Pioneering Spices Research- A
success Story
Life has changed for good for Mr. George Thomas Panackavayal,
a 65 year old progressive farmer from Koorachundu in Kozhikode district of
Kerala. George Thomas’s story is an inspiration for those who lament
agriculture is no more a profitable business. From a novice farmer to an award
winning visionary figure, his triumph is a living testimony to the significant
work done by the Indian Institute of Spices Research
(IISR), Kozhikode,through its Krishi Vigyan Kendra(KVK).
Being a traditional black pepper grower, George
was cultivating local varieties. Yield from these vines was not so promising
and most of the vines died because of quick wilt. Like any other traditional
farmer, his life was also full of ups and downs.
The Beginning of a New
Innings
It
was in the year 2007, a training programme on mushroom cultivation at IISR’s Krishi Vigyan Kendra
located at Peruvannamuzhi in Kozhikode district changed his life
forever. It was the beginning of a winning partnership in agriculture. With the
guidance and support of the KVK, he started a mushroom cultivation unit
investing around one lakh rupees.
Later George Panackavayal turned into
cultivation of ginger and turmeric by procuring five kilograms of IISRPrabha variety
of turmeric and Varada variety of ginger. He followed the scientific
crop management practices; took the advice of experts from KVK and IISR at each
and every stage of cultivation and it worked well. In 2010, he sold 1000 kg of
turmeric and 500 kg of ginger rhizomes to other farmers through the
Participatory Seed Production programme of KVK. Next year also, he
harvested a bumper yield of 500 kg of turmeric and 400 kg of ginger from a mere
15 cents of land.
In the year 2007, he planted around 300 vines of
high yielding varieties of black pepper such as Sreekara,Subhakara, Panchami and Pournami released
by IISR. From the third year of planting, the vines started yielding and in
year he got a yield of 200 kg fetching him a net income of 75000 rupees. He is
also growing coconut, areca nut, nutmeg, rubber, tapioca and other tuber crops. He
was one of the four farmers mentioned in the Harvesters of Hope, a compilation
of the success stories of 101 farmers in the country, published by the Ministry
of Agriculture in 2009. He credits all his success to the support he got from
IISR.
George’s success story is not an isolated one.
Thanks to remarkable work done by IISR; many farmers have scripted success
stories by cultivating different spices across the country.
IISR Genesis
Spices research in the country had a modest
beginning with the establishment of a regional centre of Central Plantation
Crops Research Institute at Calicut- the city of spices in the year 1975 by the
Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). Further in 1995 the research on
spices gained full momentum with the establishment of Indian Institute of
Spices Research, the one and only ICAR centre for research on spice crops. The
institute is located in a serene campus of 14.3 hectors at Chelavoor, 11
kilometers from Calicut city.
The experimental farm of IISR is located at Peruvannamuzhi,
a picturesque setting about 51 kilometers north east from the city of Calicut.
The research farm, set up in a leased land of 94.8 hectares, focuses on
intensive production of nucleus planting materials and conservation of
biodiversity in spices. IISR is also the headquarters of All India Coordinated
Research Projects on Spices which is the largest spices research network in the
country. The mandate crops of the institute are black pepper, cardamom, ginger,
turmeric, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice,garcinia, vanilla and paprika.
IISR maintains the world’s largest germplasm repository
of spices with a total of 2575 black pepper accessions, 435 cardamom
accessions, 685 ginger and 1040 turmeric accessions. Apart from this, the
institute has gene repositories of Vanilla, Paprika and other tree spices such
as Cinnamon, Clove, Nutmeg and Cassia.
A significant contribution of the institute in
the field of spices research is the breeding of high yielding spice varieties
that are tolerant to drought, pests and diseases. The institute has developed
various technologies for sustainable production of spices.
Spices Varieties
Released by IISR
A significant contribution of the institute in
the field of spices research is the breeding of high yielding spice varieties
that are tolerant to drought, pests and diseases.
