Go in for value-addition, banana growers told

Banana growers in the district have been encouraged to enrol themselves with Tamil Nadu Banana Producers’ Company to generate more revenue from value addition.

They are being sensitised to the utility of main stem that is usually discarded. Farmers say they spend as much as Rs. 10,000 per acre for cutting and removing the main stem after harvest.

Over the years, farmers with small holdings are increasingly inclined towards banana cultivation due to fluctuations and drop in procurement costs of turmeric and sugarcane. Vast swathes of fields could be seen in Gobichettipalayam, TN Palayam, Sathy and Bhavanisagar blocks. According to official sources, banana is cultivated in around 6,000 hectares every year. In Erode district,

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robusta varieties are cultivated, says S. Jeyaraj of Kattukottai in Bhavani block, one of the directors of the newly formed producers’ company based in Tiruchi.

The main purpose behind forming the company is to produce and market value-added products, including fibres, by ourselves, he said. Banana grows all through the year in cycles in Mettupalayam-Sirumugai, Erode, Tiruchi and Tirunelveli regions, he said.

The Myrada Krishi Vigyan Kendra has been training farmers in extraction of banana fibre that is traditionally used for stringing flowers and in manufacture of paper and rugs. About 120 kilograms of banana fibre could be extracted in a day per acre from 1,000 to 1,500 psuedostems. The fibre is procured for amounts ranging from Rs. 110 to Rs. 200 per kilogram.

The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University that has been imparting training in banana fibre extraction has played a pivotal role in the formation of the Producers’ Company, farmers said.

They are being sensitised to the utility of main stem that is usually discarded