The steady decline in the price of copra has disappointed coconut growers in Hassan and neighbouring districts. On Saturday, the maximum price at Arsikere copra market was Rs. 12,025 per tonne against Rs. 18,000 per tonne that it fetched last year.
Copra price has been on a steady decline for the last few months. Growers had no compliant till August this year, when copra was sold at Rs. 13,500 per tonne. But, it fell to Rs. 11,700 per tonne on September 18 and dipped to Rs. 10,800 per tonne on September 22. Thankfully, the prices improved marginally over the last few weeks. Growers got Rs. 12,420 per tonne two weeks ago, while on Thursday the maximum price was Rs. 12,020 per tonne.
Somashekhar, a coconut grower from Channarayapatna taluk, said he had suffered loss due to the fall in copra prices. “I was anticipating a fall during the festival season. But, the rates dipped as soon as the holidays started. The reduction in yield due to drought had caused us loss. The price fall has compounded our problems,” he said.
For merchants, price fluctuation is another reason for worry. “The increase in arrival of the commodity has led to decrease in demand. As we are worried of losing profits if the prices come down further, we are looking at an early sale of the product purchased in the market,” said Nirvanaiah, a merchant.
