Regarding vanilla, he said farmers could still get good returns if they concentrated on quality of the beans. “I don't allow beans below 16 cm to grow as there's no price for low quality vanilla,” Harry said. This reduces his yield to some extent but increases the price for his produce. “Instead of producing more we need to reduce the input and increase the quality,” Harry opined.

Regarding prices of spices, it varies from time to time. “Farmers can't change that but we can try to produce highest quality and have to take marketing in our own hands as much as possible. Going the conventional way means only that we'll depend on chemicals and politics,” Harry commented. Harry has 3-4 labourers, and he says it is mostly not available due to enormous labour shortage.

HARRY, THE WONDER: Harry says he had no background in farming back in Germany although he used to go to the forest to collect honey. He has studied Chemistry at the college level. Local people of Idukki who thought Harry to be crazy 15 years ago are all in full admiration of him now. Harry is in every sense a farmer who has a down to earth approach to cultivation.

He is now a hero of Idukki as he carries cow-dung, tills land, and moreover speaks excellent Tamil. He, along with his wife Fathima and three children, is in every sense involved with his organic pursuits. His favourite hobby is to rest in the swing and listen to music. However, he is not so happy about Malayalis who gave a partially hard life for him, especially bureaucrats. “It is not easy for a foreigner to do his own venture in India and survive,” he said. However, he is all praise for the climate of Idukki. •

This article appeared in COMMODITY MARKET, India’s No 1 news magazine on commodities.