Now, in the remote village of Anthaigwlao, Assam, local farmers are undergoing profound change. Fortunately, the tide is turning in part due to the simple climbing plant that produces the remarkable butterfly pea flower. Once considered a nuisance, this vivid blue flower is finally getting its due as the next natural colorant and health supplement. Farmers such as Nilam Brahma, pictured here, are seeing amazing transformations in their lives. Its increasing global demand for natural dyes has helped spur these transformations.
Nilam Brahma remembered how the butterfly pea flower started modestly in his native village. Until a few years ago, the butterfly pea flower was an obscure climbing plant in my village,” he said. The plant’s unusual properties enamored entrepreneurs and researchers alike. Yet this fascination ignited a wave of excitement over its business potential.
Varshika Reddy, founder of THS Impex, stressed the increasing international demand for natural colorants. The reason for this market gap is that “the crop is largely viewed as a backyard ornamental or medicinal plant as opposed to a cash crop,” she continued. With proper assistance and cultivation methods, farmers can take advantage of this profitable market. Reddy’s company has lately focused on exporting natural dyes and additives. She reiterated the depth of their agronomist support that helps share best production practices and irrigation scheduling.
You can use the butterfly pea flower to make an impressive cup of tea or a stunning blue dye. Its brilliant color has earned it the nickname turmeric bomb and its fame in India and nations such as Thailand and Indonesia, where citizens enthusiastically cultivate and eat this excellent plant. The demand for this natural colorant skyrocketed as consumers increasingly demanded organic alternatives to synthetic dyes.
Nitesh Singh runs a bicycle based logistics business, right outside of Delhi. He’s been instrumental in improving the quality and quantity of butterfly pea flowers grown by farmers around India to implement the project’s vision. Over the course of seven years, Singh started by helping just five farmers. He has since grown his network to over 600 farmers nationwide, successfully completing their expansion. His efforts truly paid off! He shared about an increase in yield from 50 kg to 80 kg after his adoption of scientific techniques.
Taja’s flowers are mainly sourced from South India. Good quality flowers weren’t available in India, to begin with, Singh said. Those local varieties sometimes did not have the right pigment or structure. We required a bloom with a higher pigment content and thicker petals to hold colour after drying,” he continued. Singh noted that proper training and quality control are still major issues in this growing sector.
Women are central to this agrarian transition. Singh observed that they have this natural talent of working with sensitive flower seedlings without pinching or messing up the plants. Their hands are more gentle, and they just know how to pick the tender flowers,” he said. By engaging women, they have increased the capacity of rural families in empowering communities. This strategy has dramatically increased the viability of growing butterfly pea.
Though it boasts all of these impressive qualities, the butterfly pea flower is under fire for not having its safety or efficacy established. In 2021, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) deemed it safe to use as a food additive. In 2022, when the European Food Safety Authority concluded that its continued use was not safe, it was reinstated. V Supriya, an assistant professor at Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research in Chennai, pointed out that much research on the flower has primarily involved laboratory animals: “When we began reviewing literature, we realised hardly any studies had focused on butterfly pea. Most of the available research involved rats and mice.”
As a result of the increasing popularity of butterfly pea flowers, scientists are just starting to research its health benefits in depth. “Butterfly pea was largely overlooked. With proof now coming in, particularly from human trials, its health benefits are likely to rocket it to extreme popularity,” Supriya wrote.
For farmers such as Nilam Brahma, the economic benefits are real and concrete. He shared his excitement over his first earnings from selling dried flowers: “The results surprised even me. When I sold my first batch of dried flowers and made $50 (£37), I was in disbelief. It empowered me to feel like I had agency over my own destiny.” It turns out that this newfound confidence is part of a larger phenomenon as farmers move from subsistence to more profitable commercial farming.
The blue butterfly pea flower originated as an ornamental, and still is. Today, it’s a highly lucrative agricultural commodity, showing how innovation and collaboration can create new opportunities for rural economies. Supporters like THS Impex and committed farmers all over India have stepped up big time to help. Together, we have a colorful future ahead for this beautiful native flower.