In the month of April, beneath the generous canopy of an age-old mango orchard, the 17th annual Gems of Araku ceremony took place. This picturesque location, familiar to and cherished by many Naandities who have visited and worked in the Araku region, provided a most fitting setting to celebrate the remarkable achievements of the region’s smallholding tribal farmer families. For over two decades, these dedicated farmers, with the support of their cooperative and Naandi, have orchestrated what can only be described as a miracle: transforming a deforested landscape into a thriving, biodiverse haven with fertile soils, lush forests, and thousands of organic-certified coffee farms that yield an award-winning speciality coffee sought after worldwide. The Gems of Araku is hosted each year to celebrate these farmers, to inspire their younger generations, and to acknowledge the importance of their collective work in preserving their forests and way of life.
The history of Gems of Araku extends back to 2009, when the first ceremony was hosted by the region’s newly formed cooperative. This cooperative, formally registered in 2007 as the Small and Marginal Tribal Farmers Mutually Aided Cooperative Society, known in short as MACS, was founded with a clear vision: to become a trusted entity supporting farmers’ adoption of a new method of agriculture that could improve the yield, quality, and profitability of the region’s coffee harvests. With Naandi’s unwavering support, MACS began with 1,000 members and today has a membership of over 40,000 farmers – united in one of the largest tribal coffee cooperatives in the world. The excellent quality of MACS’ coffee – branded as ARAKU Coffee and sold exclusively in India and France – can be attributed to the regenerative agricultural approach adopted by its farmers. This approach abstains from chemical use and instead promotes tree-planting drives and soil-enriching practices to enhance the health of coffee and food crops and restore the diversity of trees and beneficial species inhabiting the farms.
The Gems of Araku ceremony, hosted by MACS each year, honours the farming community and those who have excelled in cultivating coffee according to the rigorous standards of regenerative agriculture. Prior to the ceremony, a jury of experts in agronomy and microbiology assembles in Araku to visit and evaluate the coffee farms: Are the conditions conducive to the growth of healthy coffee bushes? Are the bushes well-pruned and adequately shaded? Is the soil rich, and is the ground around the bushes properly mulched and free of weeds? Is the farmer diligent in using soil-enriching inputs? Guided by these questions, and informed by interviews with the farmers, jury members individually score and collectively decide upon the winners and runners-up of the prestigious agricultural prizes.
In addition to the farm assessment jury, there is a specialty coffee jury, whose members evaluate the quality of the year’s best coffee through a professional tasting exercise known as ‘cupping’. This year, jury members travelled all the way from South Korea, Vietnam, Germany, and the US to partake in the intensive cupping process. A total of 12 coffee blends, selected from this year’s 1,148-tonne harvest, were meticulously brewed for the jury. Each coffee was then cupped – tasted, scored, and carefully analysed for its key flavours and overall profile of sweetness, acidity, and body.
As you can tell, there is much to be done in preparation for the Gems of Araku ceremony. Jury members, MACS board representatives, and leaders of Naandi work tirelessly for weeks beforehand to ensure the assessments are completed and that the awards, venue, and schedule are all set for the day to run smoothly. When the day finally arrives, however, it is truly a sight to behold.
A vibrant crowd of 5,000 farmers from 235 villages, adorned in colourful clothes and seated neighbour beside neighbour gather in anticipation of the speeches and prizes to be shared on the stage that year. Tamarba Chittibabu, President of MACS, was one of the first to address the crowd, offering heartfelt thanks for the farmers’ efforts to protect their forests and maintain their way of life in harmony with nature and her rhythms. Members of both juries and Naandi’s leadership team also gave addresses, each praising the farmers for their role as leaders in the global agricultural movement – a source of hope and inspiration for a more sustainable future.
Following the speeches, the long-awaited awards were presented: first to Chedda Saithon and Korra Seethanna, representing families from Vasabandha and Gangavaram villages respectively, as winner and runner-up for Best Farmer Family; and then to Gondivalasa village for Best Procurement – a new prize awarded to the village that contributed the largest volume of harvested coffee to MACS. The ceremony then shifted focus to the next generation, recognising the youth of farming families whose passion for sport is celebrated just as highly as their families’ agricultural success. The winning and runner-up teams from the region’s annual volleyball tournament, which saw hundreds of matches played between 890 boys’ teams and 24 girls’ teams, were each honoured on stage with a trophy and prize cheque. Recognising both farming and sport as aspirational pursuits is one of the most unique and admirable features of the Gems of Araku ceremony. It is always a privilege to witness younger and older generations celebrating their achievements together.
The ceremony culminated in a grand communal lunch, leaving bellies – and hearts – full. It is always our hope that recognising the achievements of youth, farmer families, and entire villages inspires others, reinforcing a collective mindset for coming together to solve the most pressing challenges of our time and preserve the most sustainable ways of life and work, in whatever form they take.
