How This Palakkad Farmer Earns Lakhs Through Diverse Farming Beyond Paddy
In a remarkable example of sustainable and diversified farming, Thenariyil Ramachandran from Elappully, Palakkad, has turned his 3.5-acre plot into a thriving and profitable venture. His enterprise, Araya Farm, showcases how integrating paddy cultivation with dry land farming can greatly enhance earnings from a modest piece of land. Ramachandran’s success comes from using a diverse farming approach that goes beyond traditional crops. Every year, he earns ₹4 lakh from 200 coconut trees, ₹2.5 lakh from 500 areca nut palms, and ₹3 lakh from 150 pepper plants. He also makes ₹1.5 lakh from ginger, ₹2 lakh from plantains, and ₹1 lakh from fish farming on top of his income from paddy and flower farming.
Ramachandran boosts his income not just by growing crops but by turning them into value-added products. Araya Farm sells around 30 items like turmeric powder, rice flakes, and sun-dried goods. He also rents out farm machines, earning ₹12 lakh a year by planting paddy on 600 acres, ₹3 lakh from tractor rentals, and ₹5 lakh from harvester services. He even built his own machines for cleaning ginger and turmeric, which won him the Innovative Farmer Award. Araya Farm follows an integrated farming model, combining livestock and fish farming in a smart, eco-friendly way. The farm has Vechur cows, Kangayam oxen, goats, ducks, hens, rabbits, and carp fish. Ramachandran cleverly built poultry and rabbit sheds above the fish pond so their waste feeds the fish and fertilizes water used for crops. He also grows plants like Karinochi for bio-fencing, selling the leaves to pharma companies for extra income. In addition, he cultivates organic, medicinal rice varieties like Athur Kichili, Samba, Arubatham Kuruvai, Karuppu Kavuni, and Thooyamalli. Ramachandran’s Araya Farm is a great example of how smart planning, variety in farming, and new ideas can lead to strong profits and sustainable farming.
Read more at: https://www.onmanorama.com/news/kerala/2025/07/31/araya-farm-mixed-farming.html
