Sikkim delegation meets organic farmers and dairy firms in Wisconsin

Minister Lok Nath Sharma and his team continued their vacation to the United States by visiting Wisconsin's dairy area, where they met with organic farmers and heard their success stories, as well as seeing other dairy farms, vegetable farms, and organic fields.

The delegation, led by the minister and including CEO SOFDA Dr. S. Anbalagan and CEO-SSOCA Sudhir Giri, paid a visit to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture in Madison, where they were greeted by Mark, bureau director of the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection's Export and Business Development Bureau. Kara Kasten Olson and Andrew Bernhardt, Organic Specialists from the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, also attended the meeting.

Minister Lok Nath Sharma provided an overview of Sikkim's organic sector and addressed potential collaborations between Wisconsin and the Sikkim government. He elaborated on the benefits of agrotourism investment in Sikkim and its future prospects for the state's socioeconomic development.

Andrew, who works as an organic research expert, is knowledgeable about sustainable organic farming and its long-term benefits and value addition to farmers. He also mentioned the farmers support centre, where the team provides all financial and motivational support to farmers on a 24/7 basis to encourage and assist them in times of need.

Mark praised the state government's efforts in the areas of agriculture, education, tourism, and health care. He went on to say that processed food has a lot of potential to help Sikkim's business strategy in the US market, and that it could be a good place to start.

The team also paid a visit to the University of Agriculture in Wisconsin, where Dr. Erin Silva was set to meet with them. Dr. Erin also described the insect and disease problems that farmers producing huge cardamom suffer.