Reeling units key for viability of new cocoon market

Over 3,000 kg of cocoons were sold on the first day of transaction at the market

A farmer putting up his lot of cocoons for auction at the cocoon market at APMC Yard in Mysuru on Sunday.

Sunil, a farmer from Daripura in Mysuru, was quite pleased after selling cocoons he had reared at the newly-opened cocoon market at Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) yard in Bandipalya on the outskirts of Mysuru on Sunday.

During the auctions, he sold one lot of 131 kg of cocoons for ₹324 per kg and another 138 kg for ₹334 per kg. “I used to travel to the cocoon market in Ramanagaram every time I had to sell cocoons. I managed to save ₹1,000 that I would other wise incur for transportation,” said Mr. Sunil.

For most sericulture farmers here, the setting up of a cocoon market in Mysuru has proved very convenient. Many farmers in Mysuru district find the market closer than others in Malavalli, Kollegal, Santhemarahalli, T. Narsipura and Ramanagaram.

However, the key to the viability of the cocoon market is the presence of a critical mass of reelers, who buy the cocoons for production of raw silk. Mysuru does not have an adequate number of reelers. The market for the cocoons is determined by the demand from reelers, who are mostly concentrated in regions around bigger cocoon markets like Ramanagaram and Kollegal.

Muzammil Pasha, a reeler from Kollegal, who participated in the auction in Mysuru, said he purchased about 100 kg of cocoons from the Mysuru market on Sunday as he had come to check it out. He did not see a point in regularly purchasing cocoons from the market in Mysuru as his reeling operations were based out of Kollegal, which also has a thriving cocoon market.

Though more than 3,000 kg of cocoons were sold on the first day of transaction at the cocoon market in Mysuru, Sericulture Department officials said the State-owned Karnataka Silk Industries Corporation (KSIC) accounted for 80% of the produce.

Meanwhile, A.M. Mayagaiah, MD, Koppa Sericulture Farmers’ Producer Company, Maddur, whose company also brought cocoons to the market in Mysuru on Sunday, said they will be monitoring the prices in different markets. “We will go the market offering us the best price,” he added.

Competition among reelers for purchase of good quality cocoons is key for cocoon rearers to realise a good price for produce.

Department officials said Automatic Reeling Machines (ARM) that process a large quantity of cocoons daily were needed in good numbers to give the industry a boost. “We have one ARM in Bannur near here and one is expected to be set up in Mysuru soon,” said a department official adding that the government provides a subsidy of 75% to the ARM, which costs around ₹1.32 crore.

Officials are also looking forward to early setting up of the Mega Silk Cluster at Belavadi in Mysuru with state-of-art infrastructure to attract more reelers to Mysuru.