Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/694455
32 STiR tea & coffee industry international / Issue 3, 2016 (June/July) The organic movement Meanwhile, in Europe, the small green shoots of the organic movement were just beginning to appear. Health scares connected to the use of pesticides and other plant protection agents (PPAs) led to public concern; universities introduced organic farming to their curricula; and farming and consumer groups started to lobby politicians to introduce and regu- late organic food production. As a result some producers intro- duced new organic farming methods and new business models, and in 1997, it was predicted that by 2020, 50% of Darjeel- ing tea would be organic. Currently a little more than 50% of Darjeeling's 87 gardens are certified organic. flavor, and nutritional value of the crop while attaining ecological, social, and eco- nomic sustainability. Tea cultivation at Ambootia Contrary to what many outsiders believe, the tea plants growing throughout Dar- jeeling are a mixture of assamica variet- ies, sinensis, and new crossbred cultivars. When pioneer planters were establishing their gardens in the 1850s, they used what- ever seeds or seedlings they could obtain, hence the mix that survives today. About 75% of the plants are what the locals call 'chinery' or sinensis varieties, and the rest are assamicas, hybrids of assamica and chinery varietals, and clonal plants. In 1991, Sanjay Bansal introduced organic agricultural techniques at Ambootia Tea Estate. Bansal was born at the estate in 1961. His father managed the garden and as Sanjay learned more about the tea business, "I realized that sustainable agriculture was the best way to guarantee high quality on the long term. We were confident that this, for us 'new method' would help us not only increase productivity but also improve quality. Furthermore, it appealed to us as an environmentally and socially responsible method of farming." And Ambootia's tea production became not simply organic but biodynamic, a sys- tem of farming based on the philosophy of the Austrian writer, educator, and social activist Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925). Biodynamic agriculture developed in the 1920s as a response to degraded soil quality and reduction of animal health resulting from the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, etc. It encouraged farmers to develop a diversified and balanced ecosystem that ensures a healthy and fertile farm where organic preparations made from manure, herbs, and minerals work with nature's vital forces rather than against them. Biodynamic farmers also strive to work in harmony with the wider universe for the long term good of human, animal, soil, and plant health. In this system, everything matters – soil, water, insects, birds, trees, flowers, herbs, people, and air. Everything is regarded as being a part of a single holistic organism. Farmers focus on traditional and locally bred varieties, and on careful control of every aspect of farming. Natural ingre- dients are used to make mulches, sprays, and fertilizers; and the propagation of seeds, sowing, plucking, processing, packaging and distribution, are carried out in harmony with lunar and astrological calendars. The long-term aim is to enhance the quality, Cowhorns assist in the composting of organic matter Soil scientists around the turn of the 19th century discovered that certain mi- crobes produce humus. These mi- crobes love to multiply in manure and in the body parts of dead creatures. Adding manure to dead body parts produces a germ culture of humus- producing microbes. This is why Native Americans placed dead fish around the base of corn. Cow horns also contain the mi- crobes, and you can put manure inside the horns to make a fast producing cul- ture of humus-producing microbes without the mess and smell. The mi- crobes migrate from the horn into the infertile soil around them, and make that soil fertile fast — they say it pro- duces soil similar to that with lots of earthworm castings. — Greta Fields, Mayking, KY Grow Appalachia