A slump in the market price of the “nendran” variety of plantain because of the huge arrival of the produce from Karnataka has put plantain cultivators in Wayanad in distress.
The spot price of the first grade nendran variety was ₹10 a kg on Wednesday as against ₹ 36 a kg during the corresponding period last year.
Trading circles said climate change had affected the quality of a huge chunk of the local plantain crop, resulting in the price fall.
There was no enquiry for the produce from units making banana chips and vendors in the neighbouring districts. Hence, the produce was selling as a vegetable item in the markets, they said.
The arrival of better quality plantain from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu during the period also led to a fall in price, they said.
Usually, farmers in the district start plantain harvest during the Onam season. But last year, many farmers had suffered a huge loss after their crops were destroyed in the floods. Those farmers who had resumed the cultivation after the deluge were facing another loss now owing to the sharp decline in the price of the produce, said K. Asokan, a farmer at Valad.
The price of second grade plantain in the market was ₹8 a kg, but many traders were refusing to buy it for the past two weeks on the ground that there was no demand for second grade plantain in the markets, Mr. Asokan said.
Though the Kerala State Horticultural Products Development Corporation Ltd (Horticorp) began procuring the produce at the minimum support price of ₹25 a kg from Monday, it was yet to make any positive change in the price of the produce in the open market.
The Horticorp is procuring the produce twice in a week at their collection centre at Sulthan Bathery. But the facility would not help farmers who wee far away from the market as they had to spend a huge amount for transporting the produce, farming sources said.