The 26th annual general body (AGM) meeting of Kodagu Coffee Belegarara Sahakara Sangha will be held at Kodava Samaja Auditorium at 11 am on December 20, said society president Muddanda B Devaiah.
Addressing reporters in Madikeri recently, he said that all transactions in the office are computerised.
A new roof has been constructed on the Coffee Krupa building of the cooperative society, at a cost of Rs 9.50 lakh. The staff shortage in the cooperative society will be addressed by recruiting new staff soon, he added.
Office bearers and members Suvin Ganapathy, Ramesh, Kaverappa, Leela Medappa and Ponnappa were present at the press meet.
The land will soon be reclaimed in accordance with the state orders and will be handed over to the forest department to be developed as a reserve forest area.
Image for representational purpose only. ( File | EPS)
Kodagu :
The Ponnampet Tahashildar has sent an official reminder letter to the forest department for taking possession of the 1203 acre land developed by Tata Company as a tea estate in Kodagu.
The land will soon be reclaimed in accordance with the state orders and will be handed over to the forest department to be developed as a reserve forest area.
In the letter dated December 20, Tahashildar Yogananda has mentioned the handing over of 1203 acre land across survey numbers in Hysodluru, Poradu, West Nammale, and T Shettigeri villages of Ponnampet taluk to the forest department.
The 1203 acre land was leased to Tata Coffee Limited Company and since the period of lease of 99 years has been completed, the same needs to be handed back to the department as a reserve forest area.
In 1914-1915, Mac Dogal Glenlora Limited leased nearly 1300 acre paisari land from the then British Government for a period of 999 years. This leased land was handed over to Tata Coffee Limited (then known as Consolidated Tea Company).
The timber in the paisari land was cleared to make way for a coffee and tea estate and the land was changed from ‘paisari’ to ‘Reedemed Sagu’.
However, the state argued that the land tenure was changed without the notice of the government and the tenure was a reserve forest area.
Further, while the land was leased by the then British government for 999 years, the same agreement was changed in 1940 by the then Coorg Commissioner to 99 years. Following this, notices are said to have been served to the Tata Company for handing over of the land even as the company approached the Court stating that the change in revenue documents from Redeemed Sagu to Reserve Forest land was done illegally by the government. However, the state argued that the Tata Company had illegally changed the tenure to Redeem Sagu.
The case was heard recently at the Virajpet Court and the Senior Civil Judge, MG Lokesh had disposed of the case on December 3 stating that the plaintiffs have to approach the revenue authorities and this cannot be decided in civil court. It stated that the revenue authorities or the Government can decide regarding this issue. However, the government had sent an order for acquiring the lands in 2012, which was then questioned by the company in the court.
After the court hearing, the Kodagu revenue authorities have followed the earlier government order defending the change of tenure from ‘Reedem Sagu’ to reserve forest and the Ponnampet Tahsildar Yogananda has now passed an order for reacquiring of the 1203 acre reserve forest land from the company.
“We have received the official letter from the tahsildar and steps will be taken to begin the acquiring process,” confirmed Chakrapani, Virajpet DCF.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Pragna GR, Express News Service / December 21st, 2021
Sanjay Ponnapa at the opening of the first Fuel Espresso takeaway cart, on The Terrace, Wellington, in 1996.
Sanjay Ponnapa: businessman; b January 10, 1964; d November 26, 2021
Sanjay Ponnapa, who has died aged 56 in Hong Kong, was one of the founders of Wellington’s coffee industry, going on to build a highly successful coffee empire in Wellington and Asia.
He was born in Tamil Nadu, near to his family’s homeland of Kodagu. The Kodagu (formerly known as Coorg) is a small, sparsely populated region nestled in the rich coffee-growing hills of the Western Ghats, about halfway down India’s western side.
His family were coffee farmers and soldiers; his uncles included Field Marshal Kodendera Madappa Cariappa, the first Indian commander-in-chief of the Indian Army, and General Kodendera Subayya Thimayya.
Sanjay Ponnapa in 2004, at the launch of Fuel Espresso’s Revolution brand. He roasted and created his own coffee blends, including specialty arabica beans from his family’s plantations in Coorg, western India.
Coming from India to the gastronomically bleak New Zealand of the 1960s must have been a shock, but Ponu’s brother sent over bags of Coorg coffee, which Leela would roast in the family kitchen.
