In Dakshina Kannada district, thousands of hectares of arecanut plantations are making way for a plant that all but fell out of favour in the recent years — rubber. The change is there to see: Hundreds of uprooted arecanut palms greet visitors at Guttigar, Sampaje, Kallugundi, Peerage, Aletty, Ajjavara, Mandekolu, and in parts of Subrahmanya.
Rubber’s comeback can be attributed to two factors: High labour and input costs in arecanut cultivation, and the manifold surge in rubber prices over the last three years. The spiraling prices has prompted even the most cautious farmers in Sullia, Puttur and Beltangady taluks to chop down arecanut palms and plant rubber saplings instead.
Nearly 12,000 hectares in Sullia taluk alone have brought under rubber plantations. Even though past experiences with commercial crops have burned farmers’ figures — arecanut never really made them cash rich and the vanilla experiment was not successful — rubber prices have given them confidence.
In 2000-2001, rubber was priced at Rs 25 per kg. In 2001-02, it sold at Rs 32.28 a kg, a modest increase. In 2006- 07, however, the prices rose to an alltime high of Rs 92.04 per kg. It marginally declined to Rs 90.29, in 2008- 2009, only to cross the Rs 100 a kg threshold by 2009-10. The current price of rubber is Rs 183 per kg and is likely to increase up to Rs 200, say industry experts.
According to them, prices have increased due to spurt in demand for rubber. In 2000, per capita rubber consumption in India was 700 grams, it has increased to one kg per capita, according to a recent study. It is still below the global per capita rubber consumption of 3.29 kg.
Farmers also take heart from the fact that compared to other commercial crops, rubber is less labour-intensive.
Arecanut, besides being labour-intensive, is vulnerable to diseases like the Kole Roga or the fruit rot disease.
This year, the disease has caused a substantial decrease in yield in Markanja, Goonadka and other areas of Sullia.
Jagadeesh Bangarkody, a farmer from Peraje, said he had been cultivating arecanut until a year ago but has now changed to rubber. Lack of support from the government, bleak predictions about arecanut — due to ban on gutka in some states — forced him to start rubber cultivation, he added.
The market rules
Kunthoorpadavu-Kadaba Rubber Producer Association president V M Thomas says if Rs 90 is invested to produce one kg of acrecanut, the return is only Rs 60. For rubber, the production cost is Rs 65 per kg, and it can sell for much as Rs 180 a kg.