New Delhi : For centuries, the words spices and the Malabar Coast, or modern Kerala, were synonyms in the world commodity markets. Foreign traders used to come to the Malabar Coast to procure top quality spices. The brand attracts buyers in droves even today.
A clear trend seen in the IITF Kerala pavilion in the past few years is that most people visit the place only to buy good quality spices. They procure these items for a whole year. In the spices and Geographical Indication (GI) tagged thematic stall, highest business enquiry is for cardamom. Pepper and coffee come next in line. Eight varieties of cardamom, grown in different parts of the state like Idukki and Wayanad, are displayed there.
“This time, Alleppey green cardamom is getting more enquiries from the wholesale traders,” said a pavilion staff. “Retail demand for Kerala spices is huge. We could not fulfil the retail demand, especially for GI tagged items,” he added.
Wayanad robusta coffee, arabica coffee, and rice brands of Jeerakasala and Gandhakasala are also evoking much interest among the wholesale business dealers. In associated stalls run by the rural development department and Kudumbashree, various masalas and curry powers are in huge demand. Other selling items in the stalls include ginger, turmeric, clove, coconut products and cinnamon.
Much to the visitors’ delight, Kerala has brought many unique agricultural produces with the Geographical Indication tag to the pavilion. The state has a collection of 19 products carrying GI tag, denoting that this produce is peculiar to a particular place and climatic condition. These traditional produces include Malabar pepper, Alleppey coir, Alleppey green cardamom, Wayanad robusta coffee, Monsooned Malabar robusta coffee, Monsooned Malabar arabica coffee, rice varieties of Navara, Kaipad, Pokkali, Palakkadan matta, Jeerakasala and Gandhakasala, Kuttiattoor mango, Chengalikkodan banana, Vazhakkulam pineapple, Edayur chilli, Balaramapuram saree, Aranmula kannadi (mirror) and Central Travancore jaggery. The products having longer shelf life are available in the agricultural stall. At present, they are not available for retail sales.
