cottonday6:  Dr. B.H. Halaswamy, cotton breeder at the Monsanto Cotton Breeding Center in Kallakal, talks to the Ag Systems group about trait integration in Bt cotton. [McCandless]

monsantogrpday6: A group shot of the Agricultural Systems group — this time after the Monsanto tour. The centre is directed by Yossi Shapiro (front), who is a graduate of Cornell’s plant breeding department and also an alumni of the IARD602 course. [McCandless]

shilparamamday6: Indian students taught their Thai and U.S. friends how to bargain during an early evening shopping tour of the Shilparamam Craft Market in Hyderabad. [McCandless]

streetsceneblondday6: Street scene in Hyderabad. [Elisha Blond]

January 6, 2008

Our adventures began today with a bus ride and vivid tour encompassing the surrounding villages of Vajayawada.  The groups, Value Addition and Rural Infrastructure not only saw rural life from the windows of our tour bus but were able to interact with the friendly and eager people of this small yet sustaining agricultural community.  Our exploration began with a tour of the youthful, green groves of mango trees owned by an association of farmers including 100 members from this small farming community. They not only collaboratively grow these mangos owning 2,000 of the local acres but they also export these to major Asian markets.  After viewing these fruitless trees due to the fact that their growing season begins in April, we then continued on to storage and processing centers for this association.  To complete the supply chain education, the group ended the day with a visit to a local supermarket to sample their products.  We were then able to discuss cultural observations made during these visits with participation from students from Thailand, India and Cornell.  It was interesting to learn about all aspects of agricultural production from labor issues, distribution, and cooperative farming within the mango industry.   Our day ended with a sweet taste on our palate with a sampling of sugar cane fresh from the production fields.

AGRICULTURAL SYSTEMS
This morning we took a tour of the Monsanto Cotton Research Centre. On the bus ride there, I was lucky enough to sit next to Satish Pindi, a friendly Indian stuent who let me listen to his mp3 player. We listened to some great Bollywood music, Indian folk music, and some slow Hindi ballads. And he also loves Backstreet Boys.

At Monsanto, I got a crash course in plant breeding and we learned about their research on Bt cotton, and Round-up ready cotton. We saw their research labs and greenhouses full of cotton plants. As with every facility we have visited, they were very welcoming, with tea and biscuits. I even tried a “kesar” flavored milk drink that I found out was flavored with saffron.

Lunch was at a restaurant called La Fiesta in a hotel called Minerva Grand. It was very good, but not Mexican, as the name implies. After lunch we went shopping at Shilparamam in Hitech City, Cyberabad. I learned how to bargain from the Indian students. Things were very inexpensive, but I found myself bargaining to lower the price by 10 rupees, which equals about 25 cents. Overall, the day went well and I came back to our hotel feeling satisfied with my hard-earned purchases.
Chelsea Clarke

Animal Sciences
Date – 6 Jan
Student –Brooke
After breakfast the first stop for the animal science group was Charminar, also called as the Four Pillars. It is an Indian architectural achievement and a popular stop for tourist. The next stop was Salar Jung Museum. It is the life time collection of one man, Mir Yosuf Ali Khan. He collected various items from many cultures and ages, the earliest dating from first century AD. The museum contains 40000 pieces that were contained in rooms. Many of the pieces are famous including veiled Rebecca, a white marble statue made by Italian sculptor Bezani. The group ate lunch at a Pizza Hut in Hyderabad city-much nicer than Pizza Huts in the US. The pizza toppings were gourmet, and Indian toppings were available. The final stop of the day was Shilparamam, a famous arts and crafts market in Hyderabad City. At the market (50 acres large) were venders selling all type of Indian crafts and wares imaginable. We were able to purchase these at great bargains- people brought jewelary, bags, clothing, and scarfs among other things. It was an amazing experience that allowed us to immerse ourselves in Indian culture and pick up some great souvenirs while we were at it.

Visit to Vijaya Sun Gold- Mango Growers Association
                        Vijaya Sun Gold a leading mango export company & and a fruit growers association which was set up in the year 1993. This was an initiative started with the help of APEDA to enhance the poor households whose livelihoods depend upon mango production. MGA are involving in exporting of mangoes and supply of raw materials for value addition. “Panganapalli” an exported quality is mostly cultivated and exported to the leading countries like Malaysia, Singapore and United States. They are giving most importance for post harvest practices, (i.e) pre- packing and packing practices. APEDA helps in providing financial aids for constructing pack house. Mango farmers in   near by areas (around 2000acres) joined by paying an amount of Rs 750(one time membership) and all the small farmers combined to form this association. The second issue here is that supply of products to local manufactures for preparing pickles, juice making and for pulp extracting. The season for mangoes is from April to June.
          
Visit to Magna a growing retail industry helps in discussing the latest issues related to retail. Magna a 3 year old industry started in 2005 by Mr.Anjineya, now it is one of the leading retailers (about 50 retail shops) in Andhra Pradesh. Their sales promotion and marketing activities of MAGNA are informative.

Reported by K.Kalidas & Kathrine Park