Coconut farmers unite to reap benefits

KOCHI: The number of farmers reaping benefits by registering under the Coconut Development Board (CDB) through Coconut Producers Societies (CPS)has witnessed a steep rice in recent times.A society takes shape when farmers from a particular area form a group to conduct activities together, thereby raising the chances of securing more profits for their produce and products such as coconut husk and shell, which otherwise fail to garner significant profits when sold individually.The highest number of the societies registered with the CDB are from Kasargod, with 155 such bodies from the district seeking the Board’s assistance. Kasargod, Kannur and Kozhikode account for 316 of the total 497 CPSs registered with the CDB. “It is very expensive for a small-time farmer to invest considerably in production or harvest. The farmers also fail to make much profit when they sell their produce in local markets individually. The support price set by the CDB ensures that the societies under it get reasonable prices for coconuts and associated products. Export quality coconuts are sorted and farmers are offered a price of `12 per coconut,” said M A Sebastian of the CDB. “The remaining produce is procured later as copra through KERAFED and NAFED. The CDB also has plans to form federations of 20 to 25 CPSs, which would enable them to establish medium-sized processing units,” he added.The farmers also have to deal with a severe shortage of climbers. “The harvest was delayed for around eight months owing to the shortage of climbers. The society had provided a week-long training to climbers, whose pay was contributed by all the farmers. This reduced the financial burden on marginal and small-scale farmers,” said the president of Karipal Nalikera Ulpadana Sangham in Kannur.