Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (MS)

Mangaluru, Jul 2: The price of coconut has slumped to all time low. The farmers who earn their livelihood through coconut farming are devastated. However, a coconut farm produce company in Dakshina Kannada is trying to get good returns to coconut farmers by producing pickle, papad and rusk from coconut.

CEO of the coconut farm producing company says, “Mostly coconut is used in our country only to extract oil from it. That is why its brand value is still low. So it is natural to see slump in its price. Various companies of India and overseas market their oils and it results in the drop for demand of coconut oil. But if we use the product for other end uses, then its value will increase.”

“Coconut pickle is manufactured using 10 month ripe coconut. Oil content will be less in this. That is why the pickle will not get spoilt for long time. Right now one lac bottle of coconut pickle is ready. Our intention is to release the same in Kerala, Gujarat and overseas market,” says president of the company Prasad Shetty.

Vice president of the company Kusumaraj says, “Pickle manufacturing is under process as coconuts selected from farmers are sent to research division of Bengaluru. Later a manufacturing unit will be established in Puttur.”

Prasad says, “The concept of Coconut pickle might be new for Karnataka. But the idea and experiments have already taken place in Kerala and Gujarat. But that effort was stopped as there were no able entrepreneurs to pursue it. We also have plan of manufacturing rusk and papad from coconut. Pickle will be released to market within 10 days.”

“There are two types of coconut pickle. One has garlic while the other one is non-garlic as some people do not like to eat garlic. This idea is a boon to coconut farmers of Dakshina Kannada,” says Chethan, marketing manager of the company.