Anakapalle jaggery sales dip, thanks to stiff competition

Visakhapatnam: With stiff competition from Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka, the sales have come down for the Anakapalle branded jaggery this year.  The sugarcane farmers have suffered heavy losses in the season with the lack of rains and whatever crop they harvested, they sold to the jaggery industry. 

Anakapalle Jaggery market is the second biggest one in the country and also the jaggery is exported to various countries. Lack of proper rains during the Southwest monsoon affected the sugarcane crop and only 40,280 jaggery lumps arrived at the market this year, while during the previous season 68,000 lumps arrived at the market. 

Meanwhile, the Anakapalle jaggery market is facing stiff competition from other States. Andhra Pradesh traders are not making the jaggery in planks and in less weight. Each lump weighs 14.15 kg to 16 kg. 

In fact, Andhra Pradesh government procured jaggery worth Rs 60 crore from Maharashtra for distribution as part of Sankranthi Kanuka. The Maharashtra farmers are making the jaggery in 200 gm, 300 gm and 500 gm weight and as planks. As such type of jaggery is not made in Anakapalle, the AP government procured the jaggery from Maharashtra.

“Due to lack of rains during the Southwest monsoon-2018, the crop suffered heavy damage and there is less juice in the cane that could be sustained. There is a drastic decline in the export.

The price of the jaggery has also fallen and at present the price is between Rs 250 and Rs 290 per 10 kg in the market,” said former president of Anakapalle Kuladarla Sangham S Sanyasi Rao.At present about 10 lorries (800/1,800 lumps) is being lifted to Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam for making Tirupati Laddu, Sanyasi Rao added.