White areca zooms on higher floor price for import

Old and new stocks of white arecanut have crossed Rs 250 and Rs 200 a kg, respectively.

The Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Cooperative (Campco) Ltd is buying new and old stocks of white arecanut at Rs 190 and Rs 250 a kg, respectively.

(Usually, private players trade at around Rs 10 a kg more in a sellers market.)

K. Padmanabha, President of Campco, told Business Line that the recent order of the DGFT (Directorate General of Foreign Trade) increasing the floor price for import of arecanut from Rs 35 to Rs 75 a kg has played a major role in this price movement. Suresh Bhandary, Managing Director of Campco, said that farmers are controlling the market in a significant way.

They are not flooding the commodity in the market.

This has helped in bringing stability in the white arecanut market, he said. The APMC (agricultural produce marketing committee) data on arrivals and price movements of three major white arecanut markets – Mangalore, Puttur and Sullia – show that they handled 360 tonnes of old stocks and 693 tonnes of new stocks from August 1 to September 1.

The old stocks got a maximum of Rs 255 a kg in Puttur APMC and new stocks got Rs 190 a kg in Puttur and Sullia APMCs during the period.

Ramesh Kaintaje, a grower, said that farmers could be holding around 5-6 per cent of old stocks as of now.

The new stocks saw a significant jump of Rs 20 a kg in the last fortnight.

Both the prices of old and new stocks are now witnessing a historic high, he said.

Kaintaje said that even the second quality arecanut, which was trading in the range of Rs 96 a kg, went up to Rs 130 a kg after the DGFT order.

>vinayak.aj@thehindu.co.in

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