“Before I learnt about microgreens farming, we struggled with low yields on our farm,” says Kuldeep Singh, a 38-year-old farmer from Ferozepur, Punjab. “We used to grow cauliflower, wheat, and other traditional crops, but no matter how hard we tried, the land was not giving us enough. We could only harvest so much with the same space, and it was hard to make a living.”

His story is similar to many farmers across India, where limited resources and small land holdings often present a significant challenge. For years, he and his father struggled with low yields on their small farm.

However, a chance meeting with Mohit Nijhawan at Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), who has built a successful business in microgreens farming, opened a new door for him.

For Mohit Nijhawan, from Chandigarh, the corporate world was all he knew for over two decades. He had established a successful career in the pharmaceutical industry and was serving as the regional head at Sanofi-Genzyme in 2020. But as he rose the corporate ladder, he had to shift his focus to the health issues that were unfolding in his own family.

“My mother-in-law was diagnosed with stage-four cancer and expired just eight months later. Then, my sister-in-law also succumbed to cancer. It was like a heavy cloud hanging over our family,” the 46-year-old tells The Better India.

“Soon after, I found out my brother was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma (RCC). He had to undergo nephrectomy, and because he got the treatment at the right time, he is fine now. It made me realise that lifestyle diseases, like cancer, are often linked to what we eat. The market is loaded with chemically-laden food.”

His corporate life, once fulfilling, now felt out of place. “I spent 20 years working in pharma, but I needed to do something that matched my moral values. Something that could help people live a healthier life. That is when I thought about food and its role in our health,” the entrepreneur shares.

His introduction to microgreens dates back to 2011, when he met with a researcher from Johns Hopkins University. “We discussed how lifestyle diseases could be combated through healthier and more sustainable living, and one thing led to another. We started discussing microgreens and I was intrigued to know about their benefits, but it took years for me to act on it,” he says.

From pharma to farming: Only to grow chemical-free microgreens

After seeing his relatives struggle with health problems, and with encouragement from doctors who spoke about the dangers of chemically-laden foods, the former corporate professional made a radical decision. In December 2020, he resigned from his senior position in the pharmaceutical........

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