Mounting Debt, 60% rate of Suicide Among Poor Rural Farmers Ignites Kalyani’s Mission 

When India was riding the wave of pesticides, rural farms were shielded and continued to farm organically and sustainably. But around the 1980s, farmers in rural areas were inundated with marketing messages from big pesticide companies, and the rest is history.

I come from a state in India that has seen more than a 60% suicide rate among farmers. The reason is the debt that the farmers cannot pay off because they are stuck in the vicious cycle of buying expensive pesticides and not having enough harvest.

I have seen my cousins scramble to let go of harmful chemicals and try to go back to sustainable farming. But to do so without help has been challenging, and I see the same challenges here, in the U.S.

The generational wisdom passed down for centuries is being destroyed by the big food and pesticide companies, and along with it, the abundance and diversity we used to have in our food and even our healthy lifestyles.

I grew up with access to fresh, local, food. I have been handed down my ancestral food wisdom, for which I am grateful. Yet I see cheap food products being marketed to the vulnerable population–children, people living on food stamps–and it infuriates me. I see the food injustice, and I feel outraged. So, I have dedicated myself to helping build those local food systems.