Sanjay went to school at Viard College in Porirua and then St Patrick’s College (Silverstream). He grew up into a tall, strongly built, strikingly good-looking man, with a love of fine clothes, whiskey and late 50s jazz. He attended Victoria University and the University of Canterbury, but left without a degree.
He worked in the fashion industry, then travelled to New York, supporting himself by cocktail bartending. Those playboy years were not wasted, as seeds were being planted that were to bear fruit later; attention to detail, a love of quality and customer service. One seed in particular was to grow into a plant that would build an empire.
Around 1995 he returned to Wellington and took a job with a young business called Coffee Supreme. It was the first years of what was to become the city’s cafe boom. Supreme founder Chris Dillon remembers Ponnapa as “very entrepreneurial”.
“He was always picking your brains. We had a lot of conversations about what he wanted to do next, and the potential he could see for takeaway carts, like he had seen in the US.”
Yeonhee and Sanjay Ponnapa with daughter Leela in 2015. Fuel now has seven sites in Hong Kong and two in Shanghai, in addition to three in Wellington.
Ponnapa wanted to do something different. He still wasn’t sure how. Then, in 1996, things came together. He designed and built his first coffee cart.
Anyone who was in Wellington then will remember it: based on the 1950s design icon, the Airstream Caravan, in silver, black and red, with the sounds of Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins wafting through aromas of the finest arabica coffee served in branded cups. It was an instant hit with Wellingtonians. Fuel Espresso Ltd was born.
“He wanted to elevate takeaway,” says Dillon. “Many thought it was second-best. He wanted to show it could be beautiful. He paid a lot of attention to branding, to how staff deported themselves, to make sure it would be a very coherent presentation. I’m pretty sure staff didn’t get to play fast and loose with the music playlist.”
That year Ponnapa also met his first wife, Alexandra Tylee. They were married the same year. For the first five years, they worked side by side developing Fuel.
The first cart, on The Terrace, showed them that the concept worked; the next challenge was getting more sites. Ponnapa persuaded sceptical bureaucrats to allow coffee carts at the hospital and airport.
“It hadn’t been done. We had to convince them it was a good thing to do,” Tylee says. “Back then lots of people hadn’t had proper espresso coffee. He was really charming, determined and tenacious, and didn’t give up.”
Fuel soon expanded to seven carts and sites around Wellington. Unhappy with the wholesale imported beans most cafes used, they travelled to Trieste, Italy, and created their own blend with coffee maestro Vincenzo Sandalji. They then set up their own roastery in Holland St.
“We practised the roasting for about a year before he was happy with it. He wanted to get it right. He was a perfectionist,” says Tylee.
Ponnapa was very proud of his blend, a closely guarded mix of Italian and specialty arabica beans from his family plantations in Coorg. He believed passionately that good coffee, like good wine, needed close attention to blending and even ageing. He decided to age his coffee, contrary to what he called the “global industry’s obsession with the ‘fresh is best’ dogma”.
Tylee says his talent as a leader helped the business grow. “Everyone at Fuel was really like a family. He loved being able to integrate his passion for his music, and his family. He had a vision and saw it through.”
Unfortunately, family life was not so smooth. The couple’s son Zeus was born in late 1999. He died only a few months later, from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and his parents eventually parted ways.
By 2005, Fuel Espresso was well-established in the Wellington coffee scene, and Ponnapa was looking for the next step. He saw it in Hong Kong. He had a vision for a chain of high-end cafes nestled amongst the Guccis, the Versaces and other luxury shops of Hong Kong’s plazas.
Over the next decade he built it. Fuel now has seven sites in Hong Kong and two in Shanghai, in addition to three in Wellington. It has been stunningly successful; a tribute to the boy from Porirua who exported the taste and aroma of his secret blend to Asia.
Hong Kong became his home; he met his second wife, Yeonhee Kim, who worked in the financial sector. They married in 2012. Their daughter, Leela, was born the next year.
On Friday, November 26, Ponnapa mentioned to his wife that he was feeling unwell. He attended a staff dinner that evening, but left early. While entering an escalator, he is believed to have suffered a medical event that caused him to fall. He died at the scene.
Dillon says Ponnapa made a significant contribution to the development of Wellington’s cafe culture. “Fuel was the first high-end New Zealand takeaway coffee chain. He would say the only one. No-one had made good-quality takeaway coffee with that level of attention to detail and quality and presentation.”
