Integrated Farming: An Approach to Boost Family Farming
Gopal Patel 1and Dr.Komal Chandraker 2
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3rd year B.V.Sc .& A.H
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Part time teacher, Department of Vety &A.H Extension Education
College of vety. Science & A.H , Anjora, Durg.
The integrated farming system is a commonly used term to explain a more integrated approach to farming compared to monoculture approaches. It refers to agricultural systems that integrate livestock and crop production or integrate fish and livestock and may sometimes be known as integrated bio systems. In this system, an inter-related set of enterprises is used so that the “waste” from one component becomes an input for another part of the system. This reduces costs and improves production and/or income. Since it utilizes waste as a resource, farmers not only eliminate waste but they also ensure an overall increase in productivity for the whole farming system.
Livestock based integrated farming system provides an opportunity of increasing economic yield per unit area per unit time to small and marginal farmers. In this system, waste materials are effectively recycled by linking appropriate components. Thus,minimize the environment pollution.Recycling of product, byproducts and waste material in integrated farming system are the factors responsible for the sustainability of farming system. Due to integration of different livestock components with crops, production of eggs, meat and milk provide nutritional security and income generation round the year to the farmers. Combining crop with livestock enterprises would increase the labour requirement significantly and helps in reducing the problems of under employment to a great extent. IFS provide enough scope to engage family labour round the year. The nutritional security, natural resource management and environment protection are the major concern for sustainable agriculture. Integration of livestock is the way forward to promote proper utilization of available resources and environment protection for economic growth. Integrated farming system diversifies farm production, increase the income, improve nutritional security and promote nutrient recycling.Integrated farming tries to imitate nature’s principle, where not only crops but also varied types of plants, animals, birds, fish, and other aquatic flora and fauna are utilized for production. The basic principle is to enhance the ecological diversity .
1.INTEGRATED FISH CUM POULTRY FARMING
In this system fish farming is integrated with poultry farming where poultry droppings or deep litter materials are utilized by fish as feed materials. In India, this system of freshwater fish culture has assumed greater significance in view of its potential role in recycling of organic wastes and in integrated rural development. Advantages of fish cum poultry farming:
- Save fertilizer cost.
- Save supplementary feed cost (account 60%).
- Chicken get its required quantity of water from the fish pond
- From the same places at the same time chicken meat, eggs and the fish can be produced.
This integrated farming of fish cum poultry has two practices-
- Fish culture practice
Poultry farming practice
INTEGRATED FISH CUM POULTRY FARMING
2. PADDY CUM FISH CULTURE
Paddy Cum Fish Culture (PFC) is the integration of fish farming with paddy. This system is profitable and sustainable, as two crops i.e. paddy and fish can be harvested from a unit cultivable area. The wet terrace rice fields where surface and ground water is sufficiently available can be utilized for development of PFC.The adoption of PFC will open avenues for self-employment, supplement the income of the agriculture farmers and enhance fish production in the State.
Advantage:
- Fuller utilization of available resources, readily available paddy fields can be utilized.
- Serves as an off season occupation for farmer.
- Fish serves as an excellent agent for integrated Pest Management(IPM).
- Fish culture increase soil productivity and boost the production of paddy.
- Boost productivity and income from unit area
- Reduction in fish production cost
3. SMALL RUMINANTS CUM CROP CUM HORTICULTURE BASED FARMING SYSTEM
Small ruminants play a vital role in the economy of small, marginal and landless farmers in the country. Integration of these enterprises can increase the total productivity, maintain ecological balance and economic sustainability. Small ruminants based integrated farming system will also provide income to the farmers, helps in improving the soil fertility, weeds will be utilized as fodder by goat and incidences of diseases in crop will be minimized. The integration of Crop+Fruit trees+ Goat resulted in a considerable increase in income of small and marginal farmers. Small ruminants can directly graze fodder tree/shrubs. Thus, this system will save labors. The grazing periods for small ruminants in this system is of 1-2 weeks,followed by recuperation periods for 3-6 weeks. Horticulture plantation will be place for movement of small ruminants under this system and boundary plantation will provide fodder to the small ruminants during lean period. Horticulture trees will provide high quality leaf fodder for small ruminants and fruits for income generation.
4. LIVESTOCK CUM CROP CUM BACKYARD POULTRY
Backyard poultry plays a significant role in rural people’s life for generating income and nutritional security of the family .Integration of livestock+ crop farming with backyard poultry farming will improve the nutritional security as well as increase the income of farmers. Backyard livestock comprising of sheep, goats, pigs and poultry provide emergency sources of income for family.Bird scavenges on the undigested grains in dung as well as the threshing wastes in the fields. Backyard poultry also predates the insect and pests which are responsible for incidence of diseases in the crops. Separate inputs are not required for additional feeding of the birds. Eggs and chicken are good source of protein available to the farm family as well as provide income on regular basis. Improved backyard poultry as a scientific intervention improved household income. Backyard poultry as a subsidiary occupation substituted farm income as a secondary income source.
