DINDIGUL: It’s been a double whammy for Tamil Nadu garlic farmers who are facing a drop in harvest due to unseasonal rain in Ooty and Kodaikanal over the past few months. The limited produce is also not fetching them the right price as the markets in Madurai, Dindigul and Theni districts are being flooded with the illegal Chinese garlic variety which has been banned in India since 2014 for its high pesticide content.
M P Meenakshi Sundaram, a farmer, said “We can harvest 400 kg of garlic in one acre, but we have to spend over Rs 3 lakh for it. Today, I sold my produce for Rs 340 per kg to a wholesaler. My friends are selling their crop for less than Rs 300 a kg. The retail price of garlic is over Rs 450-Rs 600 per kg. If the influx of Chinese variety via Gujarat can be stopped, our crop will fetch over Rs 400 a kg,” he said.
Farmers allege that traders, capitalising on the low supply of indigenous garlic varieties, have been selling the Chinese variety that they had procured for Rs 200-300 per kg from northern states at a price of Rs 420-450 per kg.
Local sources said over 120-150 tonnes of Chinese garlic, which reached Gujarat from China, have already been sold through auctions and have currently piled up in several markets in the three districts in the last two weeks.
Speaking to TNIE, Tamil Nadu Farmers Protection Association deputy general secretary C Nethaji said the traders, due to an inadequate supply from Kodaikanal and Ooty, have been procuring the vegetable for the last three months from Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Himachal Pradesh. He said, “These garlic are big and whitish; not the Indian varieties. Everyone in the garlic trade in Gujarat is aware of it.
The Chinese variety is imported through containers and has already flooded the markets in Gujarat. As it is banned, they are being transported to the southern states.” As the Chinese variety is hard to distinguish even for some farmers, the traders are selling it for Rs 420-Rs 450 per kg in retail shops in the districts, he claimed.
M P Meenakshi Sundaram said two varieties of ‘malai poondu’ are currently harvested in the state -- Singapore variety, which is a 120-day crop, and Mettupalayam variety (90-day crop). He said, “Indian garlic is identified by its reddish colour and a strong aroma and taste. But the Chinese garlic has a mild aroma and taste. ”
K Gunasekaran, said the supply from the northern states has gone down, claiming that some Kodaikanal and Mettupalayam farmers have started selling the malai poondu variety to Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. Further, he said the price of the Indian garlic has gone up with the good quality ones touching even Rs 600 per kg. An official from the food safety department said, “We will carry out inspections in Dindigul and Madurai districts.”