KADAPA: Banana farmers in Pulivendula constituency of Kadapa district are facing heavy losses after market prices plunged by more than 60 per cent within a month.
The fruit, which recently fetched Rs 22,000 per tonne, is now struggling to secure even Rs 8,000, leaving cultivators anxious and disheartened.
Pulivendula, the largest banana-growing region in Kadapa, has nearly 20,000 acres under cultivation spread across Lingala, Pulivendula, Simhadripuram, Thondur, Vemula, and Vempalle mandals. Many farmers shifted from sugarcane to bananas in the hope of better returns, but unstable prices have pushed them into financial distress.
Despite government assurances of support for horticulture and export promotion, the sudden market slump has forced many growers to plead with traders for deferred payments.
In several orchards, ripe bunches lie rotting on the ground, filling plantations with foul odours.
Pulivendula bananas are prized for their superior quality and longer shelf life — lasting 12 to 14 days compared to 8 to 10 days elsewhere.
They are widely exported to Arab countries, Kashmir, Delhi, West Bengal, and Haryana, with traders commending their taste and durability even in relatively poor soils.
Lingala farmer Rammohan Reddy, who cultivates bananas on three acres, said, “We had high yields this year, and prices were good just 25 days ago.”
Farmers said they are caught in a cycle of repeated losses—first from natural calamities, now from volatile markets.