We, the people of Urban India are always busy with our tough schedules, hectic headlines and deadly deadlines. In this sandwiched position of professional and personal life we often tend to neglect our own selves. We often forget to smile, we often forget to behold the nature, we often forget to rejuvenate ourselves by releasing our stress, and thus we are leaving the peace of mind and serenity of soul behind the concrete claustrophobic walls of corporate life. After the thrashing intruding of this gigantic pandemic, we completely understood the value of good eating and good habits for maintaining health and wellbeing.

Now we know that quality of food or any products that we are consuming plays a pivotal role, and that’s the point where organic food, organic farming, and herbal & ayurvedic products have started gaining importance and they are riding up the ladder of success by skyrocketing their sale. In this social media driven decade where people believe social media influencers more than their parents or friends, the new concept of organic food is burgeoning at a potential pace. Organic food products are minimally processed and it should always follow the food safety authority, certified processes or operations.

It follows few legal restrictions and take needful steps to make sure that the ingredients used are not contaminated. Organic foods are said to be organic when it is non-GMO, having no artificial colors or flavors and having no artificial preservatives. Organic foods are way too healthier, tastier, eco-friendly but they are little heavy on the pockets, when it is compared to the conventional inorganic food products.

Why organic food products are little costly?

1. Organic Farming is Labor Intensive: Using chemical fertilizers and pesticides makes it easier to grow the crops very easily and in large quantity. On the other hand, organic farming needs special care to grow the crops and also it is not high yielding like conventional ones. So, it needs round the clock surveillance and pest control so that the crops result into a good harvest. Starting from sowing the seeds till harvesting and storing, it requires a good amount of time and labor and thus it is labor intensive.

2. A Huge Gap between Demand & Supply: Only 0.9 percent of the world’s farmlands are used for organic farming. Besides, it needs a lengthy process of crop rotation, quality maintenance and also, they are not high yielding like conventional products. For pest control the organic farmers rely on natural repellants like neem juice, which is not that much effective like chemical pesticides. So, supply is lesser than its demand and inevitably it is expensive.

3. Special License & Certification Needed: To open an organic farm and commercially produce food products, the company needs a specific certification and license. From land and soil, equipment to processes all are needed to be checked thoroughly. Organic livestock farm, storage, maintenance till shipping, it consumes a greater cost than inorganic one. Further, the inclusion of special license and certifications are increasing the cost of the products eventually. The pioneer authority of the Indian food security is FSSAI (Food Safety and Standard Authority) which is an organization under Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. Few of the certifications are Agmark, ISO, Halal Certification, Kosher Certification, Non-GMO certification, Plant based certification and many more. These certifications are costlier than conventional commercial food production.

4. Marketing & Promotion: Marketing and the distribution chain for organic products is relatively inefficient and costs are higher because of relatively small volumes. Branding and marketing channels used for promotion demand for extra pennies and as a result the products get costlier. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube or Twitter are being used and social media influencers are being hired to promote their products to the vast mass of people. Organic India, Organic tattva, 24 Mantra Organic and Nutrifresh are few of the startups which are using social media and B2C and D2C channels to scaling-up their sale.

5. Post-harvest Processing: Organic food and crops take much time to grow and it demands a careful handling after the harvesting of the crops. Storing of crops are also costlier than inorganic crops because organic crops are chemically tested and preservatives free so it gets easily spoiled.

When wheat is ripening properly, when the wind is blowing across the field, you can hear the beards of the wheat rubbing together. They sound like the pine needles in a forest. It is a sweet, whispering music that once you hear, you never forget ~Norman Borlaug (Father of Green Revolution)

Organic Food Business Ideas

1. Organic Farming: Starting your own farm is the best idea to kickstart your business by introducing local, fresh organic food products to your customers. If your farm gets all the needful certifications from the government, it will also get few subsidies and incentives for organic farming. Besides your organic farm you can also start organic kitchen garden. In major metro cities like Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, and Mumbai this idea will fetch a good amount of profit. The global organic farming market will grow from $169.04 billion in 2022 to $187.84 billion in 2023 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.1 percent, and it is expected to grow to $287.83 billion in 2027 at a CAGR of 11.3 percent.

2. Organic Food & Beverage Outlet: Starting a café or restaurant and serving organic, farm fresh food products is indeed a good startup plan for the coming years. If you start an organic kitchen garden, where you can grow vegetables, fruits and beverages as per your requirement, you can easily get your raw-materials very easily and cost-effectively. Today’s health-conscious youth is very much inclined to organic food items and farm fresh juices which are sugar-free and gluten-free. The global organic food market size was valued at $178.4 billion in 2021 and is expected to be worth around $497.3 billion by 2030, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.06 percent during the forecast period 2022 to 2030.

3. Organic Fertilizer: Everybody wants to earn profits but if the profits come from such products which are denied and negligible, then nothing like it. The kitchen waste like meat scraping, vegetable peels, or other wet waste can be used as the core ingredient of composting to make organic fertilizer. The global organic fertilizer market was valued $8.3billion in 2020 and it is anticipated to generate $15.9 billion by 2030 with a CAGR of 5.9 percent from 2021-2030.

4. Organic & Ayurvedic Medicine & Health Supplements Producer: Ayurveda is the oldest book of India having theories of natural medicinal remedies and health supplements. Using those theories and growing these herbs and spices and other ingredients in your farm and then making health supplements and medicines out of it is quite popular, profitable and cost-effective business. The Indian ayurvedic products market size reached Rs.626 billion in 2022. Looking forward, the publisher expects the market to reach Rs.1,824 billion by 2028, exhibiting a CAGR of 19.51 percent during 2022-2028. According to Statistics India, 245 stores have been opened in India which are working with organic dietary supplements. The dietary supplements market in India is valued at $3924.44 million in 2020 and reports say that it will reach $10,198.57 million by 2026 that is 22 percent growth rate year-on-year. Famous brands Patanjali, Himalaya are selling herbal medicines and health supplements and in last couple of years their sale has been doubled.

5. Organic Beauty & Self-grooming Products: By now, the widespread of internet made all the people aware about the harmful effects of chemical-based beauty and personal care products, and side-by-side people also understood the importance of organic and herbal beauty and self-grooming products. These products can be made very easily following few footsteps and using very few ingredients at its right quantity. These kind of startup needs very less capital to start but the profit is very high. Renowned brand Mamaearth has started with organic skin care products brand and became so popular that they have recently introduced their cosmetics range. Now this company has touched 51-million-dollar turnover and entered the unicorn club on last December. The company recently posted a net profit of Rs.19.8 Cr on a standalone basis in FY22 as against a net loss of Rs.1,332.2 Cr in FY21.

6. Organic Mushroom Farm: Mushroom is quite popular food worldwide having different cooking styles and ingredients. It is very easy to grow mushroom organically and also it is quite cost-effective. It grows very quickly and it earns a good market price globally. The global mushroom market is projected to grow from 15.25 million tons in 2021 to 24.05 million tons in 2028 at a CAGR of 6.74 percent in forecast period.

Future Forecast of Organic Food Business: People forgot the taste of organic food after this advancement and progressive journey of science and technology. With advancement of different equipment and techniques farmers are not at all using organic farming tactics as the previous one is fetching double profit to them. From few recent studies and research by numerous health organizations we came to know about the ill-effects of hybrid and chemical farming. The organic food market in India is estimated to jump to $1.36 billion by 2020. This will still account for less than 0.5 percent of the total agriculture market size of India. If more people will come forward and undergo these methods then only the prices will come down and the country will taste farm fresh food sitting inside urban concrete walls.