ODOP tag a shot in the arm for Wayanad coffee

Thiruvananthapuram: The ongoing efforts to promote Wayanad's GI-tagged Robusta coffee has received a shot in the arm as the Wayanad coffee received a special mention in centre's one-district-one-product (ODOP) programme. 

Sharing the development, Wayanad MP and AICC top leader Priyanka Gandhi tweeted that it was a proud moment for Wayanad. It is the first such recognition for any product from Kerala.

The fresh recognition will be an impetus to a series of ongoing efforts like setting up of Carbon Neutral Coffee Park and the Climate Smart Coffee Project that aim at gaining more international attention to Wayanad coffee. 

Over 50,000 farmers are involved in coffee cultivation in Wayanad. Majority of them are small scale farmers and people from tribal communities who lack adequate skills to market their produce despite its high quality. Hence the ongoing efforts assume much significance for the farmers. Over 60,000 tonnes of Robusta coffee is produced in Wayanad annually.

Kerala industries department assistant director at Wayanad Ashwin P Kumar told DH that the special mention in the ODOP would not only give a wider opportunity to sell the Wayanad coffee but also vindicate the high standards of Wayanad coffee as ODOP selection involved a very meticulous process.

Robusta coffee is rich in caffeine content compared to the Arabica variety. Wayanad coffee received a good response while it was displayed for the first time at the World Coffee Conference at Copenhagen in Denmark last year. Samples of Wayanad coffee taken to the Netherlands two years back had even fetched 83 and 86 cup scores. Coffees that earn over 80 cup scores are considered as 'specialty coffee'. GI tagged Wayanad Robusta is also considered to be having strong aroma and special flavors. 

Industry sources also point out that such helping hands were quite essential for the small scale coffee farmers of Wayanad as neighbouring states like Karnataka are having well established farmers.

Project lead of the Climate Smart Coffee Project G Balagopal said that the fresh recognition came at a time when the climate resilient Robusta coffee's global demand was increasing as the production of Arabica coffee was being affected by factors like adverse weather conditions.