ECONOMIC ANALYSIS OF THE WORLD LARGEST FRESH COCONUT MARKET IN INDIA

K.P. NAVEENA¹*, Y.S. ARUNKUMAR^2
1Department of Agricultural Economics, University of Agricultural Sciences, Gandhi Krishi Vigjana Kendra, Bangalore, 560 065
²Directorate of Research Division, University of Agricultural Sciences, Gandhi Krishi Vigjana Kendra, Bangalore, 560 065
* Corresponding Author : greesh.626@gmail.com

Received : 13-05-2016     Accepted : 20-08-2016     Published : 30-10-2016
Volume : 8     Issue : 52       Pages : 2394 - 2398
Int J Agr Sci 8.52 (2016):2394-2398

Keywords : Tender Coconut, Skilled Tender Coconut Extractor, Marketing Channel, Marketing Cost, Agricultural Produce Market Committee
Conflict of Interest : None declared
Acknowledgements/Funding : None declared
Author Contribution : None declared

The world’s largest fresh (tender) coconut market is located in Maddur about 80 kms from Bengaluru, exclusively built for tender coconut. The study pertains to analysis of marketing of tender coconut in Maddur. The data base consist of cultivators, traders, skilled tender coconut extractors (STCE) and consumers of tender coconut from whom primary data were collected by personal interviews during 2015. In addition, secondary data (for 2005 to 2013) pertaining to market arrivals and prices from the official records of the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC), Maddur were collected. The results indicated that the arrivals and prices of tender coconut were at their peak during February-April as 46 per cent of the tender coconuts arrived during Feb-April where the price ranged from Rs. 5.17 to Rs. 6.86 per nut. The marketing channels for tender coconut were: Channel-I: Farmer- Village trader - APMC trader- trader in Bengaluru- STCE- Consumer, Channel-II: Farmer- APMC trader- trader in Bengaluru- STCE- Consumer, Channel-III: Farmer- APMC trader- STCE- Consumer, Channel-IV: Farmer- Village trader-APMC trader-STCE- Consumer. The farmer’s share in consumer rupee was higher in channels II and III, since it had 3 intermediaries between farmer and consumer. Here, the farmer incurred a marketing cost, which formed 11.68 per cent of the consumer rupee as the tender nuts were directly sold in APMC by farmers. Farmers expressed that traders in APMC do not prefer to deal with them directly in the marketing of tender coconuts.