The Nagai Organic Farmers Producer Company is looking forward to initiating production of mango pulp during June at the extraction unit it had established last year with government support at Kameswaram village in Keelayur taluk.
The fruit pulp extraction unit launched last August by Textiles Minister O. S. Manian has a capacity to process 3,000 tonnes of mangoes every year.
Since several thousands of mango trees were uprooted in coastal villages due to Gaja cyclone, the farmer producer company has been pushed into a situation of procuring mangoes from other places, including Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri districts and Natham in Dindigul district.
“It will take three to four years before ensuring adequacy of mangoes from within the district as the fallen trees that have taken roots again have to grow,” Saravanan, Chief Executive Officer of the Nagai Organic Farmer Producer Company told The Hindu .
The fruit pulp extraction unit has been a long-felt need of the farmer community for securing the right price for the horticultural products.
“The machinery and the processes will be the same to process guava and other fruits grown in the district, besides tomato,” Mr. Saravanan said. The trial run was successful, and the company was hopeful of operating the unit profitably, he said.
The 3,000 members of the Nagai Organic Farmer Producer Company and Thirumuraikadu Kadalora Vivasayigal Kotaimaippu have together contributed a little over ₹70 lakh for the ₹ 9.34 crore project monitored by the Agricultural Marketing Department.
Over the last two months, the functionaries of the farmer producer company had fulfilled the requirement for patta transfer of the land on which the production unit has been established.
The patta transfer is a pre-requisite for the company to secure licence and obtain bank loan for commencing production activity. The machinery installed in the unit has a capacity to process six tonnes per hour. The seasonal activity is expected to provide employment to not less than 150 persons besides ensuring satisfactory procurement price for mango growers.
