Fruit-ripening chambers gain popularity in Mysuru

‘Fruit-ripening chambers’ are gaining popularity in the district and the Horticulture department is making efforts to set up more such units to ensure chemical-free fruits.

The district has four ripening chambers and all of them are getting a good response from traders and farmers. The units can be used for ripening of mangoes, bananas and other fruits.

According to Horticulture Assistant Director Sabina Aiyanna, the aim of the department is to ensure healthy and quality fruits to consumers and to ensure good income to farmers.

The department has urged the Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) officials to set up a unit on its premises in Bandipalaya to prevent the farmers and the traders from using calcium carbide to ripen fruits.

A few traders and the farmers have shown interest to set-up new units and expand the number of existing chambers. In addition, Raitha Mitra Farmers Producer Company has come forward to establish a unit to help the farmers, she said.

Credit and subsidy

The department offers 35% credit-linked and backend subsidy under National Horticulture Mission (NHM). In addition, Mango Board offers 25% subsidy for mango traders and farmers. Mango growers can avail 60% subsidy to install the unit. The admissible cost for ripening chamber is approximately Rs 1 lakh per metric tonne.

According to traders who have set up the units the chambers have several benefits and ensure healthy and quality fruits for the consumers.

Mysorepushti Agro products director K Raghavendra said that they have installed a unit with the capacity of 65 tonne and several farmers are utilising it to ripen the fruits.

15 tons daily

“We ripen an average of 15 tons of fruits daily. With the unit, Mysorepushti Agro products created employment for 40 people, The unit is being used to ripen mangoes, banana, sapota and also to preserve lemon,” he said.

Devaraju, a farmer from Bannur said that he installed the unit with 5-ton capacity three years ago and he had plans to expand to its capacity to 50 tons.

The unit has good benefits with extended shelf-life. Chemically-ripened fruits would be less juicy than the naturally ripened fruits. Naturally ripened fruits have good aroma and natural colour, which is good for health.

The traders claim that there will be more demand for the chamber if the authorities strictly impose a ban on artificial ripening.