Category Archives: Business & Economy

Coffee growers present wish list to Union Minister

Agriculture, Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Leaders
Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurating a public meeting at Mudigere in Chikkamagaluru district on Thursday.
Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurating a public meeting at Mudigere in Chikkamagaluru district on Thursday.

Demands include support to coffee cultivation and checking elephant menace

Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Nirmala Sitharaman interacted with coffee growers at Mudigere on Thursday. The growers placed a number of demands before her, including finding a permanent solution to the elephant menace.

Representatives of Karnataka Growers’ Federation, Black Gold League and other organisations participated in the interaction.

B.L. Shankar, coffee planter and former MP, said the production of Arabica coffee had been declining every year. He wanted the government to take steps to support Arabica cultivation.

“Coffee cultivation has been hit by many problems; there is also shortage of workers,” he said.

Lok Sabha member Shobha Karandlaje stressed the need for research to address the stem borer attack, which had been causing huge losses to the growers.

C.T. Ravi, Chikkamagaluru MLA, wanted an ESI hospital in Chikkamagaluru, as there were a large number of workers in the plantations. Black Gold League president Kenjige Keshava appealed to the Minister to set up a spices park in Chikkamagaluru.

Interest waiver

Representatives of Karnataka Growers’ Federation sought waiver of interest on coffee loans and also five instalments to repay the dues.

B.S. Jairam, chairman of the federation, told The Hindu: “We submitted a memorandum listing all our demands. We have sought waiver of interest and bringing down interest on loans. We have also urged the government to take measures to check elephant menace in Hassan, Chikkamagaluru and Kodagu districts.”

Ms. Sitharaman said the government would take steps to increase coffee production and expand its market overseas.

“Growers in Andhra Pradesh, who began coffee cultivation only a few years ago, have succeeded in marketing it in America. If they could do, why can’t the growers in Hassan, Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru do?” she asked. The government was committed to encouraging coffee growers. After many years, and for the first time, a coffee planter had been appointed chairman of the Coffee Board. This showed the government’s commitment to supporting coffee cultivation, she added.

Coffee Board chairman M.S. Boje Gowda was present during the interaction.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States / by Special Correspondent / Chikkamagaluru – June 16th, 2017

How wildlife-friendly is your brew?

Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Nature, Records, All, World Opinion

WildKaapi01KF03jun2017 Wild Kaapi, your morning coffee comes from certified estates that support gaurs, elephants and monkeys, along with Arabica beans

Under the cool canopy of native trees in the Western Ghats, coffee bushes spread out, gleaming with red berries. In the early morning hours, if you are lucky, you may spot rare species like the Malabar grey hornbill, water snow flat butterfly or the Asian fairy bluebird among these shade-loving plants. And now, thanks to the efforts of Wild Kaapi — the world’s first ‘certified wildlife-friendly’ coffee brand — you can ensure your morning brew comes from plantations that foster fauna on their lands. Started by wildlife conservationist, Krithi K Karanth — who has has been working in the Western Ghats, a biodiversity hotspot, for the last 19 years — and her husband, Avinash Sosale, the coffee brand got its certification this April and opened its doors to buyers last month.

(photo credit: Ramki Sreenivasan)
(photo credit: Ramki Sreenivasan)

Live and let live

Wild Kaapi started as an offshoot of a three-year research project (part of a grant by the National Science Foundation to study coffee, areca and rubber plantations in the Western Ghats). Karanth, of the Centre for Wildlife Studies — with Paul Robbins of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Dr Ashwini Chhatre of University of Illinois — measured biodiversity, and studied labour practices and market dynamics of the farming areas.

During the project, she interacted with over 1,000 planters in the three coffee growing areas of Karnataka — Kodagu, Chikmagalur, and Hassan — and realised how frustrated they were “because they weren’t getting value for their coffee due to the middlemen involved”. That’s when the idea for Wild Kaapi originated, and the duo is now exploring new ways to get a premium price for products that support wildlife. “This includes social enterprises that can contribute to conservation action. (After all) traditional wildlife conservation relies heavily on donors,” says Sosale, who quit a career in automotive business to be a part of the venture. “At this stage we have two commitments: we have told coffee growers we will pay them the highest price, and, with the profit we generate, we will build a conservation fund to award grants to young conservationists,” he adds.