Tylee says it’s hard to believe he’s gone. “He was so full of life, he had so many interests and so much he wanted to do.
“He was really warm, and a caring person.”
Chris Brown, of Sputnik PR, worked closely with Ponnapa to build his brand, but says his business achievements were ultimately not what gave him most satisfaction.
“He was very excited about celebrating their [his and Yeonhee’s] 10th anniversary. After all he’d been through, he thought his little family was his greatest success.”
Sources: Mythi Ponnapa, Chris Brown, Chris Dillon, Alexandra Tylee
source: http://www.stuff.co.nz / Stuff / Home> Life & Style> Food & Drink / by Patrick Piercy / December 11th, 2021
Kiran Ganapathy, Head of Plantations – Operations & Samir Palsule, Head – Business Excellence, Tata Coffee Limited receiving the FICCI award
Tata Coffee Limited (TCL) recently won the ‘Sustainable Agriculture Award’ at the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) Agriculture Summit and Awards 2021. The company was recognized for its Soil and Water Conservation initiatives undertaken at its plantations and instant coffee plants.
Kiran Ganapathy (Head of Plantations – Operations) and Samir Palsule (Head – Business Excellence) received the award on behalf of the company from members of the FICCI Agriculture Committee. The award was granted under the ‘Large Corporate’ category and TCL was conferred the award for significant on-ground interventions in sustainable agriculture development.
The entries were shortlisted and evaluated based on the agricultural challenges faced, the CSR initiatives to mitigate such challenges, the outcome and impact of the practices, its scalability and ways to extend the program to benefit small farmers.
The Agri summit brought key stakeholders and policymakers on a common platform to ideate an implementable strategy for smart and sustainable agriculture. It was attended by CEOs and business heads of the agri and food industry, policymakers, multilateral and bilateral institutions, NGOs, academicians, researchers, embassies, financial institutions, development organisations etc. who discussed and recommended practical pathways for the promotion and adoption of best sustainable agriculture practises on a large scale.
Chacko Thomas, Managing Director & CEO, Tata Coffee speaking on receiving the award said, “Tata Coffee is honoured to be recognized for its commitment to sustainable agricultural practices, and soil and water conservation are a key part of our sustainability strategy. We have adopted scientific ways to conserve water to store excess run-off from the rainwater, in healthy catchment areas. As a result, we now have 274 tanks with a storage capacity of 3.4 Mn cubic meters. This model has ensured that our irrigation is 95% self-reliant and no groundwater is ever exploited. Over the last few years, we have also successfully enhanced the soil fertility in the estates, through regular application of organic compost into the soil. Few other initiatives undertaken towards soil conservation include – contour planting, intercropping, planting of new trees and cover crops. We have also carried out several interventions in terms of training programmes and CSR awareness campaigns towards adopting improved technologies in all operations.”
source: http://www.thecsrjournal.in / The CSR Journal / Home> Categories> Agricultural & Rural Development / by The CSR Journal / December 09th, 2021
Coffee Board, No.1, Dr.B.R.Ambedkar Veedhi, Bengaluru-560 001 has invited applications for admission to the Post Graduate Diploma in Coffee Quality Management (PGDCQM) for the academic year 2021-22, instituted to support the requirements of the Indian coffee industry for trained personnel with the specific knowledge and skills required to function as coffee tasters.
Course content include Coffee cultivation practices, Post-harvest management and practices, Coffee Quality Evaluation, Roasting and brewing techniques, Marketing and Trade, Quality assurance systems (Theory and Practical sessions).
The course duration is 12 months in 3 trimesters conducted in English. Free accommodation will be provided only during the first trimester at CCRI, Balehonnur, Chikmagalur.
Admissions open to candidates from open category and preference is given to those sponsored by coffee industry. Selection will be based on academic record, personal interview and sensory evaluation test.
Eligibility: Applicants must hold a Bachelor’s degree with at least one of the subjects namely Botany, Zoology, Chemistry, Biotechnology, Bioscience, Food Technology, Food Science, Environmental science or a Bachelor’s degree in Agricultural sciences.
Application forms can be downloaded from www.indiacoffee.org or collected personally from Coffee Board, Bangalore.
