Introduction: FROM TREE TOP TO GOLDEN FIBRE

In Kerala, coconut and coir proves to be an essential part of our livelihood. Even the name of the state has its origin from the Malayalam word Kera which means coconut. In the early 90s, the Coir Industry was a driving force in Keralas development. Today, more than 4 lakh of Keralas population thrives on this trade, a majority of who are females. Most of these employees have proven to be economically and socially backward. The coir industry in Kerala is mainly concentrated in the coastal districts of the State. The major sectors of the coir industry are Co-operative, Private, Public, Government undertakings and unorganized manufacturing units. However, the coir sector has not grown appreciably and has remained somewhat stagnant over a large period of time. Coir products

Strings Mats and furnishing products including carpets : Rod mats (Brush mats), Fibre mat, Creel mat, Bit mats, Specialty mats- sinnet mats, corridor mats, rope mats, Cord, cable or ribbed mats Matting rugs Rubberized coir Geo textiles Roof greening mats Mulch blankets Bio rolls Grow sticks Fertilizers(coir pith) The husk decays during the process of retting #, emitting flammable gases like methane, ethylene etc which can substitute the use of bio-gas in cooking households Geo textiles: The present day application of coir has been in the geo-textiles area which contributes to majority of its exports. Geo-textile application can be considered a major breakthrough as far as the coir industry is concerned. Geo-textile, being a permeable fabric is laid on slopes; it protects and promotes the vegetative cover in the initial stage. Over a period of time the fibre degrades and mixes up with the soil, binding it and thereby enriching the soil.

Data acquisition First, we met up with Mr. Siva Prasad, Assistant Director of Industries Dept. He, being a former manager in the coir dept. gave us a brief but clear cut idea of the falls and drawbacks of the Coir Industry today. He introduced us to Mr. Suresh, Asst Distict officer of Coir Industry, Trivandrum. Mr. Suresh briefed us on the major innovations and the latest mechanizations introduced into the coir industry. He also explained the drawbacks of the present technology and the need to empower the traditional coir yarning mechanisms which is essential to the industries survival. Even though India falls behind Indonesia and Singapore in the annual production of coconuts, our country is the largest producer of coir yarn, and almost 70 percent of the countrys coir comes from the state of Kerala.

Global coir yarn production (1000 tonne )

Country India Sri Lanka Philippines Bangladesh Total Production 295 221 14 11 579 Percentage 50.48 37.88 2.49 1.99 100

Source : coir board data 2008

Statistics of the coir yarn production in India (in tonnes)

State
Kerala Tamil Nadu Karnataka Andhra Pradesh Others

1970-71
102000 38000 1700 1560 7540

1980-81
121100 40700 1860 1600 4120

1990-91
140000 42610 4470 3400 10090

2000-01
151000 99600 24000 23240 25000

2006-07
181000 114000 43600 37400 34200

Total

151250

170000

201700

324100

430000

Source: coir board - annual reports, various issues- till 2009

In Kerala, Alappuzha is the leading producer of coir yarn, owing to 50% of the states total production. In light of the statistics of production in the state, the availability of raw husk is maximum in Malappuram and the least in Kottayam. But there is a scarcity of husks for the production of coir yarn in Kerala, mainly due to high labour charges and the absence of diverse collection mechanisms.

INDUSTRY VISIT

After collecting the necessary information about the status of coir industry from Coir Bhavan, Trivandrum, we decided to visit the coir yarn units situated in different parts of Kerala to analyse the different problems associated with the industry today. We did visit three prominent areas where coir industries are located: They are 1) Paravur 2) Mayyanad 3) Alappuzha From the interaction with the workers and with the small scale unit owners associated with this industry we summed up the following problems: 1) Lack of coconut husk for retting 2) Due to clause of pollution, retting have been stopped in most areas, hence there has been a downfall of good quality coir yarn needed for the industry. Hence the workers are not getting enough working days throughout the year. 3) The lack of a good coconut husk procurement system has forced many industries in Kerala to get husk from nearby states of Tamil Nadu, from where husks are available at cheap price than the one which is available in Kerala 4) The workers are waged less compared to other jobs. The workers were getting around Rs 120/day compared to a mason or so who earns around Rs 500/day. Hence there has been a shortage of workers for the trade. The workers employed in this industry have taken up this job, as they are skilled only in this job. 5) An important observation was that there werent any new recruits to the trade for the past five years.
6) Mechanization might reduce the cost of labour, but is found to degrade the yarn

