Fading palms: Kerala struggles to hold on to its coconut heritage

Thiruvananthapuram | Kerala, whose very name means the land of coconut trees, is slowly losing its identity as coconut groves thin out and yields fall.

Once so common that they shaped daily life, coconuts and coconut oil have now become costly essentials, with coconuts recently selling for over Rs 85 a kilo and oil nearing Rs 600 a litre.

For many families, the soaring prices cut deep, altering kitchens and traditions in a state long known as God's Own Country.

Global demand for coconuts has surged as people discovered the health benefits of lauric acid. Coconut oil is unusually rich in this fatty acid, with nearly half its content made up of lauric acid -- a compound also present, though in much smaller amounts, in human breast milk, according to agriculture scientists here.

But in Kerala, shrinking farmland, rising real estate prices, crop diseases and climate change have combined with lower yields to push the state's coconut production into steady decline.

It is not just coconuts and coconut oil that are in demand; the coconut shell now fetches a good price as its charcoal is highly sought after, while coir pith made from the husk is widely used in agriculture and gardening, they said.

A huge gap remains between demand and supply, even as neighbouring states such as Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh step in with better-managed, more scientific coconut farms that deliver higher yields, pushing up the prices of both the nuts and the oil.

"Climate has been playing a major role in the spread of resilient new pests and diseases such as root wilt. We now face shorter but heavier spells of rain, warmer nights and heatwaves. Added to this is the lack of care for existing coconut trees," N V Radhakrishnan, professor and head of the Department of Plant Pathology at the College of Agriculture, Vellayani, told PTI.

He said Kerala no longer has scientifically managed coconut farms, and the coconut has become a homestead crop.

"In Andhra and Tamil Nadu, they grow coconut as a monocrop, whereas in Kerala we have mixed farms, with coconuts being just one among several crops. It has also become a homestead crop, with each household having only a few trees within its compound," Radhakrishnan said.

Experts say that Kerala people no longer care for their coconut trees and rarely practise proper, scientific manuring. The rapid loss of traditional knowledge once held by coconut tree climbers in the state is also a major reason for the faster spread of diseases and declining production.

"We have a serious shortage of skilled coconut tree climbers in Kerala. In earlier times, it was these climbers who, after plucking the coconuts, would also clean the crown of the tree. This was essential to identify diseases and pest attacks at an early stage and help the farmer address them before they worsen," T Santhosh Kumar, Assistant Professor and Head of the Coconut Research Centre, Balaramapuram, said.

Now, most coconut plucking in Kerala is done by labourers from states such as West Bengal, Assam, Odisha and Bihar.

He was quick to add, however, that the main reason for the decline in coconut production in Kerala is the huge demand for land for housing and commercial purposes, with several coconut trees regularly being cut down to make way for residential or commercial buildings.

"Whatever produce we are getting today comes from trees planted by earlier generations. None from the younger generation are planting coconut trees, and most areas in Kerala have now reached the stage where replanting is needed, with trees over 70 years old," Kumar added.

Earlier, Kerala had local traders who procured coconuts directly from farmers, converted them into copra and sold them to mills and larger merchants. Now, such traders no longer exist, and farmers mostly sell raw coconuts directly to mills or shops.

"We do not have such intermediaries now, and we procure coconuts directly from the field for our mill. But most of our supply comes from Tamil Nadu, as procurement from Kerala has been steadily declining over the years," said Hariharan, owner of Sriram Oil Mill in Poojappura and Vilappilsala, who has been in the business for over 40 years.

He said there are no organised coconut farms in Kerala, and the availability of nuts has declined over the years. Even the supply from neighbouring states has been dwindling in recent months.

Kumar said that Kerala people do not provide enough care for the trees to improve yield and rarely follow scientifically proven manuring methods.

Radhakrishnan also raised the same concern.

"When coconut and allied products fetch good prices, we now see more people coming forward to plant coconut trees, and we are receiving many inquiries," Kumar said.

In Kerala, coconut and coconut oil are essential commodities in daily life. With supplies falling and prices rising, Keralites are cutting back on their use and, with great reluctance, shifting to other, less healthy oils.

"I now mix a portion of palm oil with coconut oil when cooking, as I cannot afford the higher prices of coconut oil," said Indu, a housewife.

Bindu, a salesperson at a coconut and coconut oil firm, said that people are exploring other options because they cannot afford the rising rates.

"Those who used to buy one or two kilos of oil are now settling for 500 grams or even 250 grams. Sales are going down as people hold back from spending more," she said.