PARTICIPATORY COTTON BREEDING AND CULTIVAR EVALUATION FOR ORGANIC SMALLHOLDERS IN INDIA

Summary

Stakeholders of the organic movement are highly concerned about this development in the cotton sector in India. Organic farming can only present a viable alternative to conventional production if farmers have access to suitable cultivars. A national workshop on 'Disappearing non-GM cotton – ways forward to maintain diversity, increase availability, and ensure quality of non-GM cotton seed' initiated by bioRe, the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL Switzerland) and the University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS) Dharwad presents the first agreement (Dharwad Declaration) towards safeguarding the heritage of Indian Desi cotton, maintaining genetic diversity, avoiding GM contamination as well as supporting the organic farmers with suitable cultivars. The activities on participatory cotton breeding for organic and low input farming is the first step of implementation towards the goals set in the Dharwad Declaration in June 2011. The Cotton Cultivar Evaluation Project started in 2011 with systematic evaluation of available non GM cultivars and is focusing on the fast identification of suitable cultivars and the reestablishment of a cotton seed supply chain under control of the farmers to safeguard the organic cotton production. This is urgently needed, as GM free cotton seeds completely vanished from the market. The Green Cotton Project is a long term project aiming for developing new cotton cultivars, that are specifically suited for organic farming. Here the focus is on networking, capacity building, training farmers in cross breeding and single plant selection. In collaboration with the University of Agricultural Science Dharwad and Chetna organic it starts with new crosses that are selected under local conditions and has a special focus on the original desi cotton species. The aim is the establishment of decentralized participatory cotton breeding programs that will allow the improvement of organic cotton in the future.