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By AMRENDRA MISHRA, Managing Director of Ag Services & Oilseeds and Country Manager India, ADM*
World Environment Day is a reminder that climate resilience is now central to the future of agriculture. India is the world’s second-largest consumer and third largest-producer of fertilizers[1], highlighting the critical role these inputs have played in supporting agricultural productivity and food security. At the same time, a growing body of evidence suggests that in many regions, fertilizer use has already reached or even exceeded optimal levels, where additional inputs deliver diminishing, and in some cases even negative, returns to productivity[2], increasing input costs without proportional yield gains. Beyond productivity concerns, decades of intensive fertilizer use have also contributed to environmental challenges such as soil degradation and rising input dependency. The challenge today is not simply reducing fertilizer-intensive methods, but helping smallholder farmers adopt more sustainable practices without compromising productivity or income security.
Delivering this transition at scale requires more than awareness campaigns or one-time training. Sustainable farming adoption depends on whether farmers can apply new practices confidently under local conditions and sustain them across growing seasons.
The last mile problem in sustainable farming
Sustainable farming transitions require more than technical knowledge transfer. For smallholder farmers operating under financial pressure, adopting new practices requires visible results, practical support, and confidence that yields and livelihoods will not be put at risk.
This makes program structure as important as program scale. Initiatives that combine continuous field engagement, scientific guidance, and locally relevant demonstration are more likely to achieve long-term adoption than short-term interventions alone.
From awareness to adoption
The technical components of integrated nutrient management (INM) and integrated pest management (IPM) are well-documented, and the evidence for their effectiveness in improving both productivity and soil health is well-established. The more complex challenge lies in translating that evidence into consistent on-farm practice across diverse agricultural contexts.
Doing so requires program structures that go beyond one-time instruction by embedding iterative learning, local demonstration, and ongoing technical support into the delivery model. This is particularly important for practices such as balanced nutrient application, crop-stage fertilizer management, and integrated pest control, where adoption depends heavily on continuous technical guidance and field-level adaptation.
Farmer Dayanand Suresh Jadhav from Karla village in Latur district, Maharashtra, illustrates what this can look like in practice. Previously contending with low yields and declining soil fertility, he was among the farmers reached through a multi-year program delivered by ADM Cares in partnership with the College of Agriculture, Latur. Through sustained field-based training and engagement, he implemented INM and IPM across his land by applying fertilizers at sowing as recommended, introducing water-soluble fertilizers at key crop growth stages, and adopting integrated pest and disease management protocols suited to his crops and conditions. Within just three to four months, he recorded a 13% increase in production alongside meaningful reductions in input costs.
Reflecting on the experience, Dayanand shares, "By reducing costs and improving quality, sustainable farming has helped bring greater prosperity to my family.” This was not an isolated success story, but a replicable outcome. It reflects a program designed for long-term adoption and demonstrates the kind of farm-level transformation that sustained partnerships can achieve.
Research-backed partnerships in practice
he ADM Cares funded project, “Phased Transition of Farmers to Integrated Approach”, implemented in partnership with the College of Agriculture, Latur, from 2021 to 2024, was designed around gradual, season-by-season adoption rather than single-point interventions, reflecting a broader principle about what sustained engagement looks like in practice.
Reach: Impacted over 5,000 farmers across 6 districts
Training: Conducted 150+ sessions and Krushi Melavas
Talent: Provided 60+ research stipends for key crops like soybean and pigeon pea
Outcome: Improved soil health and reduced use of fertilizer-intensive methods with sustained yields
Central to the program’s success was the active involvement of more than 60 postgraduate scholars from the College of Agriculture, Latur, who worked alongside faculty to provide scientific backstopping, field observations, and continuous technical guidance to participating farmers. Their role strengthened farmer confidence in adopting INM and IPM practices under local conditions, helping translate academic research into practical, field-level implementation.
For Datta Mujmule, a former fellowship scholar who now works as a professional Agricultural Analyst, the experience demonstrated how scientific recommendations must be adapted for real-world farming environments.
Reflecting on his involvement in the program, he notes, “Participating directly in the integrated farming demonstrations gave us real-world exposure to nutrient and pest management. It forced us to develop field-level technical understanding and learn how to present scientific recommendations in a practical, implementable manner for the farmers.”
This combination of scientific credibility and sustained local engagement helped bridge the ‘last mile’ gap between research and adoption, transforming initial farmer awareness into longer-term behavioural change and reinforcing ADM Cares’ commitment to research-backed agricultural development.
The role industry is positioned to play
For the agribusiness sector, the conditions shaping Indian agriculture are not merely a backdrop to commercial activity but are directly consequential to it. The long-term productivity of smallholder farming, the resilience of supply chains, and the viability of agricultural communities are all interconnected with the sustainability of farming practices at the field level. This positions the industry as a meaningful participant in the transition to more sustainable agriculture, helping translate shared ambitions into on-ground impact at scale.
Industry, academic institutions, and community extension networks each bring distinct capabilities to the challenge of sustainable farming adoption. Effective partnerships connect these strengths in ways that give farmer engagement programs the continuity, local relevance, and trust needed for lasting change.
Scaling this across India's diverse smallholder farming landscape will require a broader ecosystem of such partnerships, built around sustained engagement and shared accountability for long-term outcomes. The experience in Latur demonstrates that this model is not only achievable but replicable – capable of generating measurable farm-level impact while strengthening sustainable farming practices across regions and communities over time.
* Since joining ADM more than a decade ago, Amrendra Mishra has held various trading, risk and commercial management roles within the company’s India and United States markets. A veteran with over 20 years of experience managing various aspects in agri-business industry, he also had stints in companies such as NAFED and DCM Shriram.
Amrendra is an active member of various industry bodies including being a part of the Executive Committee of India Vegetable Oil Processors Association, a member of Soybean Processors Association of India as well as with the National Agriculture Council of Confederation of Indian Industries.