Spudnik Farms

The Swiss Re Shine team spent last week interacting with the Kunbi community in Joida, Uttara Kannada, understanding their deep connection with indigenous tuber crops and learning about the community’s commendable efforts to preserve these "future food" crops, as well as their aspirations and the challenges in cultivating and marketing them. This was also an opportunity to inform the team of the work Spudnik Farms has been doing with the community to promote tuber crops and brainstorm key intervention areas that could help bring these climate-resilient crops into the mainstream. Amit Kalra Stefan Huber Fux Swati Jetli Srinivas Uppaluri Archana Sinha Frank Royan Manish Mundada H R Roopashree Shaili Swaraj Sharad Mahamia Sivaram Ganeshan Tanvi Shekhar

Clove beans, known as nithya vazhuthana or mookuthi avarai, are easy to grow and require no special care. They are a vine crop that can be transplanted to a fence or trellis to grow toward the sun.  Once established, clove beans usually self-seed and grow again the following year.

Mangosteen is known as the "Queen of Fruits" because of its unique sweet and sour taste, and its many potential health benefits. Mangosteen is described as having a sweet, tangy, juicy, and fibrous flavor. Mangosteen is native to Southeast Asia and is mainly found in countries like Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

Also known as "Jamaica Spice" due to its Caribbean origins, the Allspice leaf is named for its unique flavour and aroma, which combine notes of cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon. It is widely used in baking and is usually present in chutneys, preserves, mincemeat and mixed pickling spice.

Lima beans originated in Central America as wild cultivars and were domesticated by the Mayans, Aztecs, and Incas as a source of protein. The cultivation of lima beans began in South America 6,000 years ago. Lima beans are also known as "butter beans" because of their buttery taste after cooking. Lima bean seeds are usually cream or light green, but some varieties can be white, purple, brown, or black.  The variety we grow is white with pink patches that turn a gorgeous deep red as the beans mature.

Can you guess these yum fruits?

As the monsoons cool down temperatures and provide needed moisture to the soil, we plant various cool-weather leguminous crops such as - double beans, green peas, pigeon peas, hyacinth beans etc.  Peas are the first of these crops to be harvested.  - Peas are special because they can create their own fertilizer through a process called nitrogen fixation! - They use sunlight, water, and carbon to create oxygen and energy (sugars), which move through the plant and into the soil, feeding microbes.  - These microbes convert nitrogen from the air into ammonia (a form that the pea plant can use for its development). When the roots decompose, the excess nitrogen is released back into the soil, which benefits other plants that need nitrogen.

You read that right - bullock and mammoth et al. The exotic-looking Custard Apple has some rather interesting other names!

Exciting news! Applications are now open for Spudnik Farms’ “Back to Roots” Residency Program. Dive into an immersive experience connecting culinary experts and local farmers. Explore the rich biodiversity of tuber crops in the heart of the Western Ghats through field trips, hands-on workshops, and collaborative cooking sessions. This is the perfect opportunity if you’re passionate about food innovation, sustainable agriculture, and cultural exchange. Apply by August 30th and be part of this unique journey!

Calling all artists and curators! Spudnik Farms announces an open call for artists and designers to create interactive installations and exhibition design for our upcoming Rooting for Tubers festival this November.  Showcase your creativity and help us celebrate stories from the incredible world of tuber crops. Apply and be part of this unique event! The deadline for applications is 20 August 2024. For more details head here - https://lnkd.in/dGWmrECS