In 2012, Reeva Sood faced her darkest hour: her husband, Dr. Rajeev Sood, was diagnosed with intestinal cancer. The revelation shook the couple to their core – and sparked a profound awakening. “What could we have done wrong?” she wondered. His answer was stark: food. That moment triggered a radical shift toward chemical-free farming, rooted in love and healing.
Reeva abandoned city comforts and returned to her ancestral land in Himachal Pradesh’s Una district. She chose dragon fruit, a cactus fruit that thrives in rocky, arid terrain, requiring minimal water and offering rich antioxidant value. In 2017, she planted 2,000 saplings and expanded to 70 acres, adding intercropped medicinal herbs like ashwagandha, moringa, and basil, all nourished through natural techniques like vermicomposting, cow-based jeevamrit, and buttermilk sprays, featured The Better India.
The barren hillside came to life. Reeva’s holistic approach not only enriched the soil, but also set the foundation for a powerful community movement.
Empowering 300+ Women Through Him 2 Hum FPO
In 2021, Reeva launched Him 2 Hum Farmers Producer Company Limited, backed by NABARD and the National Medicinal Plant Board. Today, this women-led FPO has engaged over 300 rural women from Himachal, Punjab, Haryana, Uttarakhand, and Delhi in sustainable farming, processing, and marketing.
One beneficiary, Mamta Rathee from Haryana, shared that processing moringa and wheat into powder earns her an extra ₹10,000 each month, building independence and self-confidence.
The FPO nurtures micro-enterprises: graduates like Nishu Sood began with small loans and now run home-based production of moringa badi, becoming role models for other rural women.
Scaling Into a ₹1 Crore Venture: Agriva Naturally
Reeva’s vision extended beyond farming into processing. In 2022 she founded Agriva Naturally, a World Bank-supported venture producing dragon fruit juice, herbal blends, dried figs, and extracts under the brand “Dragona.” With a processing capacity of 153 MT, the facility employs over 100 farmers through a buy-back system.
By 2024–25, the enterprise recorded an impressive ₹90 lakh turnover, growing assets to ₹1.78 crore. Her combined agricultural and processing efforts have generated over ₹1 crore annually, proving that sustainable, community-centric farming can thrive economically.
Healing with Nature, Growing with Purpose
Reeva credits her physical and mental well-being to the rhythms of farm life. At 67, she says she feels as energetic as someone decades younger. She rescued infertile cows, turning their dung and urine into organic manure—a key component of soil revival. This bio-intensive method echoes broader efforts toward natural farming gaining ground across India.
Her farm has grown into a hub for agri-research. Collaborations with universities support studies on nutraceuticals, while interns from top colleges participate in farm operations. Reeva is now recognized nationally, receiving awards such as the State Millionaire Horticulture Farmer Award for her organic dragon fruit cultivation, earning upwards of ₹85–90 lakh annually.
Lessons for a Sustainable Future
Reeva’s journey offers powerful lessons:
- Ecology over extraction: Leveraging natural contours and farm biodiversity, she avoided disrupting terrain.
- Community-centric entrepreneurship: Over 300 women now enjoy improved livelihoods, financial dignity, and agricultural skills.
- Value-added transformation: Processing her produce locally created jobs, kept profits within the community, and built a ₹1 crore green enterprise.
- Health-driven purpose: From family illness came a renewed commitment to clean food, clean land, and clean living.
Cultivating Hope, Harvesting Impact
Reeva Sood’s story is a profound testimony: grief can seed growth, and purpose can transform barren land—and lives. Her chemical-free farming not only healed a family but also built a thriving ecosystem of economic and environmental resilience. She stands as a beacon for rural women, demonstrating that with vision and perseverance, even the most unlikely place can blossom into a center of empowerment and sustainability.
In her farm’s green rows and processing units, hope is cultivated daily. Through each sapling nurtured, each woman empowered, and each bottle of organic juice sold, Reeva proves that courage rooted in purpose can grow into a legacy that uplifts hundreds—and regenerates the planet.
Photo Credit: The Better India
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