Unfermented sap product Kalparasa to enter Karnataka market shortly

Kalparasa Coconut and All Spices Producer Company, with an objective to increase the income of coconut growers, has plans to release ‘Kalparasa’ in the market soon, Company president Satyanarayana Udupa said.

After procuring Kalparasa technology from CPCRI in Kasargod in 2019, Udupa said that the Company was keen on setting up a processing unit at Japti in Kundapura.

An application for a licence was submitted to the Deputy Commissioner of Excise for the processing and collection of Kalparasa. We will soon receive permission from the government for marketing Kalparasa, he added.

Kalparasa is unfermented sap from coconut inflorescence. Udupi-based Kalparasa Coconut and All Spices Producer Company has 1,028 farmers as shareholders in the district. In five years, it is planning to reach out to 5,000 farmers. Initially, Kalparasa will be collected from eight coconut trees of each shareholder.

As many as 14 experts have already undergone 45 days of training to collect Kalparasa, Udupa said. About two litres of Kalparasa can be collected from a coconut tree daily. On average, 600 litres of Kalparasa can be collected from a coconut tree per year. From eight trees, about 5,000 litres of Kalparasa can be collected.

Udupa said farmers will be paid Rs 20 per litre. If a farmer collects Kalparasa himself, then he can earn up to Rs 2.5 lakh per year. The experts who collect Kalparasa will be paid Rs 30,000 per month with PF and ESI facilities. Tapping experts will be paid Rs 25 per tree. In the CPCRI technique of collecting sap, the entire device from the cut surface to the collection container is closed, he added.

The insulated can will include ice cubes to store Kalparasa. Arrangements will be made for cold storage units to collect Kalparasa. The Kalparasa will be sold by keeping it in cold storage boxes. The company is planning to sell it for Rs 30 per 200 ml. There are plans to produce jaggery, sugar, honey, vinegar, chocolate and ice cream using the Kalparasa, Udupa said.

Kalparasa needs to be stored in -3 to -4 Degree Celsius. It is high in carbohydrates, iron, vitamin, amino acids, vitamin c and others, and is even a safe drink for diabetic patients.