Kerala Government eyeing import of coconut fibre

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posted on 13 years ago — updated on 1 second ago

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THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It's a sinewy problem, and don't be surprised if anyone calls 'Keralam' a quaint misnomer one of these days.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It's a sinewy problem, and don't be surprised if anyone calls 'Keralam' a quaint misnomer one of these days.
Kerala, the fabulous land of coconut palms, is looking to the Philippines and Sri Lanka for coconut fibre, thanks to an acute shortage of the same back home. The state government is considering imports from the two countries to tide over the crisis, Coir Minister Adoor Prakash said in a written reply to a question in the Assembly on Wednesday.

It's not the first time that Kerala is facing a shortage of coconut fibre, a prerequisite for a sunset industry that is also one of Kerala's traditional occupations coir.

Although both the Philippines and Sri Lanka were in the race, the former stands the best chance if Kerala indeed decides to go for a tieup, coir officials said.

The current demand for coconut fibre in the state was about 2.25 million tonnes a year. Much of it was being sourced from Pollachi at Rs 20 Rs 25 a kg. But with China entering the scene, Kerala is being forced to check out new options, Madanan said.