Promote neera, allied sectors in district, farmers urge collector

COIMBATORE: Seven months after the State government permitted extraction of neera, a form of palm nectar, no facility has been set up to test the beverage and neither has there been any training session conducted for coconut farmers on the process of extracting it or using it for different purposes, representatives of the Tamil Nadu Farmers' Association said here on Monday.

In a petition to the collector, president of the association S Palanisamy appealed to the State government to set up a neera testing facility and conduct training sessions for the farmers. "It is high time the government starts training farmers on the most cost-effective way to extract neera from coconut trees. The government had in March announcement training on the extraction and creation of value-added products from neera including drinks, sweets, sugar and cakes," he said. "But there has not been a single word about neera since."

"The nearest neera testing facility is in Kochi. Why should our farmers travel all the way to Kochi to understand the neera certification process and standards that have to be maintained when extracting and marketing it? Tamil Nadu should have its own testing and training facility," an association member said.

This could also be an opportunity to promote Coimbatore and Pollachi, known for coconut farms. "If they set up such a centre in Coimbatore, the district could in turn attract farmers from places like Theni, Dindigul, Tirupur and Krishnagiri, which will also boost the district's revenue," the petition said.

Tamil Nadu currently has about 1.5 lakh farmers cultivating coconut trees on about 10.74 lakh acres. "Coconut trees on almost one lakh acres have either died or have registered a drop in production owing to the drought. Focus on neera industry would help augment their income," Palanisamy added.