KOCHI: These are testing times for coconut cultivators in the state. Going by the Coconut Development Board’s concurrent yield estimation survey for the 2016-17 (July to June) crop season, productivity is likely to continue its downward spiral.
Production for the agriculture year 2016-17 in the country is estimated at 20,789 million nuts which is 6.22 per cent lower than the previous year. The study was conducted by the board in the major coconut producing states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
The survey says production in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat and Odisha is likely to go down while it may increase in West Bengal and Maharashtra by 3.96 per cent and 0.37 per cent. In Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, which contribute almost 91 per cent of the country’s coconuts, it is likely to decrease by 8.47 per cent, 5.85 per cent, 5.17 per cent and 0.81 per cent, respectively.
Only a slight dip is expected in Andhra Pradesh indicating coconut production is on the road to recovery after it was severely hit by the Phailin and Hudhud cyclonic storms in 2013 and 2014. Gujarat and Odisha are likely to experience a major dip in production touching 15.86 per cent and 10.38 per cent.
At 13,617 nuts per hectare, Andhra Pradesh is likely to top the productivity chart while Odisha is slated to record the lowest productivity with 5,782 nuts per hectare. In Kerala, Kozhikode has the highest productivity with 11,972 nuts per hectare followed by Malappuram (11,840 nuts) and Thrissur (11,218 nuts). Idukki reported the lowest productivity with 1,856 nuts per hectare.
The decline in production in almost all the states is attributed to deficient monsoon. Cultivators in Kerala will be at the receiving end as most of them depend on the rains. In palm groves with adequate irrigation facilities where cultivation is done scientifically, the dip in production will be minimal, says the survey.