quality. Mechanization saves manpower but degrades product quality 7) Competition from well developed synthetic fibers like plastic, nylon etc 8) Inadequate Marketing

9) Lower product pricing and higher cost of production

Observations

From the survey conducted from the key coir production centers in Kerala, we have came to the conclusion that the most serious problem faced by the industry is the lack of raw material .The irony behind the situation is that besides producing the largest amount of coconuts in the nation, the State cant bring out an efficient procurement strategy to deal with the situation. As a result the industry buys coir at a higher price from nearby states where labour is available at a cheap rate. In Kerala, the coconut kernel is an essential food ingredient that contributes to taste in a number of preparations. Coconut is also valued for the extractable edible oil contained in the kernel. Thus the fiber associated with coconut is often considered secondary and due to lack of an organized collection mechanism, a large part of this is utilized as fuel and only the remaining is utilized for fiber extraction. This happens even in the coconut oil industry where they concentrate on the oil and the oilcake. Enough attention is not paid for utilization of the fibrous part. Also most of the husk produced is burned in households or in industries like brick, clay..etc. .Due to competition in the international market and synthetic substitutes, prices of the finished coir products cannot be raised. This leads to lower product pricing than the cost of production. This has been the major reason for the decline of the industry in Kerala .The coir industry fails to attract youngsters, due to large amount of work and very low wages. The coir industry in Kerala presently provides direct employment to about 3.60 lakhs persons including those who are employed for part of the year. It is a fact that a good percentage of this number is women engaged in the spinning of coir. The indirect employment is also very significant. The potential of this industry for upgradation and expansion is high and if taken advantage of, this will have a significant impact on the coastal economy of the State. Recognizing this fact, the Government introduced a number of regulations for sustaining the industry including those intended to improve the availability of husk for the industry at reasonable cost; which could not meet the current demand. The industry is beset with certain inherent problems that need to be overcome to achieve accelerated growth. Neither the coconut farmers nor the end product manufacturers are involved in the primary and extensive activities of husk collection, retting husk, fibre extraction and spinning of yarn. The initiatives for these peculiarly rest with the intermediary or informal sector operated by the local merchant community. The fact that the upward linkage is weak creates a disjointed situation with structural and

productivity implications of sustaining a large mass of underemployed and un-organised workers.

Husk utilization in Kerala Husk is the principal input for the production of Coir and related products. Husk is available in almost all parts of Kerala. The consumption pattern of coconut is shown as a flow chart. CONSUMPTION PATTERN OF COCONUT

The main problem related to shortage of fibre can be attributed to the inefficient and unscientific husk collection system prevailing. This is mainly due to the lack of initiative in organizing the activities including logistic systems. Many of the husk are being under utilised and often used as fuel. As a result, there is a inadequate availability of fibre in the industry necessitating procurement from external sources especially from Tamil Nadu. The endemic mite disease popularly known, as Mandari has aggrevated this situation. The price of husk varies from Rs.750-950 per thousand numbers in the southern districts mainly Thiruvananthapuram as per the reports of kerala state planning board. The major reasons for this variation are variations in quality and demand and supply position. On an average the yield from 1000 husk is 80-90 kg of fibre. But the yield has considerably reduced up to 20-25 per cent after spread of the fungal disease called Mandari. The annual demand for the fiber in India on an average is 4,00,000 tonnes at the current level of production. Since efforts are being made to augment the coir production, the demand will increase considerably in the years to come. At present only 30 per cent of the husk available in the State is used for the fibre production. It is estimated that only 1,30,000 tonnes of fibre is available for coir production in the State. This has caused a

shortfall of fibre in the State and at present the units are depending on the supply from outside the State. The main sources of fibre outside the State are Pollachi, Theni, Kambam, Thengapattanam and Nagercoil.

