Individuals who possess a profound bond with the land will always yearn to come back, regardless of where life takes them. They might be drawn back by the prospect of mining gold from the earth, the warmth of Mother Nature, or the comforting touch of the wind and rain. The inner satisfaction we get when the reward of our labour appears as flowers or fruits and smiles at us knows no bounds.
Mathewkutty Tom hails from a small village in Kerala’s Kottayam district. After completing his MBA in Marketing from the Marian International Institute of Management, he entered into the global car companies. After three years of employment in different auto manufacturers, his mind wouldn’t let him continue. Returning to his hometown, he followed his dreams and founded TJT Farm.
In memory of a childhood rich in agricultural prosperity
Taking up farming was a challenge, but he embraced it because he had a strong desire to pursue it. His parents supported and encouraged his decision, which boosted his confidence even more. He went to Punjab to learn agriculture. Later he applied the methods he learned there to his soil.
Rise Of TJT Farm
He was driven by a strong desire to continue his family’s farming legacy. When he first began farming on the 18 acres of family land in Pala, he encountered many challenges and struggled to make a profit for the first two years.
Traditional farmer To Agripreneur
Mathewkutty adopted some business strategies and switched from being a traditional farmer to an agripreneur. He practised integrated or mixed farming, which involves raising crops and breeding animals on the same farm, allowing for broader crop rotations, and using the leftovers from one crop as nourishment for another. Almost all types of vegetables, fruits, ornamental fishes, animals, and birds, indoor plants are currently produced and sold by TJT Farm.
Mathewkutty makes considerable money by selling meat-related products. He raises varieties of chickens and pigs. Mathewkutty rears various types of fish in five ponds on the farm. To save costs, Mathewkutty’s farm also features a half-acre area for planting animal fodder.
Growing Exotic Fruit TreAXes
Besides growing seasonal vegetables, he also cultivates exotic fruits like rambutan, red lady papaya and mangosteen. Various fruits include mango, nutmeg, cashew, and passion fruit. He earns up to five lakh rupees by selling an average of two tonnes of products every month. Mathewkutty sells his products directly to clients through local stores or delivers them to their houses.
Utilisation of waste
Cows are mainly raised for dung, which is used in biogas plants and organic farming. Chicken manure is fed to pigs. These fertilisers are sold separately by Mathewkutty. Excreta from chickens, pigs, goats and cattle used to be charged between Rs 2.5 and 8 per kg.
Recognition
The state government has recognised Mathewkutty’s effective initiative. He was given the Kerala State Animal Husbandry Department’s Young Farmer Award in 2015 and the Kerala Government’s Young Farmer Award in 2022.
For those who think agriculture is a waste of time and leave our fertile agricultural areas in search of other employment, Mathewkutty serves as a role model. As an agripreneur, he developed his agricultural expertise and made a solid living. Mathewkutty Tom proves that farming can be enjoyable if you have the strength to work hard, a tireless mind and innovative farming methods.