Nenthran to make Onam expensive

KOCHI: With the state gearing up to celebrate Onam, the cost of ‘Nenthran’ (plantain) has started to go up throwing hints that preparing a sumptuous Onam feast this time wouldn’t be that cheaper.Owing to the poor supply of the produce from  Tamil Nadu, the wholesale rate of the banana at Ernakulam Market stands at `30 and is likely to spurt with the increase in demand.The harvest season at Mettupalayam, the major supplier of plantain, begins only after Onam. Whereas, the quality of ‘Tiruchirapalli Nenthran’ is not good and gets perished easily. The supply from Tiruchirappalli starts in February and lasts only for two months. With more banana chips-producing units coming up in Mettupalayam the demand has increased not only in Kerala but also in Tamil Nadu. Mettupalayam Nenthran is of the best quality and is supplied for about seven months.However, plantain dealers believe that the price rate may be stabilised if the supply from local farmers is increased in another few weeks. The production of plantain in the state is also on constant decline. Wayanad cultivates ‘Nenthran’ on a large scale in the state. But, the production in Wayanad has too cut a sorry figure with the workers switching over to the national rural employment guarantee scheme.L A Joshy, a wholesale dealer, said the demand for plantain is increasing each year and so is its cost.Workers are no longer keen to take up work in banana farms in Wayanad. This has forced many farmers to stop cultivation of ‘Nenthran’ in Wayanad area, he said.Most of the workers in Wayanad are adivasis, who are hired by the cultivators in the neighbouring Karnataka to take up farming activities in the ginger estates there. This has also led to the tremendous shortage of local production.