Data source: Coir Directorate trivandrum ; 2008 Husk shortage The most serious problem in coir industry is non availability of husk at economic price in adequate quantities Special task force under Dr. T.M. Thomas Isaac has analyzed in 1990. The non-availability of coconut husk for defibering in the State of late has led to the shortage of fibre. According to Coir Board sources, the factors affecting the industry in this regard are : lack of an efficient system for collection and distribution of husk to the industry in Kerala and other coir producing States; involvement of a number of small holdings in the production of coconuts, particularly in Kerala, which render mobilisation and distribution of husk for coir production rather difficult; increased use of tender coconuts as health drink and wastage of husk at tender stage; utilisation of coconut husk for other purposes such as fuel in sugar mills, brick making industry. The problem of husk shortage was prevalent in the industry even during the 1970s. The State Government implemented the Husk Control Act then, for ensuring the availability of husk for coir industry through the primary coir co-operatives and to the licensed husk dealers.

The problem of husk shortage in spite of promulgation of the Act and its implementation could not be addressed effectively and, hence, a three-point levy system was introduced in coir industry by the State Government. There were inter-State and intraState restrictions in the movement of husk as measures to ensure availability of husk for coir production in the State. But all these regulations were subsequently withdrawn. Of late, the growing environmental consciousness among the general public had resulted in public resentment against retting of coconut husk for extracting fiber in the traditional method. This had resulted in the decline in the fiber production and withdrawal of organised husk dealers and suppliers who were assisting the industry as feeder units in the matter of raw material, they said. On the other hand, the reduction in the structure of holding of coconut plantations due to the Land Reforms Act in Kerala reduced the availability of husk for the industry. The drop in the fibre production in the coastal regions in Kerala prompted setting up of a number of defibering and decorticating mills in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Coconut husk in the northern districts of Kerala started moving to defibering units in Tamil Nadu for fibre production. However, the present shortage of coconut husk in the industry is not a situation developed suddenly. Rather it is the cumulative effect of the drought and the mandari disease, which had been affecting the coconut production in Kerala over the past several years. Realising the gravity of the problem and the need for a long-term solution for improving availability of husk to the industry the Coir Board is taking various measures which couldnt improve the situation.

ACTION PLAN
Analysing the situation, we have thought of a husk procurement system ,which could develop the required raw material required by the industry. A good husk procurement system can bring down the price of the raw material and hence bring out the industry out of the grave situation. From the early approaches which have failed we have realized tha a holistic approach is required o develop an efficient system. Thus , a co-operative unit which could collect the husk , was set as the action plan. In kerala the land holdings are small due to high density of population. This has led to the failure of earlier husk procurement systems. We have noticed that in kerala there has been an acute shortage of coconut climbers ,who use the traditional techniques due to the risk associated with the job. As a result , harvesting of the fruit at the right periods become a hectic task. Many of the people whom we have interviewed says that ,they are fed up with the climbers whom rarely comes on the time. Hence most of the fruit fell down naturally from tree, causing small destructions to property and serves as a threat to members of the family. A co-operative unit which could harvest coconuts on regular basis became a solution for this situation. This unit consists of: A rented plot with storage facilities for husk. A manager who supervise the accounts of the unit Coconut climbers (atleast five) Dehusking employees Machinery for fiber extraction from raw husk, defibering A vehicle for transportation of husks Modern mechanical equipments for coconut climbing, dehusking. as the basic requirements for setting up the unit . An oil extraction unit in a district s Coconut climbers become an integral part of this unit who can be attracted to this group by :

Insurance policies which could provide all the benefits in case of an accident. Survival help for their families in case they have met with an accident. Providing allowances and bonuses Giving them pension as per their service in the unit. Training and attracting more men to this field by the introduction and training with modern climbing equipments which are safe Fixed salary given on monthly basis.