Eight varieties of black pepper were released by
the institute. Varieties such as Sreekara, Subhakara,Panchami and Pournami are
already in the farmers’ field. Latest varieties include IISR Thevam, IISR
Malabar Excel, IISR Girimunda and IISR Shakthi.
IISR Vijetha 1, IISR Avinash and
IISR Kodagu Suvasini are the cardamom varieties developed by the
Cardamom Research Centre (CRC) of IISR functioning at Appangala in Kodagu district
of Karnataka.
The ginger varieties of the institute, IISR Varada,
IISR Rejatha and IISR Mahima are suitable for cultivation
in all major ginger growing tracts of the country.
Eight high quality turmeric varieties have been
released so far by the institute. Suguna, Sudarshana, Parbha,Prathibha and
IISR Alleppy Supreme are known for their high curcumin content
and other quality attributes.
IISR Vishwasree, a high yielding nutmeg
variety with a bushy and compact canopy, is suitable for all tracts in South
India. Kerala Shree another nutmeg variety released recently. Navasree and Nithyasree are
the leading cinnamon varieties of IISR well known for their bark oil and
oleoresin.
White Pepper Production
Technology
White pepper is one of the value added forms of
black pepper that fetches high revenue for farmers. Owing to its charming
creamy white colour, mild flavor, attractive odor, good taste and
suitability to use in any food item, it has become a hot choice in the
international market especially in the European countries. It also fetches
almost fifty percent higher price in the market.
Traditionally, white pepper is produced by the
de-cortication of ripened or dried berries. But this conventional method and
other mechanical decortications were inadequate for bulk production of white
pepper at industrial or farm level. The hygienic aspects and quality of white
pepper are also a matter of concern. Scientists at IISR have developed a
bacterial technology for converting mature green pepper to white pepper through
bacterial fermentation.
Mature green pepper obtained after harvest is
washed in sterilized water containing a mid log phase culture of Bacillus
bacteria and it is incubated at room temperature for five days. Then the pepper
berries are trampled and washed thoroughly with running water to remove
degraded pericarp and bacterial metabolites. Creamy white pepper
berries obtained through fermentation is dried to get high quality white
pepper.
Broiler Goat Rearing
‘Broiler Goat Rearing’, fine-tuned by the
scientists of the Peruvannamuzhi Krishi Vigyan Kendra of
IISR is a boon to the farming community especially in the areas where green
fodder is in scarce. Under this method, 15 to 30 days old kids with a higher
birth weight are selected before they start eating green leaves. These kids,
once identified, are kept away from their mothers and are housed separately in
sheds made of bamboo or wooden poles. Proper ventilation, sunlight and
cleanliness are ensured at all the times.
Initially, the kids are given small quantities
of concentrated feed. And the quantity is increased gradually depending upon
the intake. Additional supplements such as liver tonic mixed with fish oil are
also given twice a week. Young kids are also provided with mother’s milk for
one month (twice or thrice a day) for their proper growth. Various women self
help groups like Kaveri Kudumbashree and Nidhi and
several other individual farmers in Peruvannamuzhi of Kozhikode
district of Kerala have been rearing goats in this method for the past five
years. According to the members of the group the method is highly suitable for
those who don’t have enough land for grazing animals.
Less cost, more profit, ease in cattle
management and a good demand for the goat meat are some of the many favourable factors
encouraging the farming community to adopt broiler goat rearing more
passionately. Kids bred under broiler technology gain about 25-33 kilograms in
120-140 days, whereas in traditional system of green feeding, the goats acquire
only a maximum weight of 10 kilos, that too in 6 months. The expenditure
towards feeding a kid under this method comes to about Rs. 1200. A net income
of Rs. 5050 to 7050 (at Rs. 250 per kg on live weight basis) can be easily
realized in this method.
IISR is continuing its journey. By changing the
lives of generations positively this institute is presenting science with a
human touch.
No comments:
Post a Comment