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An article by S. Soundararadjane, Chief Executive Officer, HyFarm
For decades, the fertile plains of Mehsana, Palanpur, and Himmat Nagar have powered India’s processing-grade potato revolution. These soils enabled the country to become a global player in frozen potato products, creating rural jobs, fuelling industrial growth, and boosting exports. But today, the very resource that underpins this success is showing signs of distress.
What we are witnessing across Gujarat’s potato belt is not an isolated agronomic problem; it is a structural decline in soil health.
Years of continuous monocropping, excessive irrigation, and unbalanced fertiliser use have disrupted the soil’s biological equilibrium. Organic carbon levels have fallen sharply, microbial biodiversity has eroded, and pH values in several blocks now exceed 8.0 — well above the optimal range of 6.0 –7.0 for potato cultivation. This rise in alkalinity limits the availability of key nutrients such as phosphorus, zinc, and iron, while contributing to soil salinity and compaction.
The consequences are now visible across the value chain — smaller tubers, inconsistent dry matter, poor skin finish, and variable fry colour. Processing units are reporting higher rejections, which means wasted seed, water, fertiliser, and labour. For a state that has built an agri-industrial identity around precision potato cultivation, this is a serious warning sign.
Recognising the urgency of this challenge, HyFarm has launched the Soil Stewardship Initiative, a science-led programme to map, analyse, and restore soil health across Gujarat’s key potato clusters.
Over the past few months, more than 500 soil samples from 17 micro-pockets have undergone detailed physical, chemical, and biological analysis. The findings confirmed what field practitioners have long suspected: widespread alkalinity, declining organic carbon (below 0.35%), and nutrient antagonism — notably, elevated potassium levels suppressing zinc uptake. These imbalances compromise tuber physiology, yield, and storage quality.
But data alone does not change outcomes; disciplined action does. HyFarm’ s intervention framework moves from diagnosis to design, integrating corrective soil chemistry, regenerative agronomy, and precision nutrient management.
Phosphoric acid and elemental sulphur applications are being used to regulate pH and improve phosphorus availability. Organic matter — in the form of farmyard manure, bio-compost, and leguminous green manures — is being reintroduced to rebuild microbial activity and soil structure.
Farmers are also being guided to replace Muriate of Potash (MOP) with Sulphate of Potash (SOP) to reduce chloride accumulation, a critical factor influencing tuber skin quality, specific gravity, and fry colour. Split applications of calcium nitrate during the bulking phase (25–45 days after planting) are helping fortify cell walls, reduce stress, and improve tuber uniformity.
These plot-specific, science-led interventions are gradually transforming agronomy in the region — from a prescriptive approach to a data-driven, adaptive system. The philosophy is simple but powerful: know your soil before you grow your crop.
Soil testing, therefore, must evolve from being a compliance formality to a predictive management tool — the agricultural equivalent of a diagnostic scan. Measuring parameters like pH, electrical conductivity, organic carbon, and micronutrient balance before sowing empowers farmers to optimise input use, rationalise fertiliser application, and enhance yields sustainably.
At its core, soil is not an inert medium; it is a living system — the primary capital asset of agriculture. It governs productivity, resilience, and climate response. Revitalising this asset is both an ecological and economic imperative.
As India transitions from input-intensive to knowledge-intensive agriculture, stewardship must replace extraction, and regeneration must become the true measure of success.
Hy Farm’s Soil Stewardship Initiative embodies this shift. By restoring soil vitality, we are not merely improving crop metrics — we are reinforcing the resilience of India’s food systems. The health of our soils will ultimately determine the health of our harvests, our industries, and our future.
