Heavy rain boosted demand for fertilizer in rice-growing areas in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. A shortage of urea has left Kerala’s pineapple farmers in distress. Urea, along with potash, is the most needed input for pineapple, both for growth and for uniform flowering, says Joy Mathew, pineapple farmer.
The shortage comes at a time when farmers are coping with excess rainfall and trying to recoup previous seasons’ losses through more intense cultivation, says Mathew. Pineapple prices have dropped to ₹18 a kg (€0.23) for best quality fruit now, but farmers expect the price to move up with the rain subsiding.
Fertilizer industry sources say a key reason for the shortage is the more than average rainfall across south India, which has boosted the demand for urea for paddy cultivation in states such as Tamil Nadu.
