The Kerala Horticulture Development Corporation has launched a procurement operation to support farmers, as pineapple prices have been sliding to ₹15 a kg for the best grade green quality and the ripe fruit fetching only ₹13 a kg in the wholesale market.
Pineapple farmers said around 6,000 tons of ripe fruit were likely to be abandoned, as harvesting and transport operations had been hindered due to the lockdown. With Ernakulam district coming under triple lockdown, there is little movement of goods and produce out of the district.
Horticorp sources said the corporation had not set any volume target, but that it would continue procurement to help farmers. As on Wednesday, the corporation had procured more than 18 tons of the fruit, and the next lot will be procured on Sunday.
It is reported on Horticorp procuring pineapples through the Vazhakulam Agro and Fruit Processing Company at a price of ₹15 per kg. The state government had announced late last year that pineapple would get a support price of ₹15 per kg. The support price mechanism was introduced to help farmers when the price of produce went down below their production cost.
[ ₹ 100 = € 1.10 ]