WildKaapi03KF03jun2017

Animal tales

Millennials are more discerning towards coffee, observes Sosale. “Today’s consumer is informed. Ethical and conscious consumption is what we want to tap into.” To qualify for certification, the coffee not only had to have a good cupping (tasting) score, but the plantation had to support a vast biodiversity. Of the more than 187 farms they audited (recording the species of birds, butterflies, mammals, amphibians and trees), only four made the cut: Agora (with 124 species), Bindiga (137), Hulikere (119) and Cornerstone (120). Wild Kaapi has named their single-origin Arabicas after the plantations they are sourced from.

WildKaapi04KF03jun2017

Shreedev Hulikere, a third-generation coffee grower with 60 acres in Chikmagalur, who is partnering with Wild Kaapi, says he wasn’t aware of the numerous wildlife species on their estate till now. “While my ancestors traditionally hunted, I’m a conservationist. I tell my labourers not to destroy any bird nests. I know that barbets nest here and they eat the borer worms that destroy coffee. Similarly, I’m not going to chase away the monkeys and civets that eat my coffee because I’m being compensated elsewhere. Just because a porcupine destroys a pepper creeper, I’m not going to hunt it down,” he says.

Love thy neighbour

The audit also revealed a few surprises. “We found frogs listed as endangered or threatened in the IUCN Red List (the world’s most comprehensive inventory of global conservation status) at these plantations,” says Karanth. The certification not only places their coffee in a premium space, but also paves the way for a new movement. “If you have wildlife-friendly practices, you can promote sustainable agriculture. We are trying to establish a new model — a profitable enterprise that also enables better livelihoods. This hasn’t been tried before; it’s a new way of thinking,” says Karanth.

(photo credit: Ramki Sreenivasan)
(photo credit: Ramki Sreenivasan)

While their immediate goal is to prove that such a model is sustainable, Sosale is also mulling introducing coffee scrubs, soaps, candles and flavourings — all huge product lines in the international space. Moving into pepper and cardamom, which grow hand-in-hand with coffee, also holds much promise.

Prices start at ₹390 for 250 gms.

To know more, and buy the coffee, check out wildkaapi.com.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style> Homes and Gardens / by Bhumika K / June 02nd, 2017

Boosting domestic offtake is the key: new chief of Coffee Board

Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg)
Coffee Board chairman M S Boje Gowda, at a function in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Somashekar GRN
Coffee Board chairman M S Boje Gowda, at a function in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Somashekar GRN

Boje Gowda rues India’s low 200-g consumption compared to 7-8 kg in the West

Bengaluru :

Boosting domestic consumption is crucial to protecting the interests of coffee growers, according to MS Boje Gowda, the newly-appointed coffee Board Chairman.

After 70 years, the Coffee Board has a grower as its chief in Boje Gowda, who is third generation planter. Till recently, bureaucrats headed the apex decision-making body for the coffee sector, under the Ministry of Commerce.

Gowda, of Krishnagiri Estate in Chikmagalur, takes over at a time when growers are grappling with volatile prices, fluctuating output that’s largely being influenced by a changing climatic pattern on account of erratic rainfall, and pest issues such as the white stem borer.

Addressing growers after assuming office, Gowda said the annual per capita coffee consumption in India is not even 200 grams, while in the western world it is 7-8 kg, thereby leaving tremendous scope to boost the domestic offtake. He said there was a need to boost consumption beyond the traditional consuming States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. “It would become a difficult situation for the growers unless the domestic consumption expands,” he said.

Gowda, a large planter, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of doubling coffee output from the current 3 lakh tonnes to 6 lakh tonnes. India consumes merely a third of the coffee produced in the country as over two-thirds of the output is exported, mainly to Europe and Russia.

Karnataka, the main growing region that accounts for about two-thirds of the country’s coffee output, has been reeling under a drought for the past three years. Gowda said he would focus on improving the water storage facilities and take up the growers’demand for higher subsidy for increasing the coverage of drip irrigation.

Coffee growers gets only 25 per cent subsidy on the equipment cost for taking up drip irrigation, while for other plantation products such as rubber and cardamom, the subsidy component is around 80 per cent, Gowda said.

Drones to forecast crop
Addressing growers, Coffee Board Secretary Srivatsa Krishna said the body was exploring the option of using drones for better crop forecasting. Krishna said the current crop estimation was not right and the Board was looking at ways to improve the crop estimate. The Board has been in talks with 7-8 start-ups on deployment of drones for improving the accuracy of crop forecast.

