore, one of India’s largest cities. Our delegation met with small farmers fighting back against urban sprawl, huge commercial farms and desperate economic situations with sustainable, biodynamic farming and high quality organic products.
Our goal was to develop a new source of high quality vanilla extract. We helped the group find processing expertise and provided quality testing and information through our own Quality Assurance department. In keeping with Well Earth goals, our efforts simultaneously provide a source for a top quality organic product and support social values.
These farmers, while not technically a co-op, work together to share information and resources in a way that is in keeping with co-op principles and practices. They pay more than three times the average rate for sorting vanilla beans, and the workers are treated respectfully. The workforce is predominantly female—which is almost unheard of in India. They practice ethical harvesting and biodynamic agriculture—their farms are not only sustainable, but are also self-contained, producing all needed resources through a careful balancing of activities. The farmers are also part of a larger, non-profit charity that feeds 100,000 kids a day throughout India.
Our staff met personally with many of the farmers living and working on their farms of 1 to 2 hectares (2.5 to 5 acres). The farmers are enthusiastic about the opportunities we’re offering, not only because of the financial benefits, but also because the program supports the traditional values of small, sustainable farms maintained by families.
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