KOCHI: The Horticorp and Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam (VFPCK) have started procurement of vegetables eyeing the Onam market. The Onam vegetable fairs will be held at 924 centres across the state from August 24 to 28. Horitcorp will organise 764 fairs while the VFPCK will conduct 160 of them.
Horticorp will procure 1,687 tonnes of vegetables for the fairs, of which a major share will be from the state’s farmers. Vegetables like carrots, cabbage, potato and beans will be procured from Kanthalloor and Vattavada in Idukki.
Farmers in Thrissur, Palakkad and Malappuram have grown plantain, pumpkin, snake gourd, bitter gourd, yam, colocasia, cucumber and purple yam. Vegetables like ladies finger, tomato, brinjal, carrot, beans and potato will be procured from Thenkasi, Theni, Mettupalayam and Ooty in Tamil Nadu. Onion has been procured from Nasik in Maharashtra.
“We have entered into an agreement with farmer producer organisations in Thenkasi, Ooty and Chinnamannur (Theni) for procurement of vegetables. Around Rs 4.3 crore will be distributed to farmers in Kerala for the vegetables procured till July 31 before Onam,” said Horticorp MD J Sajeev. The agriculture department will provide Rs 65,000 for each fair, of which Rs 15,000 is for infrastructure and Rs 50,000 towards sales incentives.