Krishna said the Board is also working on creating water harvesting solutions and is exploring options such as cloud seeding. On the issue of white stem borer, a pest that attacks plants of arabica coffee, Krishna said the board has reached out to biotech firms to evolve a solution and that pilots are being carried out in some plantations.

Highlighting the importance of branding, Krishna said the growers should come out with region-specific brands such as Chikmagalur and Mysuru.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> Agri Business / by The Hindu Business Line Bureau / Bengaluru – May 17th, 2017

Tata Coffee appoints P.G. Chengappa as an additional director

Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Education, Famous Personalities of Kodagu / Coorg, Leaders, World Opinion

We would like to inform you that the Board of Directors of the Company at their meeting held today, the 18th May 2017 and appointment of Dr. P.G. Chengappa as an Additional Director with effect from 18th May, 2017.

We would like to inform you that the Board of Directors of the Company at their meeting held today, the 18th May 2017, have considered and approved the following: a.Appointment of Dr. P.G. Chengappa as an Additional Director (Non-executive, Independent) with effect from 18th May, 2017.

A brief profile of Dr. Chengappa is enclosed herewith. Dr. Chengappa is not related to any of the Directors of the Company. b.Re-appointment of Mr. K. Venkataramanan as an Executive Director – Finance and CFO of the Company for a period of 3 years with effect from 25th October, 2017.

This disclosure is made in terms of the requirements of Regulation 30 of SEBI (Listing Obligations & Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015.Source : BSE

source: http://www.moneycontrol.com / Moneycontrol.com / Home> News> Business> Announcements / May 18th, 2017

State plans country’s 1st all-women trekking guides team in Kodagu

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Business & Economy, Records, All
Women will be drawn from local villages and tribal hamlets as they know the terrain better. The women are being identified and shortlisted by local forest officials and panchayat members. dh file photo
Women will be drawn from local villages and tribal hamlets as they know the terrain better. The women are being identified and shortlisted by local forest officials and panchayat members. dh file photo

The Forest department is planning to set up an all-women trekking guides group. Said to be the first such initiative in India, these women groups will help trekkers on the dedicated trekking trails identified by the Forest department. To start with, women guides will be introduced on three eco-trails of Kodagu district. Women will be drawn from local villages and tribal hamlets as they know the terrain better. Such women will be trained and recruited by Karnataka Eco-Tourism Development Board (KETDB).

Vinay Lutra, Chairman of KETDB told DH that they had received a special request from Kodagu CEO and Chief Conservator of Forests to have all-women trained trek guides.

“The demand for trekking trails is very high and so is the demand for women guides. Based on the response and success rate, more such teams will be formed in the coming days,” he said.

The idea of involving them is to make the women of this section and region employed and independent. The women are being identified and shortlisted by the local forest officials and panchayat members. The KETDB is only training the women.

Vijay Mohan Raj, Chief Conservator of Forests, Chikkamagalur, and member of KETDB, said that earlier 70 women were trained to be a part of the certified women volunteer programme.

These are women from various civil societies. But, this will be for the first time where 30 women will be trained to be trekking guides.

“The difference is that the volunteers are not paid, but these guides will be given permanent employment and a monthly salary. Guides will be trained professionals,” Raj said.

Though dates of the training and their recruitment is not yet decided, board members hinted that it is most likely to start from June. Guides will undergo a week-long training on the trekking routes, the dos and dont’s in the forest, identification of the birds, plants, insects and animals and health safety.

After this, KETDB is also planning to introduce a mixed group of trained guides in Dakshina Kannada and Hassan districts.

source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> State / by Bosky Khanna / DH News Service / Bengaluru – May 26th, 2017

RDPR bags awards

Business & Economy, Records, All

The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Department has bagged e-Puraskar Award for the best performance in empowering panchayats by using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) tools, for 2016-17.

Kerala bagged the second prize, while West Bengal secured third prize in the category of ICT tools. The cash prize for the first position is Rs. 2 crore, Rs. 1 crore for second position and Rs. 50 lakh for third position.

RDPR Minister H.K. Patil and Department Principal Secretary Nagambikadevi received the award from Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in Lucknow on Monday.

