Rising turmeric acreage may curb last year's record prices

KOCHI/PUNE: Last year's record prices have led to a higher turmeric production this year. With more land brought under the crop, the production would be higher in the coming years too. The farmers who earned a high income last year are likely to end the current year with less earnings.
"There are around 50,000 farmers engaged in turmeric cultivation in Erode belt alone. While some new farmers have moved into the crop, the existing ones have extended farming to more areas with prices shooting up last year," said leading turmeric trader RK Vishwanathan . According to the figures available with Spices Board , the total area under turmeric is 1,94,358 hectare.
In a year, there has been over 15% rise in acreage in Erode and Salem , the main growing regions of the spice, according to a senior official of Spices Board. The production is predicted to be in the range of 65 to 70 lakh bags (each bag weighs 70-75 kg), which is over 40% higher than the previous year.
Higher production is not limited to south India. Turmeric farming in Sangli district in Maharashtra has intensified. "The area under turmeric is expected to double this year. It may go up from 1,200 hectares last year to 3,000 hectares next year," said BG Birajdar, district superintending agricultural officer, Sangli. The arrivals at the Sangli APMC are up by 20% from 3.76 lakh quintal last year to 4.50 lakh quintal this year.

(Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/commodities/rising-turmeric-acreage-may-curb-last-years-record-prices/articleshow/7954912.cms)