Marayur: Bringing relief to garlic farmers, the crop got a record price this season with its harvesting starting in Kanthalloor hills in Idukki district. The farmers got Rs 300 to Rs 400 per kg of green garlic. Last season, they received Rs 250 to Rs 300 for the same.

Big size garlic fetched a good price. Kanthallur farmers sell garlic at Vadugapatti in Madurai, Tamil Nadu's largest garlic market in India. The farmers are very satisfied as they got a good price even though they have to pay Rs 3 to bring a kilo of garlic to the Vadugapatti market.

Although the quality Malai Poondu variety of garlic from Kanthalloor and Vattavada have geotag, this garlic does not reach the markets of Kerala. Horticorp, a government agency, does not stock either. But in Vadugapatti and Mettupalayam markets in Tamil Nadu, the farmers get good prices and immediate payment. Hence, the majority of the farmers in Kanthalloor grow garlic.

This time the crop was harvested against the backdrop of wild elephants and heavy rains. Wild elephants had trampled and destroyed half of the crop. If the wild animals had not come down, this time there would have been a better harvest.