Filled in application form along with a NEFT transfer details for Rs.1500/- payable to Coffee Board Account No. 64015049024, State Bank of India, IFSC – SBIN0040022, Dr.B.R.Ambedkar Veedhi, Bengaluru should reach ‘Divisional Head, Coffee Quality (I/c) Coffee Board, No.1, Dr.B.R.Ambedkar Veedhi, Bengaluru-560 001’ latest by 1st December 2021.
Foreign students admitted under open and sponsored categories should be well versed in the English language. Their admission is subject to the cclearance of Govt. of India.
Interview and selection will be held on 10th December 2021.
Course Fee is Rs.2,50,000/-. SC/ST applicants submitting caste certificate along with the application will get concession of 50% in course fee.
www.indiacoffee.org
source: http://www.english.mathrubhumi.com / Mathrubhumi / Home> English Education> News & Updates / November 28th, 2021
The Kodagu district administration on Friday conducted a meeting to develop Raja Seat, which is a popular tourist attraction in Madikeri.
Deputy Commissioner B.C.Satish instructed the officials to prepare a blueprint to develop the existing place into a ‘Greater’ Raja Seat.
He directed the Horticulture Department to take up the repair of the musical fountain which is defunct, on a priority basis. Similar instructions were issued to restore the functioning of the toy train.
The Coorg Village which has already been inaugurted, should start functioning immediately, said the Deputy Commissioner while the offiicals suggested the installation of a high mast lamp in the vicinity.
It was also decided to organise a Coffee Mela to coincide with Christmas when the town and the district is visited by hordes of tourists, apart from conducting cultural programmes during holidays.
Incidentally, the previous round of development works carried out by the authorities had come under flak from conservationists on the grounds that the place was being concretised and its beauty being eroded.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States / by Special Correspondent / Mysuru – November 26th, 2021
Coffee Board CEO and Secretary K.G. Jagadeesha, on Tuesday, visited the rain-hit coffee estates of Mudigere taluk and interacted with the coffee planters about the problems they had been facing in recent days.
Heavy rains in parts of Chikkamagaluru and Hassan districts have impacted the yield. The growers have not been able to harvest the yield. Those, who have harvested the crop, are finding it difficult to dry coffee beans.
The officer visited an estate at Balur, owned by B.R.Balakrsihna, president of Mudigere taluk of Coffee Growers’ Association. The growers also submitted a memorandum to the officer.
Karnataka Growers’ Federation president H.T.Mohan Kumar, former presidents D.B. Subbe Gowda, B.S. Jairam and others were present.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindi / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Special Correspondent / Hassan – November 16th, 2021
With rainfall still continuing to lash parts of Kodagu, the growers are faced with a herculean task of picking the beans in the rain.
The wood fire installed by coffee grower Vikas to dry beans.
Madikeri :
The change in the weather pattern has increasingly affected the coffee growing sector in Kodagu. As rainfall continues to lash the district in November, the coffee growers are struggling to save what is left of the coffee yield.
The coffee picking season for Arabica variety begins in November and the picked ripened beans are to be dried under the sun. However, with rainfall still continuing to lash parts of Kodagu, the growers are faced with a herculean task of picking the beans in the rain. Further, the collected beans cannot be dried in the rainfall and many growers are building make-shift stoves to save the ripened beans.
K Vikas, a coffee grower in Makkanduru village has raised a make-shift stove to dry the ripened coffee beans. Coffee beans, which are usually dried under the sun, are now being dried on a wood fire stove. “The bad weather condition has forced us to take this non-traditional method of drying coffee beans,” Vikas explained.
Meanwhile, the ripened beans without drying do not possess any demand in the market and are not bought by the traders due to the existing risks concerning the weather. “The coffee curing centres will not accept yield that has a mixture of ripened and unripened beans; the cost of separating these two beans cannot be managed by the growers in the current scenario. The curing centres are also sceptical about purchasing un-dried coffee following the present weather condition,” explained BN Ramesh, a coffee trader in the district.
The unseasonal rain had already inflicted heavy loss to many growers as the coffee plants witnessed increased droppings and rotting. The continuation of rainfall in the month of November is now threatening to wipe out what is left of the crop damage.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Pragna GR, Express News Service / November 14th, 2021
Here is a chance for coffee growers to get additional cash from their plants throughout the year apart from income from the sale of beans. Mysuru-based Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) has developed a technology to prepare a value-added product from coffee leaves that packs in health benefits too.
Coffee is only harvested for a few months every year, depending on the country’s harvest season. This can leave a number of producers and workers without work (and income) for a significant portion of the year.
