Ginger farmers in Kerala and Karnataka usually prefer to harvest ginger roots by the first week of April as they get the maximum price for their produce at that time. But more than 60% of the farmers, especially those cultivating ginger rhizomes in Karnataka, are yet to harvest their crop owing to the sharp fall in the price of the produce.
The farm gate price of the produce in Wayanad on Thursday was ₹1,000 to ₹ 1,100 a bag (60 kg) as against ₹2,300 a bag during the corresponding period last year. The price had gone up to ₹8,000 a bag a few years ago, which prompted many farmers to take up ginger cultivation.
Overproduction and diseases affecting the crop, especially bacterial wilt disease affecting matured roots, are the major reasons for the low price of the produce, one ginger trader said. Moreover, there have been no demand for the produce from northern India after the outbreak of the pandemic, he added.
[ ₹100 = €1.20 ]
Source: thehindu.com