Pineapple rates may increase in near future

Kochi: As the season approaches, the pineapple market in the state is expecting prices to go up. It was Rs 24 per kg for unripe pineapple of special grade, Rs 22 per kg for regular unripe fruit and Rs 26 per kg for the ripe ones. Last week, the price had gone up to Rs 30.

In the first week of January last year, special unripe, normal unripe and the ripe were priced at Rs 14, Rs 13 and Rs 12, respectively. However, as winter slowly goes off in the northern states in February and March, prices are likely to rise sharply. As Delhi and Maharashtra eased controls due to Covid-19, the market has become favourable. During the season in Delhi, an average of 200 tonnes of pineapples are sold in a single day.

Pineapple production in the state is expected to decline by 30 per cent in the coming months. The production, which normally stands at 1,000-1,500 tonnes per day, is now less than 400 tonnes.

Many adverse conditions in farming in recent years have forced many farmers to quit. The low summer rainfall also affected adversely.