From global commitments to Indian farm fields: Accounting for nature in farming

Abstract

The values that enter policy, budgeting and monitoring are narrow by default, leaving out large portions of both costs and benefits — a problem that runs across sectors, not agriculture alone. This article examines what that omission means for food systems, drawing on TEEBAgriFood India Initiative assessments in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Assam to test the question policymakers actually ask: does a shift to organic farming and agroforestry make economic sense? The evidence indicates it does. In the districts modelled, a supported transition results in yields 9.4–23% higher by 2050 than under the business-as-usual trajectory; soil organic carbon doubles on demonstration plots; and women’s participation in crop decision-making is twice as high under organic systems. In the landscapes assessed, continuity carries the greater risk, not transition. The three shifts, viz. natural capital valuation in scheme design, stronger farmer collectives, and a wider evidence base across agro-climatic zones and the value chain, together serve India’s climate and biodiversity commitments as one system rather than parallel tracks.