Goa: After nachnem, agriculture department looking to promote jackfruit cultivation

PANAJI: The success of the 'Nachneachem (ragi) Fest' held on Sunday at Duler in Mapusa propelled the nutrient-rich superfood to a place of pride, with the directorate of agriculture promoting its value-added products, and encouraging individuals to take up cultivation.
Following an optimistic response from festival attendees for the ragi crop, the directorate wants to also promote the Goan jackfruit in a similar fashion. With the majority of the crop going to waste, the directorate is tapping nutritional value-added products made from the wonder-fruit to promote its cultivation and consumption in Goa.
"Such festivals help us in culturally connecting with people," director of agriculture, Neville Alphonso said. "We are therefore looking at promoting crops that are neglected by people. The use of jackfruit in our daily lives is not yet found and the existing jackfruit (crop) is not yet fully utilised," he said.
To create demand for the crop, the department is looking at promoting every part of the jackfruit - from its seed which can be powdered into flour, its flesh to be processed into sweets and the raw jackfruit to be used as a substitute for meat. The department has already set up small units to process jackfruit at Sanquelim and Curchorem for entrepreneurs.
"The nachnem was socio-culturally neglected by everyone. However, by way of the festival we have succeeded in bringing it back into the minds of the people as the traditional crop that was consumed by our forefathers. Similarly jackfruit was used in every household, however its consumption has been dwindling among the present generation. We therefore want to promote it through socio-cultural events," Alphonso said.
On Sunday, the zonal agriculture officer (ZAO), Duler-Mapusa, Sampatti Dhargalkar led celebrations of the finger millet (also ragi) at the 'Nachneachem Fest'. Small farmers interested in growing nachnem were given 100g packets of seeds to be sowed in 100-200sqm plots.
Students from St Britto High School (Mapusa), St Anthony High School (Monte de Guirim), Chubby Cheeks Spring Valley High School (Pilerne), St Thomas Higher Secondary (Aldona) and Vidya Prabhodini College of Education (Porvorim) performed skits, dances and street plays to highlight millet. The agriculture officers of the directorate of agriculture performed a dance and the staff of the ZAO, Mapusa presented a skit. Popular artists; O'luv, Carlos Gonsalves, Willy Goes, Felly Gomes, Selwyn Collaso among others provided supporting music.
"People have realised the importance of nachnem in their daily diet and with that we hope that more demand for millets will be created," the director said. To tap millets further, the directorate is going to organize village-level programmes and new farmers will be identified to take up cultivation by April-May.