Long-term Financial and Agronomic Performance of Ecological vs. Chemical-Intensive Farming in Central India: Evidence of Cost Reduction and Resilience

The empirical evidence from the EPACZ of Madhya Pradesh strongly indicates that Organic Farming Systems offer a superior pathway toward long-term financial resilience and agronomic stability for smallholder farmers, despite the marginal short-term yield advantage of chemical-intensive methods. The ability of OFS to drastically reduce external input costs—leading to a higher B:C Ratio and substantial net profit gains over time—outweighs the modest yield benefits of IFS, which are coupled with high cost and vulnerability. Policy interventions must therefore pivot from merely subsidizing chemical inputs to actively promoting and rewarding on-farm resource generation, soil health improvement, and cost-resilience to secure sustainable livelihoods and agricultural security in the region.

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