Integrated Farming

The Nepali agricultural sector, which has many problems, is at risk of losing its continuity and stability. Farming incurs losses of food after harvest and raises serious concerns about food safety. Farmers are finding it difficult to store their crops in the proper places due to a lack of storage. Amidst these difficulties, integrated farming is supportive, as this approach embodies the key to addressing dilemmas in agricultural practices. The integrated approach leads to providing healthy and nutritious food to households, which improves the well-being of consumers. As food safety issues evolve, the situation grows more serious for growers, while food insecurity and fair pricing policies demand concrete sector reform. 

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) reports that Nepal loses as much as 35 per cent of its fruits and vegetables during post-harvest handling and storage, which draws attention, and viable solutions are put in place to minimise these losses. According to a news report published in this daily, FreshKTM's supply chain claims it has reduced waste to less than 5 per cent, down from the usual 30 per cent, by implementing integrated agriculture practices. Integrated farming practices represent a full-fledged agrosystem that embraces all the aspects of crop cultivation, animal farming, and waste disposal by refining different segments into a functional unity. 

This concept provides farmers with a way to raise their efficiencies, productivity, and income dependence by optimising resources and maintaining the moisture contents in the soil. Before asserting that integrated farming is a solution to all agricultural issues, farmers must be willing to openly acknowledge its key merits. Given the fragile state of Nepal's agricultural development, it is time for the government to adopt integrated agriculture as one of the few bases of its policy agenda. This model focuses on product safety and local farmers through the integration of organic farming methods and fair-trade practices. As a result, the farmers become prosperous, and the environment becomes sustainable. 

Policy advocacy and financing are at the top of integrated agriculture's success. The government should develop strong policies that offer both support and programmes that will result in extensive implementation and modification of integrated farming techniques. It is important to mention direct payments to farmers, the eradication of middlemen, and equal profit distribution as the first steps in guaranteeing the economic viability of the small-scale agriculture sector. Also, public-private partnerships have a substantial role in unleashing social benefits and shaping sustainable agriculture. The government can issue easy loans for farmers and has to ensure the provision of affordable electricity for irrigation purposes. This would, therefore, put less strain on production, and farmers would make more benefits.

The government plays a crucial role, but there are concerns about whether policies can achieve their goals. It's important to regularly review and improve policies to tackle challenges effectively. Similarly, funding for research and technology implementation is one of the major factors that improves the performance of the agricultural sector. If the community unites and shared solutions are found, the rickety old agriculture methodologies could give way to the new era of sustainable farming. The integrated agro-systems are a complete response to Nepal's agricultural woes, offering food security, economic prosperity, and environmental balance. It is simply a matter of implementing good examples of how to have a resilient, fertile, and competitive agriculture sector.