Cardamom farmers fear further drop in prices

Expectation of bumper crop keeps prices low

June 11, 2015 12:00 am | Updated 05:47 am IST - IDUKKI:

Farmers spraying pesticides on cardamom plants at Vandanmedu in Idukki district.

Farmers spraying pesticides on cardamom plants at Vandanmedu in Idukki district.

The falling prices of cardamom have hit the farmers who are already faced with high cost of labour and increased prices of fertilizers and pesticides.

The average price of cardamom has fallen to Rs.650 a kilogram from over Rs.750 a couple of weeks ago.

According to Josy George, a farmer at Puttady, the prices have fallen to the lowest level in a week and there is the threat of further drop in prices as the new harvesting season will begin in a couple of days following the onset of the monsoon.

The prime season for cardamom is June to December and thousands of workers including those arriving daily from the border district of Tamil Nadu are engaged in the cardamom plantations. According to Mr. George, to make the cultivation profitable, at least a price of Rs.700 has to be received.

Farmers expected a bumper crop this season as the weather conditions were mostly favourable. According to K.S. Mathew, a planter, the prices have fallen as there was an expectation of a

bumper crop this season. But the cardamom hill reserve (CHR) areas are experiencing a high temperature after the summer rains that would negatively impact on the production. When the prices fall below the cost of production, it would not be possible to continue in the sector, he said.

Highest price

The highest price for cardamom was received in 2010, when it nearly touched Rs.2,000 a kg.

Last year, the price reached Rs.1,400 though the average prices prevailed were at a lower level for most of the season. The high fluctuation of prices in the auction centres was controlled to an extent after they were opened to a large number of businessmen.

It reduced the scope for auctioneers forming a cartel to keep the prices at a low. However, as the season is spanned over six months (with the harvesting done within 45 to 50 days), a high expectation of production could play spoilsport for the farmers.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.