Green Business
Jyotsna Kaur Habibullah, CEO, Lucknow Farmers Market and the visionary behind the Lucknow Mango Festival (which celebrated its landmark 14th year this season on June 14), shares how this milestone year blended deep-rooted heritage with modern innovation…
Q: How has the event evolved to better connect local mango growers directly with new urban consumers?
Over the past 14 years, we have evolved from a single festival into a dynamic ecosystem. Over the years, our focus has been explicitly on disrupting the middleman supply chain. We provide a curated platform where urban consumers don’t just buy a box of fruit—they meet the person who spent a year growing it. We have introduced interactive ‘Meet the Grower’ sessions that tell the unique story of the specific orchards that the mangoes come from. Discerning urban consumers are searching for authenticity. By facilitating this direct dialogue, we ensure our farmers receive the premium pricing they deserve, while consumers get flawless fruit that hasn’t spent weeks losing its flavour in a commercial cold storage facility.
Q: Given your mission of eco-awareness, what specific sustainability initiatives or ‘green’ protocols were introduced for this event?
Sustainability isn’t just a buzzword for us; it is the heartbeat of the Lucknow Farmers Market. This year, we enforced a strict ‘Zero-Waste’ protocol that completely banned single-use plastics and left no waste behind at the festival. Steel and reusable crockery and cutlery, composting and other sustainable practices are the norm now for us. However, we are also looking at eco-awareness through a lifestyle lens. For instance, we showcased brands like Ahinsa Care, which brought their revolutionary raw mango dishwash powder to the event. By harnessing the natural acidity and astringent properties of dried raw mango, they created a potent, grease-cutting kitchen cleaner that is entirely non-toxic. It is a brilliant example of circular sustainability—showing how mango waste can replace harsh chemical detergents, keeping our kitchen grey water safe enough to pour straight back into the earth.
Q: Was there a dedicated space to showcase and preserve rare or endangered mango varieties from ‘Custodian Farmers’?
Absolutely, a focus on biodiversity is our hallmark. Custodian farmers are the unsung heroes of agricultural heritage, painstakingly preserving rare, heirloom varieties like the Khas-ul-Khas or the Staircase Mango that simply aren’t viable in mass commercial markets. We have created a dedicated space where these endangered fruits are displayed for both tasting and education. But we are taking it a step further by showing how this biodiversity extends into modern wellness. This year, we showcased Mehr’s Skincare, a progressive skincare brand incorporating mango into its formulations. Attendees saw how the highly potent antioxidants and vitamin C found in mango pulp, alongside the deep, barrier-repairing emollient properties of mango seed butter, were revolutionising clean beauty. By proving that mangoes have a future in premium skincare, we give farmers a powerful economic reason to keep these ancient trees standing as they are incorporated into mango soap, scrub, butter, cream and more products.
Q: Were there new interactive experiences, such as orchard walks or unique product launches?
This year was entirely about sensory immersion. We offered experiential Orchard Visits. We have organised guided farm visits where families can travel to nearby groves to experience the traditional, leisurely mango brunch enjoyed under the cool shade of the orchard canopy. The culinary innovation was dazzling. We hosted the official launch of artisanal Mango Kombucha by Kombucha Garden. This probiotic ‘summer sip’ utilises the high natural sugars of the fruit to drive a clean, secondary fermentation process, creating a naturally effervescent, gut-healthy beverage. It perfectly bridges the gap between nostalgic regional flavours and modern health trends.
Q: How is the festival using digital platforms to help farmers who are unable to physically travel to the Habibullah Estate?
Inclusivity is vital, and our digital reach has expanded tremendously through lucknowfarmersmarket.com. For growers in remote rural belts who face logistical challenges travelling to Lucknow, we have built a robust virtual marketplace. We feature their produce on our digital channels and use immersive storytelling—sharing video snippets of their orchards, their families and their harvesting techniques—to give them a powerful presence at the festival in spirit and commerce. Through dedicated WhatsApp business communities, we link these remote farmers directly with bulk buyers and boutique brands looking for raw materials, ensuring that physical distance is no longer a barrier to financial prosperity.
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