The Hindu Business Line : Call for lab facility to ensure quality of cocopeat exports

Considering the growing global demand for coir pith, the Coir Board should initiate steps for a well-equipped lab facility to ensure the quality of cocopeat (processed coir pith) exported from the country.

Some of the cocopeat products exported from India are substandard and this would adversely affect future exports, Mr Shivdas B. Menon of the Sterling Farm Research and Services Pvt Ltd said.

Though coir pith is available in plenty in the coir factories, proper processing such as reducing the electrical connectivity, buffering the pH, removal of salt and foreign materials etc are absolutely essential to establish Indian cocopeat in the world market, he said at a workshop on 11th Five-Year Plan Schemes and Programmes in Coir Sector here.

Good substrate for crops

Cocopeat is identified as a good substrate for growing floriculture, horticulture and vegetable crops as the product is organic, eco-friendly, bio-degradable and made out of renewable resource. He pointed out that cocopeat is expected to get a better share of the world market, as mining of peat in Europe will be totally stopped in a phased manner due to environmental reasons. Cocopeat is considered to be a superior alternate to peat moss and is a highly suitable media for green house cultivation

According to Mr Menon, countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam are going to be major competitors and they will have an advantage over India in placing the cocopeat products in large markets such as Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Korea etc. due to proximity.

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