In the past few years, organic agriculture has evolved as a movement in India. The organic food products offer profitable business opportunities as they fetch a higher price in the domestic as well as export markets, and organic farming promotes a sustainable lifestyle while preserving the environment. A number of Indian companies have ventured into the organic food business, supplying organic food in India as well as abroad. There are also foreign organic food companies which procure certified organic food from Indian farmers and producers, and establish direct linkages with the farmers. The Government of India is keen to involve the private sector in organic food business, and is trying to come up with supporting regulations. Given this background, this paper is based on in-depth interviews with companies involved in the organic food business in India and the UK, and analyses their reasons for entering the organic business, their business models and sourcing process, how they work with organic farmers, what opportunities and risks they perceive and what do they want from the Indian government.
 
The paper found that organic is a lucrative business, and most of the companies in India and the UK foresee a double-digit growth in the sector. However, there certain business risks such as lack of willingness of farmers to engage in organic agriculture due to low yields, risk of contamination and spoilage of organic produce, fraud and malpractices, high taxes and multiple government bodies doing piecemeal regulations in the organic sector, among others. These risks have to be addressed through policies such as providing subsidies to cover the losses when the yield is low, creating a vision document which contains what the government wants to do and what it expects from the businesses, coordinating the functions of the different ministries and departments across centre and states so that they can create holistic organic regulations, and reducing the tax burden on the businesses. This will not only mitigate business risks, but also encourage more businesses to invest in the organic sector, create employment and increase income of farmers.