Pushpa S. Murthy
However, some producers have decided to diversify the crops that they grow and sell. As coffee leaves are constantly being produced, growers can harvest them in the off-season if there is demand, according to Pushpa S. Murthy, Principal Scientist (Spice and Flavour Science Department) of CFTRI.
This technology follows a CFTRI project on the development of value-added products from coffee leaves taken up in 2019. The project was funded by the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
If farmers can use the leaves which can be harvested during the off-season or during pruning, without interfering with coffee bean growth, it will have a great impact on the social elevation of coffee farmers, she said.
Around 70 percent of the coffee industry is unemployed or underemployed during nine months of the year due to the nature of the growth cycle of the coffee beans. The project aimed to provide a year-round sustainable process for the coffee farmers.
With CFTRI technology, the brew can be prepared with water, allowed for a few minutes to steep, filtered and consumed. The institute has initiated the transfer of this technology to the coffee industry, and a few industry participants have already extended their consent, she said.
The leaf brew does not really taste like coffee, according to Murthy. “The brew is subtle with less caffeine compared to coffee or tea,” she said. On the nutritional value of the beverage, she said coffee leaves are rich in phenolic acids with potential health benefits. A coffee leaf contains around 17 percent more antioxidants than green tea. The beverage should be consumed plain.
The beverage accords health-promoting polyphenols like chlorogenic acid and mangiferin which help in reducing blood glucose levels, inflammation and blood pressure, she said.
Leaf drink ‘kuti’ and ‘kahwa daun’ popular in Sumatra, Ethiopia
Coffee leaf tea has been consumed in Sumatra, Ethiopia, Jamaica, Java and Sudan for centuries. From the 16th century to the 19th century, Ethiopian farmers set aside their harvested coffee for trade or consumption in special ceremonies. As a day-to-day drink, the Harari people in Ethiopia instead enjoyed ‘kuti’.
‘Kuti’ tea was made by boiling coffee leaves in hot water, sometimes with a pinch of salt or some sugar. It was generally boiled for at least 30 minutes, as it was believed that the longer the leaves were boiled for, the sweeter the resulting brew would be.
Coffee leaf tea bears some similarities to green tea, but it is more earthy and sweeter. It is lower in caffeine than green tea, and thanks to its high levels of antioxidants, it has historically been believed that it cures or relieves cold symptoms.
In the 19th century, Dutch colonists transported coffee plants to designated farming regions in Indonesia. Workers on the coffee plantations were forbidden from consuming the coffee they harvested, so they drank something called “kahwa daun” instead.
‘Kahwa daun’ was made by drying coffee leaves in the sun to reduce their bitterness. The leaves were then smoked and roasted for a few hours. Finally, they would be steeped in boiling water, and then served in a coconut shell.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> Top Stories / November 14th, 2021
KG Jagadeesh, CEO and Secretary of the Coffee Board, told The New Indian Express, “This new variety of cuppa yields more, and has a good cupping quality.
For representational purposes
Bengaluru :
To boost coffee economy, help farmers and consumers, the Board has decided to promote a new variety of brew. To ease farmers into adopting the new variety of Chandragiri coffee, the board has asked the state and central government to provide planters a soft loan with lower interest rates and moratoriums.
KG Jagadeesh, CEO and Secretary of the Coffee Board, told The New Indian Express, “This new variety of cuppa yields more, and has a good cupping quality. The beans are bold and has a lot of resistance to leaf pests. The taste and quality of this variety is also good, but its acceptability among farmers is only 10 per cent. Since getting a subsidy is difficult, the board has asked the government to offer them soft loan schemes. Farmer will not clear their standing crop and sow fresh saplings and wait for five years, without any returns. This issue needs to be addressed to have a better market.”
The Board is not just working on promoting Chandragiri in Karnataka and southern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala, but to other Indian states like Odisha.
Jagadeesh said that the aim is to increase productivity, so that the exports and domestic sales also increase.
The Board officials pointed out that in Karnataka and southern regions, the most grown variety is Cauvery and Arabica, but assessment of samples have shown that Chandragiri is better. According to the Board’s statistics, the yield has been good at 1,037 kg per hectare of Arabica and Robusta in Karnataka in the year 2020-21.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> States> Karnataka / by Bosky Khanna, Express News Sevices / October 21st, 2021
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