Smallholder Stories Archives - The Fourth Plate

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Africa · Smallholder Stories

Mpumalanga women farming cooperatives reshape rural economy

Staff Writer September 27, 2026 3 min read

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Agriculture · Smallholder Stories

Drought pushes Central America toward a hungry harvest

Staff Writer September 23, 2026 3 min read

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Agriculture · Smallholder Stories · South Asia

Idukki marigold farmers left with unsold Onam bumper crop

Staff Writer September 20, 2026 3 min read

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Agriculture · Editor's picks · Smallholder Stories

Pirappamankadu: How a ‘field of tears’ transformed into Kerala’s ‘Field of Dreams’ creating a model ecosystem of opportunities

Staff Writer September 28, 2025 6 min read

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Smallholder Stories, Southeast...

Indonesia’s rice output set to fall even as farmer pay improves

Staff Writer

October 5, 2026

women harvesting tea leaves in vibrant field

Africa, Smallholder Stories...

Mpumalanga women farming cooperatives reshape rural economy

Staff Writer

September 26, 2026

Agriculture, Smallholder Stori...

Drought pushes Central America toward a hungry harvest

Staff Writer

September 23, 2026

indian flower vendor carrying yellow marigolds

Agriculture, Smallholder Stori...

Idukki marigold farmers left with unsold Onam bumper crop

Staff Writer

September 19, 2026

african women harvesting tea in taraba nigeria

Africa, Agriculture, Smallhold...

Women farmers in Makueni transform Kenya’s seed adoption

Staff Writer

September 19, 2026

Africa, Agriculture, Heritage ...

The inspiring story of Osarenren Erhahon

Staff Writer

July 14, 2026

In Kerala, it began with a 40-acre stretch of abandoned paddy fields that the villagers of Pirappamankadu had named Kanneer Paadam alias the Field of Tears. For two decades, this land, just 28 kilometers from Kerala's capital Trivandrum, had known only failure: failed crops, failed monsoons, and failed dreams that drove farmers away from their ancestral occupation.

Agriculture, Editor's picks, S...

Pirappamankadu: How a ‘field of tears’ transformed into Kerala’s ‘Field of Dreams’ creating a model ecosystem of opportunities

Staff Writer

July 8, 2026

Agriculture, Smallholder Stori...

From Hillside to Global Market: How Nepal’s Tea Farmers United to Transform Their Future

Staff Writer

October 23, 2025

Agriculture, Smallholder Stori...

Farming Trust: The Story of Bhima Kamat – Natural Farming and Research

Staff Writer

October 23, 2025

This crop is called Mucuna Pruriens, also velvet bean or cowhage. It has been part of traditional diets and farming systems for centuries. Yet despite its extraordinary benefits, it remains largely overlooked in modern agriculture. Mucuna pruriens is a fast-growing annual or perennial vine, that can reach up to 15meters in length. It grows best in well-drained soils but adapts to a range of soil types, including sandy or acidic soils.

Africa, Agriculture, Region, S...

Macuna Pruriens: The wonder crop we should be talking about more

Ann Njogu

October 23, 2025

Agriculture, Northeast India, ...

The Sacred Brew: How One Man’s Organic Revolution is Preserving Assam’s Tea Legacy

Staff Writer

October 23, 2025

Recall the clay piggy banks that once taught children the value of saving? In Kerala's Thodupuzha in Idukki district, a retired schoolteacher has reimagined this age-old concept with an ingenious twist. Instead of coins, students are filling their modern-day piggy banks – called "kudukka" in Malayalam – with something far more meaningful: the bounty from their family farms. Welcome to Pacha Kudukka – the "green piggy bank" – where curry leaves become currency and farming meets the future. Here, what might have been dismissed as mere backyard produce is transforming into valuable lessons about savings, self-reliance, and the dignity of agriculture.

Agriculture, Grassroots champi...