THOOTHUKUDI: The raging strife in the middle east region has left nearly 25,000 kilogram of GI-tagged crunchy kadalai mittai (groundnut candy) stagnant in Kovilpatti.
Further, the crisis in the oil sector has pushed up the price of packaging materials by many a notch, adding to the input cost of manufacturers.
Citing the issues faced by the exporters, Tiruchy MP Durai Vaiko has submitted a memorandum to Piyush Goyal, Minister of commerce and Industry, seeking the centre’s intervention.
Kovilpatti, located 60 km from Thoothukudi, is the hub of Kadalaimittai manufacturers. Over `60 lakh worth kadalaimittai is regularly exported to various countries, including nearly `20-lakh worth of candies to Kuwait, Qatar, Dubai and United Arab Emirates (UAE). The consignment for Gulf countries is shipped through Mumbai and Kochi.
Ever since hostilities began in the Middle East, no orders have been placed by the customers and neither could pre-ordered shipments be delivered due to difficulties in shipping, said kadalaimittai exporters. At present, the freight cost of a 20-feet container for Gulf countries has scaled up from USD 650 to USD 3500 , provided safety is assured, said an exporter who did not wish to be identified.
President of Kovilpatti kadalaimittai producers and sellers welfare association K Kannan, said exporters have unsold stock of nearly 25,000 kg of kadalaimittai. “We have advised exporters to re-pack them to other viable destinations,” he said.
Apart from exports, the crisis has sent the cost of packaging materials including PP covers, pop double layer covers, plastic containers, plastic jars sky rocketing.
“The price rise of plastic materials is due to a disruption in the supply chain and packing cost has increased substantially”, Kannan said. Further, the price of main ingredient groundnut that increased by 60% recently is yet to stabilise, he added.