The State bagged the award for its Ganshi Sakshi Kayak GPS-enabled ICT tool. Ministry of Panchayat Raj has been conferring e-Puraskar for bringing in transparency, efficiency and accountability in the functioning of panchayats through ICT tools.

The Kodagu Zilla Panchayat bagged the Deendayal Award for empowering panchayats.

In the taluk panchayat category, Sagar taluk of Shivamogga district and Puttur Taluk Panchayat of Dakshina Kannda district have bagged prizes.

In the gram panchayat category, the Malige Gram Panchayat of Theerthahalli taluk of Shivamogga; Siraguppi GP of Athani taluk in Belagavi district; Palibetta GP of Virajpet taluk in Kodagu; and Sampaje GP of Madikeri taluk, bagged the awards.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / April 25th, 2017

Planter takes charge at Coffee Board; regulating chicory high on his agenda

Business & Economy, Coffee News, Records, All
M.S. Boje Gowda
M.S. Boje Gowda

Regulating the indiscriminate use of chicory — used as an additive with coffee powder — is high on the agenda of the new chairman of the Coffee Board of India, M.S. Boje Gowda, a third-generation coffee planter from Chikkamagaluru district, who took charge on Wednesday.

“The farmer grows coffee in its pure form. But by the time it reaches the consumer, there is heavy addition of chicory deforming it. We don’t know how much chicory is added in the branded packaged coffee powder as well,” he said adding that he would discuss the issue with all stakeholders and even explore legal options to ban the addition of chicory to coffee powder.

“If the consumers want chicory let them buy it as chicory and add it. There will be choice for consumers as well,” he said.

When asked whether the Coffee Board of India had the teeth to enforce such a regulation, he said they would work with the Union government towards the end.

Mr. Gowda is the first coffee grower to become the Chairman of the Board after a gap of 70 years. In the past, the post was held by bureaucrats.

Coffee planters from across the State, who came to the city as he took charge on Wednesday, expressed immense hope of their problems being solved with a coffee planter as the chairman.

Apart from monitoring the use of chicory, Mr. Gowda said that his aim is also to increase domestic consumption of coffee while doubling the yield in the country.

“The per capita consumption of coffee is just around 200 grams and is mainly concentrated in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. We should work towards branding coffee and spread consumption to other parts of the country,” he said, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had set a target to double the annual coffee production in the country from 3 lakh tonnes to 6 lakh tonnes.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / Staff Reporter / Bengaluru – May 18th, 2017

The iconic India Coffee House brewing plans for revamp, expansion

Business & Economy, Coffee News

Coffee Board seeks inputs from private players on new business model

A file photo of India Coffee House in Bengaluru
A file photo of India Coffee House in Bengaluru

Bengaluru / Kochi :

The iconic India Coffee House is set for a makeover.

The state-run Coffee Board, which operates some 12 India Coffee House outlets in various locations including Parliament House, is exploring options to revamp and expand as part of its efforts to leverage the brand and promote coffee consumption across the country.

The board intends to go in for a revenue-sharing model and on a minimum investment basis for the proposed expansion.

It has initiated consultations with private players and has sought estimates on the capital expenditure and operational expenses for running a 1,000-1,500 sq feet store and smaller format kiosks of around 200-300 sq ft in 75-100 cities.

Pre-bid discussions

Confirming the development, Srivatsa Krishna, Secretary, Coffee Board, said the pre-bid discussions were still in the initial stages.

“We have two more rounds of consultations to go,” Krishna said, stating that clarity on the concept would emerge sometime in July.

Long before the advent of the café culture led by chains such as Coffee Day, Baristas, Costas and Starbucks, India Coffee House was synonymous with the growth of the coffee culture in the country. ICH has a significant brand recall, especially among the 40-plus generation. Red turbaned staff in white uniforms serving coffees and snacks at reasonably prices is a hallmark of ICH outlets.

ICH used to be a favourite hangout or adda for political activists, writers, government employees, small-time lawyers, sales executives and the unemployed: in other words, a curious mix of the eclectic and the mundane.

Its old-world and unpretentious ambience is welcoming of everyone, not least because of the affordable coffees. The impact of liberalisation, which brought about a change in the coffee marketing system in the mid-1990s, led to a downsizing of the Coffee Board workforce and the closure of a number of loss-making India Coffee Houses.

