Tribal farmers join hands to launch jaggery production unit
In Idukki, Kerala, 150 tribal sugarcane farmers have formed the Marayur and Kanthallur Tribal Farmers Producer Company Limited to produce and market Marayur Undasharkara, a premium jaggery. This initiative, supported by the government, aims to secure fair pricing and market access while promoting the product’s natural purity. The production unit can process up to 1,000 kg of jaggery daily.
In a path-breaking initiative, 150 tribal sugarcane farmers from Marayur and Kanthallur villages in Idukki have joined hands to form a jaggery production unit and a company to market the produce.
The company, Marayur and Kanthallur Tribal Farmers Producer company Limited, will be producing Marayur Undasharkara (jaggery balls), one of the sweetest jaggery varieties. Officials say this is the first time a tribespeople-controlled farmers’ society has been established for production and cultivation of Marayur jaggery.
B. Anandan, a tribal farmer and president of the company, says 150 tribal farmers from Dhindukompu, Churakkulam, and Mission Vayal tribal settlements under the Marayur Sandal Division have been included in the company. “All tribal sugarcane farmers used to sell jaggery to local vendors.
The major hurdles for sugarcane farmers in Marayur are getting a fair price and access to market. We hope that through the company, we will secure proper pricing and market access for our produce avoiding middlemen,” he says.
“The company will market our product under the brand name Marayur Madhuram with a Geographical Indication tag. The unit has the capacity to produce up to 1,000 kg of jaggery a day, processing harvested sugarcane into jaggery,” says Mr. Anandan. P.G. Anil, Associate Professor and Programme Coordinator at Centre for Management Development, Thiruvananthapuram, says they are in discussions with stores and malls in India and abroad to ensure a proper market for the produce.
“In the absence of a proper market and fair pricing, sugarcane farming has declined among tribal communities, with many switching over to areca nut farming. Through the farmers’ producer company, we aim to revive sugarcane farming in Marayur,” he says. “Despite the popularity of Marayur jaggery, many counterfeit versions are available in the market.
This initiative emphasises the natural purity of Marayur jaggery, as reflected in the tagline Purity from Nature. In the long term, the project aims to diversify its output by generating various by-products from the jaggery production process. The profit generated will be directed towards the beneficiary farmers,” says Mr. Anil. The project is part of a government initiative ‘Empowerment of traditional occupations among tribal communities in Kerala (Sahyakiran)‘ funded by the Centre through the State Scheduled Tribes Development department.
The initiative directly employs 25 tribespeople in the plant and indirectly employs around 300 more in harvesting and transporting the raw material to the factory. Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Backward Classes O.R. Kelu will inaugurate the production plant and launch the brand at Dhindukompu, near Kanthallur, on Friday.
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Source Link : https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/tribal-farmers-join-hands-to-launch-jaggery-production-unit/article68577184.ece
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