The Hindu Business Line : Red revolution on in Mahabaleshwar

Pune, Jan 29 Many decades after the British introduced strawberry cultivation in the Mahabaleshwar- Panchgani belt, near Pune, an initiative to sell the fruit in European markets on an experimental basis last year has led to the first firm export order of 300 tonnes this season.

In early January, Hubli-based Ken Agritech India Ltd entered into an agreement with Sriram Fruit Processing Co-op Society, Mahabaleshwar to source the fruit for export. The overseas marketing will be done by Belgian company Jobrex N V that holds a stake in Ken Agritech.

Lack of IQF

According to Mr Vivek Naik, Managing Director, Ken Agritech, while the export order augurs well for Indian strawberry, the export potential is much higher at 3000 tonnes per season. The primary limitation in moving toward this figure is the lack of Individual Quick Freezing (IQF), which essential to tap the overseas markets, he says.

To overcome at least this stumbling block, Ken Agritech is investing Rs 10 crore in setting up Tropicool Fruits Pvt Limited, a large IQF facility at Hubli, in association with ITC. It is also planning to invest in setting up an in-field cold chain and has already undertaken the task of improving the quality and yield.

“Currently the yield is around 6-7 tonnes an acre that can be raised to 11 tonnes. We are helping farmers to adopt better farming practices including the use of approved pesticides, and are moving towards Eurogap by next year,” Mr Naik said, adding that they are already implementing farmer history records from last year itself.

More area

On their part, the 850 small farmers who comprise the All India Strawberry Growers Association have been galvanized into action on account of growing demand from both overseas and the domestic market.

Mr Kisan Bhilare, Chairman, Sriram Society, revealed that the area under cultivation is up 30 per cent from 1,500 acres last year to 2,000 acres this year, and the yield expected is 15,000 tonnes from last year’s 10,000 tonnes. The season typically lasts from November to March/April.

Local demand

The local produce not only is lapped up by companies like Reliance Fresh, active marketing by members of the producing farmer has helped it find its way into malls in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Pune. “Every family has one brother producing strawberry, and the other is marketing it. Our young men are no longer going to cities for work,” Bhilare said. Clearly, there’s another red revolution in the making and this time it’s happening at Mahabaleshwar.

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