A honey and bee wax processing unit with an in-house testing laboratory, cold storage and marketing centre is all set to come up at Puttur in Dakshina Kannada. The National Bee Board (NBB), under Mini Mission II of the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission, has extended the financial assistance to a Farmers’ Producer Company for the purpose.
The NBB through the Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium has sanctioned ₹2.22 crore to the Gramajanya Farmers’ Producer Company (FPC) Ltd. to set up the unit. The FPC based at Puttur is into contract farming of apiculture and manufacturing of value added products of honey and bee wax. It is the pioneer FPC in Karnataka which is into contract farming of apiculture since 2021.
Ramapratheek Kariyal, one of the directors of the company, told The Hindu that of the amount sanctioned, ₹1 crore has been released for the purpose and the civil works of the project was launched at Mundur in Puttur a few days ago. It has been proposed to set up a 10 ton-per day capacity honey processing unit at the place.
The project proposal also comprises having a packaging and storage unit for honey and beehive products.
In addition to the financial assistance from the NBB, the Farmers’ Producer Company has planned to seek ₹3.7 crore from the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme for the unit and it can get 35% subsidy under the scheme.
“There is a potential to harvest 9,000 tons of honey per annum in the coastal region comprising some parts of Kasaragod district of Kerala,” he said.
Gramajanya Farmers’ Producer Company (FPC) Ltd, Puttur, Dakshina Kannada, is a pioneer in contract farming in apiculture in Karnataka. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Chief Executive Officer of the FPC Rajesh Suvarna said that that the company now marketed 31 honey and bee wax based value-added products. The FPC had about 400 members with 750 beehives. The company marketed different variants of honey like forest honey, box honey, sting-less bee honey, jamun honey, areca honey and the like.
Mr. Suvarna said that some of the other value products of the FPC comprised lip balm, moisturizer cream, mascara, dry fruits honey, super seeds in honey, dry fruits honey jam, bird eye chilli flavour honey, ginger flavour honey, honey ginger candy, honey amla candy, honey peanut butter and beeswax body lotion.
Its honey with dry fruits, skin care cream, lip balm and amla candy are in high demand, the CEO said.
Mr. Kariyal said that the FPC purchases honey from member farmers on a price agreed upon. This price varies depending on the market rate. It is not mandatory that the members should sell it only to the company. A member is free to sell the honey outside if gets higher price.
The FPC’s honey production for 2022-23 stood at about 4.5 tons.