“Some of the outlets were taken over by co-operatives formed by the retireed employees of the Coffee Board and continue to be run by them,” said N Bose Mandanna, former vice-chairman of Coffee Board.

A welcome sign

Industry stakeholders see the renewed effort to revamp the ICH by roping in private players as a positive development.

“We welcome any efforts to promote coffee. The Board should look at the right vehicle to expand the ICH,” said Anil Bhandari, President, India Coffee Trust.

Interestingly, the Board, which started India Coffee House in the early 1940s, had shut down several coffee houses in the mid-50s in various cities and dismissed many employees. Following this, Communist leader AK Gopalan took over the leadership of the retrenched employees and organised societies under the name of India Coffee Board Workers Cooperative Society. The first society was formed in Bangalore in 1957; it opened the first Indian Coffee House in Delhi on December 27, 1957.

The Indian Coffee House, as distinct from the Board-run India Coffee House, is completely owned and managed by its employees.

The society now has a chain with over 51 outlets and associate canteens operating in all major towns and in government establishments, particularly in Kerala.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> News / by Vishwanath Kulkarni – V. Sajeev Kumar / Bengaluru-Kochi – May 10th, 2017

Government appoints chiefs of tea, coffee board

Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg), Leaders, Records, All, World Opinion

New Delhi (IANS) :

The central government on Thursday appointed Prabhat Kamal Bezboruah as Chairman of Kolkata-based Tea Board and M.S. Boje Gowda as Chairman of Bengaluru-based Coffee Board.

Bezboruah has been serving as the Chairman of Tea Research Association and Gowda is a well-known coffee grower.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved the proposal to appoint them, an order of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.

Bezboruah is appointed for the period up to November 1, 2018, while Gowda will have a tenure up to December 14, 2018.

“Necessary communication in this regard has been sent to the Department of Commerce,” the DoPT said.

The Tea Board is entrusted with a supervisory role for tea industry, while the Coffee Board takes care of the interests of coffee growers.

–IANS

bdc/nir

source: http://www.canindia.com / CanIndia.com / Home> Business> Economy / IANS / by CanIndia New Wire Services / May 04th, 2017

Filter coffee anywhere, anytime

Business & Economy, Coffee News, Coffee, Kodagu (Coorg)
M S Jayashree, partner in the venture
M S Jayashree, partner in the venture

Bengaluru :

If you are an avid coffee lover and miss the taste and aroma of filter coffee when you travel outside Karnataka, here is an instant solution.

Mysuru-based HABICAF (Habit and Coffee) has come up with a readymade coffee decoction that will give you authentic coffee filter anytime you desire. They will be in Bengaluru from April 28 to 30 as part of the Organic and Millet Nation Trade fair at Palace Grounds.

HABICAF which started marketing and selling its product in October last year is getting a good response. Vijai Bopanna hails from Kodagu, and for him, coffee estates were a common sight at his native, Gonikoppa. “I tried a couple of other ventures before starting HABICAF a few months ago. As packaging, we are supplying filter coffee decoction in a sachet with a nozzle,’’ he says. The sachet is specially designed to retain the aroma of the coffee, Bopanna adds. He says that they make filter coffee with the coffee powder from his hometown.

“We use the traditional method to extract decoction, just like we do at home, but in a larger quantity. We add Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) – approved preservative that keeps the decoction fresh for longer time,” he adds. M S Jayashree is his partner in the venture. If the seal is not opened, one can use the decoction up to six months. If the seal of the nozzle is opened, it can be used up to 20 days without the need for refrigeration and 30 days when kept in a refrigerator. Each sachet contains 200 ml of decoction and can prepare 30 to 40 standard sized cups of coffee, depending on how strong the person loves his or her coffee.

According to Bopanna, most of the coffee beans are procured from Coorg, Sakleshpur and Chikmagalur. For civet coffee, they are procuring beans from Indonesia. “We are coming up with many other flavours other than the regular coffee. Our flavours will be Vanilla, Cinnamon, Hazelnut and much more. We also coming up with herbals. There is cold brew coffee which can be served cold and without milk,’’he adds.

HABICAF decoction is available in Mysuru and Bengaluru. “Very soon we are planning to sell our products through an e-commerce platform,’’ he says. “Right from getting the beans, making powder, adding chicory, extracting decoction, 90 percent of our processing is natural,’’ he adds.

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Ashwin S. Sripad / Express News Service / April 26th, 2017