Copra shortage has forced coconut oil traders in Kerala and Tamil Nadu to look for alternate sourcing options to meet the demand.

Thalath Mahmood, Director, Coconut Oil Merchants Association (COMA), said that several traders – including some corporate companies engaged in branded coconut oil business – are now looking at sourcing copra from Indonesia, the Andamans and Lakshadweep. However, the quality of such copra is paramount and traders are reportedly waiting for samples before proceeding with.

Rising demand He attributed the tight supply of copra to higher demand for coconut bi-products such as coconut powder, virgin coconut oil, desiccated coconut, etc. Apart from this, several powder manufacturing companies at Tiptur in Karnataka have started purchasing de-husked coconut from Kasargod at ₹32/kg to convert it into copra. The daily movement of cargo is estimated at 30-40 loads, he said.

Meanwhile, the coconut oil market both in Kerala and Tamil Nadu witnessed a drop of ₹200 a quintal at ₹13,800 and ₹13,200 respectively. Copra prices also moved southwards touching ₹9,900 (₹10,100) in Kerala and ₹9,800 (₹10,000) in Tamil Nadu. However, some corporates have started purchasing copra at higher prices from the open market in the last two days to meet their production requirements, he said.

Bharat Khona, former Board member, COMA, said that the loose coconut oil market in Tamil Nadu registered a decline at ₹1,850 for 15 kg from ₹1,950. However due to tight supply, copra arrivals have not picked up in both these States.

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