Living Income Workshop 2026

India, one of the world’s largest agricultural producers, has a vibrant ecosystem of government programmes, producer organisations, private sector initiatives and civil society organisations already working to improve farmer incomes. It also has a distinctive context: a vast, price-sensitive domestic market, a government that is a major buyer of agricultural produce, and smallholder households that rely on a diverse mix of crops, livestock, off-farm work and public schemes rather than a single cash crop. With investments already flowing into improving farmer incomes and inclusive value chains, India has an opportunity to explore whether and how a living income approach can add value to existing efforts and support more coordinated, evidence-based action. 

This session will set the context for the debate on adopting and adapting the living income concept in India. Leaders will discuss the current agricultural landscape, leading efforts to stabilise and improve farm incomes, and how domestic and international markets shape the business case for action. They will also explore what a decent standard of living means in the Indian context, where subsidies and food distribution schemes play a major role in household budgets. The discussion will lay the foundation for clarifying how a living income lens could add value in India, from household to landscape level, and where the opportunities lie for greater collaboration and impact between actors 

Speakers: 

Private Sector: Meenal Bahirwani, Mars mint program

Government: Nitish Kumar, SUAti program, GIZ and NABARD

Civil Society: Minhaj Ameen, CEO and Founder, Agroecology

Sector collaboration: Jagjeet Singh Kandal, IDH on cotton and coffee

Moderator: Vaibhav Panpaliya, IDH

Drawing on examples from commodity sectors such as tea, coffee, rice and cotton, this practical, interactive session will explore how living income can help sectors move from improving farmer livelihoods to addressing farmer income more systematically. Building on existing efforts around productivity, sustainability, resilience, market access and livelihoods, the discussion will examine what a living income lens adds, how it can help identify income gaps and inform more effective strategies, and where initiatives are already underway globally and in India. It will also consider how living income complements existing efforts on living wages and decent livelihoods, helping companies take a more systematic, evidence-based approach to understanding and addressing income challenges as part of their due diligence. 

Through sector examples and interactive discussions, participants will explore where the most promising entry points for living income lie, what initiatives and approaches are already working, and how learning can be shared and scaled. The session will consider the respective roles of different actors, recognising that addressing farmer income challenges requires action beyond individual programmes or companies. It will identify opportunities for greater alignment, effective learning and collective action across sectors and value chains to advance more coordinated and scalable approaches to improving farmer incomes. 

Regenerative agriculture and agroecology are increasingly promoted for their climate and nature benefits, but the transition must make economic sense for smallholders. This session opens by clarifying what these approaches mean in the Indian context and how they connect to farmer economics and resilience. Practitioners will then share evidence from the field, including data from a regenerative organic mint programme and examples from sugarcane, cotton and soy. In small table discussions, participants will explore what it takes for farmers to adopt and sustain these practices, who bears the costs and who benefits, and what enabling environment is needed. The session closes with a look at how GIZ and partners plan to take regenerative agriculture to scale in India. 

Speakers: 

Divija Kumari, Communications Associate, Consortium for Agroecological Transformations (CAT)

Deepika Agarwal, General Manager Marketing & Export, Pavitramenthe

Vir Mehta, Lead, Decent Work, Asia, Solidaridad

Isabel Weitzel, GIZ 

Moderator: Molly Leavens, Sustainable Food Lab

For decades, India has been a leader in the movement of farmer-owned distribution, processing, and marketing enterprises. In recent years, the advent of the Farmer Producer Company has fuelled a surge of farmer owned enterprises in the country. With the promise of creating and distributing value to farmers, Farmer Producer Organisations of various sorts are an attractive strategy for achieving decent livelihoods for farming households. But those who have helped establish farmer owned enterprises know that building an effective and profitable farmer enterprise comes with significant challenges.   

In this panel, we’ll learn from those who have successfully tackled these challenges, along with others who are facing them now in the early stages of building their business. Bring your questions and thoughts - the session will include ample space for audience Q&A and commentary. 

Speakers: 

Raj Vable: Young Mountain Tea

Yogesh Dwivedi. Madhya Bharat Consortium of Farmer Producer Companies Limited (MBCFPCL)

Pankaj Nathe, Sahyadri Farms 

Moderator: Seth Petches, Sustainable Food Lab  

This session will provide insight on how programmes have been designed for diverse farming systems and identify the critical aspects that lead to a sustained effort to support farmers. Examples from leading initiatives on how they are investing with farmers for progress towards living income using a smart mix from procurement levers, technical assistance, and work on efficiency to build value for farmers and strengthen resilience of their supply chains. This will be followed by practical table work. 

Speakers: 

Cory Gilman, Mars Inc

Joe Boulier, Tanager

Jatin Bavishi, IDH 

Moderators: Stephanie Daniels, Sustainable Food Lab and Vaibhav Panpaliya, IDH

This session will explore practical financing mechanisms that can help farmers increase and sustain their incomes and move towards a living income and support Farmer Producer Organisations (FPO and agri-enterprises stabilise their revenues and provide support to farmers over the long term.  

Speakers from development finance, international rural finance, FPO/value-chain finance, blended finance and impact investment will share real-world models and examples, focusing on how different forms of capital are structured, risks are managed, and finance is linked to value creation and farmer outcomes. The discussion will also identify lessons and opportunities for scaling effective financing models across agricultural value chains. 

Speakers: 

Anil Kumar S G, Founder and Non-Executive Chairman, Sammunati

Dheeraj Matreja, Associate Director, Rabo Foundation, India

Sarat Kumar, Livelihood Consulting Lead, Vrutti/Catalyst Management Service 

Moderators: Dr. Deepak Chamola, GIZ and Stephanie Daniels, SFL

Estimating a farmer’s living income gap requires two things: a benchmark for a decent standard of living, and an estimate of what a household earns. This session opens with an overview of living income benchmarking and their unique applications in India, then turns to the practical realities of measuring actual household income. Smallholder incomes come from many sources and are nearly always estimates, so the right approach depends on what you need to know (your use case), your starting data, your capacity, and your budget. Participants will then work at tables through study scenarios to choose fit-for-purpose methods for key income indicators and weigh the trade-offs between rigour, cost, and the decisions the results can support. 

Speakers: 

Dr. Nidhi Kaiker, Anker Research Institute 

Molly Leavens, Sustainable Food Lab 

Moderator: Molly Leavens, Sustainable Food Lab 

We understand that attending an event can be overwhelming, but we hope this guide will answer any questions you may have about your travel. 

Access the logistics pack here. 

Access the FAQ to learn everything you need to know about attending the event.

Access the FAQ here. 

In addition to the workshop, we are offering a unique opportunity to join pre-event learning journeys in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh 16-18 November. These learning journeys will provide direct insight into the on-the-ground practices and offer the chance to engage directly with producers and their communities. Please note, each learning journey has a limited space of 15-20 attendees. 

Registration for the learning journeys is separate from registration for the workshop.  

Register for the learning journey here.