Integrated farming system approach for securing income and family nutrition

Abstract

A selected cluster of villages in Muzaffarnagar, Western Uttar Pradesh, was chosen to demonstrate improved technologies through an Integrated Farming System (IFS) approach to enhance farmers' livelihoods. Technological interventions in crops, livestock, and other enterprises were demonstrated alongside capacity-building efforts for selected farmers. By implementing intercrops such as mustard, black gram, and green gram in sugarcane, farmers increased their net income through diversified land use. Mustard and sugarcane yields improved by 22.4% and 10.8%, respectively, over traditional practices. Similarly, cow milk yield saw an 8.5% increase. A multitier horticulture based IFS led to a 136% increase in net income over the benchmark, while a secondary agriculture module added approximately `206,650 in earnings for the Self Help Group (SHG).