The Andhra Pradesh Community Managed Natural Farming (APCNF) programme has won the 2026 Food Planet Prize, the world’s largest environmental award for food systems, the Curt Bergfors Foundation announced on Tuesday .
The award, worth $1.5 million (approximately ₹14 crore) , was presented at a ceremony in Båstad, Sweden, recognising APCNF for leading what the jury described as “one of the world’s largest transitions to natural farming” .
A decade of transformation
Launched in 2016 by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, APCNF has grown into one of the globe’s most ambitious community-led agroecology movements. The programme is implemented by Rythu Sadhikara Samstha (RySS) , a state-supported organisation dedicated to sustainable agriculture .
Over the past decade, APCNF has brought 1.8 million farmers into natural farming practices across more than 8,000 villages. The initiative operates through 340,000 women’s self-help groups (SHGs) and a grassroots network of over 10,000 community resource persons, most of whom are women farmers training their peers .
The model empowers small and marginal farmers, tenant farmers, and landless workers to abandon synthetic fertilisers and pesticides in favour of nature-based methods. Key practices include year-round cover cropping, pre-monsoon dry sowing, and the use of low-cost bio-inoculants made from cow dung and urine .
Jury praise and global recognition
Professor Lindiwe Majele Sibanda, co-chair of the Food Planet Prize jury, commended the programme for its transformative impact. “APCNF demonstrates how nature-positive farming can be implemented across entire communities and regions, providing a scalable pathway for millions of farmers while simultaneously improving livelihoods, resilience, and environmental outcomes,” she said .
She noted that APCNF has achieved “measurable reductions in dependence on synthetic agricultural inputs and enhanced resilience to climate shocks, droughts, and economic volatility” .
The prize competition received more than 1,000 nominations from around the world. The other three finalists — Conscious Kitchen (United States), NoPalm Ingredients (Netherlands), and the Savanna Institute (United States) — each received $150,000 in recognition of their work .
State leadership and vision
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu hailed the recognition as a “first for India” and reaffirmed the state’s commitment to achieving “100 per cent natural Andhra Pradesh by 2047” .
Agriculture Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu congratulated the state’s farmers, SHGs, and community resource persons, noting that natural farming has helped reduce cultivation costs while improving net incomes. “More than 60 per cent of community resource persons involved in training farmers are women,” he said .
Vijay Kumar Thallam, Executive Vice Chairman of RySS, dedicated the award to the farming communities driving the transformation. “The magic is in the women. Natural farming became possible because women farmers, self-help groups, and communities believed a different future is possible,” he said after receiving the award .
Budithi Rajasekhar, Special Chief Secretary (Agriculture), said the recognition reflects the success of a sustained decade-long policy commitment .
From farmer to mentor: On-the-ground impact
The programme’s impact is visible at the grassroots level. D. Chamundeshwari, a farmer from Vemuru Village in Tirupati district, said: “At a time when farming communities are facing mounting climate and livelihood challenges, the APCNF programme equipped us with the knowledge and skills to transition to natural farming and produce good results” .
Another farmer, Bobbili Jyothi, who embraced natural farming after searching for better health and safer food, evolved into a mentor. Working with just a small piece of land, she now earns close to €1,844 per annum through local markets, using low-cost bio-inoculants and year-round green cover practices .
Scaling beyond Andhra Pradesh
The APCNF model is already being replicated across 22 Indian states, as well as in countries including Sri Lanka, Zambia, and Indonesia .
The prize money will be used to expand demonstration sites, strengthen research collaborations, develop implementation toolkits, support farmer-led research, and expand training programmes .
About the Food Planet Prize
The Food Planet Prize is presented by the Curt Bergfors Foundation and is recognised as the world’s largest environmental award. It honours initiatives with the potential to drive large-scale transformation of the global food system, reducing its environmental impact while contributing to resilient, equitable, and sustainable food systems .