Functioning of the unit This co-operative unit is proposed to be set in an area that has atleast 800 cocunut trees. All the residents of the area who has atleast 100 cocunuts in a harvest can

register to this unit. If it is less than 100 they could register themselves for husk collection monthly.Thus they get enrolled into the harvest calendar of the unit. The unit demarcates the particular residents into different regions and allocates the days in which it will take the harvest. The unit takes harvest of a particular area together. Each household can take up their required household requirements of cocunuts which will be set by the unit as per the requirement of the household. The price for the cocunuts will be determined as per the wholesale price available in the market.Rest of the cocunuts will be taken by the units work zone where its dehusked. The dehusked coconuts are then transported to the oil extracting units set up as per the plan in a district. The dehusked nut is split and dried, the shell is removed and transported to the rubber tapping industry and to the brick chulas, and the dried kernel, kopra is sent to an oil extracting unit. Advantages of the members of the unit: Harvesting of the cocunuts will be done periodically Application of bio pesticides and insecticides linking wth the schemes of the agricultural departments Compensation for loss of coconut trees due to diseases like Mandari. Members will be informed through SMS or by phone before periodic harvesting. Husk collection from the houses monthly Fertilizers available at subsidized prices from krishi bhavan for the members. In order to attract more people to these units we have planned to attach this unit with a bank (which can be a co-operative bank of the region) which could provide the following facilities to the members of the unit like: Every member will have his income transferred to his bank account Loan schemes available for the members at low interest rates in which loan can be paid by the income generated through the coconut harvest. This scheme will apply the banks terms and conditions. Also the bank could provide necessary capital for setting of the unit. De-fibering at the unit: Coconuts collected through this system will be dehusked in the unit . the green husk is then passes through the defibering machine installed at the unit which seperates fiber from the raw husk ,and the fiber is dried in the sun. the fibers are packed in bundles and transferred to the site where required through the units vehicles. Capital for setting up the unit Rent for the plot and store room annually Cost of defibering machinery Climbing and dehusking equipments Vehicle :( Bajaj Ape; Capacity: 1 tonne ) Others : : : : : Rs 20000 Rs 35000 Rs 15000 Rs 160000 Rs 5000

Total

Rs 2,35,000/-

This could be met by the following government agencies: 50% of the funding can be through the bank associated unit which provides loan without interest, which could paid through 5 years and grants from: Coir board National cooperative development corporation and Block or Gram Panchayat as per the area A government Oil extraction unit can be assigned the function of oil extraction unit in every district. Administration of cooperative societies This body can function as part of the coconut and coir board. State Level Developmental Officer District level officer

Manager of block level unit Supervisors Workers,Technicians, Cocunut climbers,

Manager of Oil extraction unit workers

Financial overlay

Conclusion
The proposed co-operative unit could easily meet the demand of cheap raw material required by the industry. This can lower the cost of production hence bring about the overall development of industry. The major advantages are: Most husks collected by local mechanisms are now transferred to the defibring mills in Tamilnadu , where it is processed and returned back at high prices. This situation can be avoided. Large scale generation of employment Empowerment of women by linking with women self help groups like kudumbashree Bringing out more mechanization to the industry by the introduction of defibering machines As the process of retting is causing pollution, this project can be an eco-friendly The lowered price of coir fibre can increase the wages of the employees, hence attracting more people to this field. The members of unit could now have periodic harvesting of the cocunuts , without fail This could unit could easily link up with agricultural departments in implementing all the schemes like disinfecting the coconut tops, distribution of coconut saplings. Credit system provided for the members will become a boon for many. This system could also increase the oil production Pith generated during defibring is sent for organic manure industry.