COIMBATORE: Cultivation of Paneer Grapes has declined drastically in Perur Taluk of Coimbatore over the last decade. According to sources, the acreage has fallen to below 100 acres from 1,700 acres in 2000. Farmers attribute this to falling market prices, rising input costs, climate change, pest infestations, fungal diseases, bat attacks, and labour shortages.
N Manickam, technical advisor of the Coimbatore District Grape Growers Association, told TNIE, “Paneer cultivation started in the late 1970s in villages such as Madampatti, Theethipalayam, Karadimadai, Kuppanur, Alandurai, Kalapalayam, and Pannermadai.
Inspired by visits to other Paneer grape-growing regions, farmers adopted the cultivation method to transition from water-intensive crops. In 2000, the input cost for establishing a vineyard was less than Rs 5 lakh; it has now soared to Rs 10 lakh. Conversely, the farm gate price has plummeted to Rs 30 per kg from Rs 100 per kg in 2015.”
“The decline in market prices is the primary reason for the dwindling cultivation in the taluk,” he said, adding that the number of grape farmers in the association has fallen from 200 to just 10.
P Eswaramurthi, a farmer from Pooluvapatti who has cultivated grapes for the last four decades in Madampatti, Karadimadai, and Vadivelampalayam, said, “Earlier, I cultivated grapes on 40 acres of land. Now, I’ve reduced it to 10 acres. I’m the last grape farmer in my village.
The first harvest comes 17 months after planting, and initially, yields occur every four months. However, due to bat attacks and climate change, we can now only get one harvest a year. These factors have driven many farmers to abandon grape cultivation since 2015.”
He added that most grape farmers have transitioned to cultivating areca nut, coconut, and other crops.
P Viswanathan, a farmer from Madampatti, dismantled his vineyard on 12 acres of land last year, citing similar reasons for switching to other crops.