After Punjabi tomatoes and Andhra chillies…

They have also had extensive discussions with various Government bodies and research institutes, including the Central Directorate of Cocoa, Areca nut and Spices which is headquartered here. The team had compiled voluminous data covering all aspects of ginger in Kerala.

Kerala is the largest ginger producer in the country. Though it accounts for about half the total of 14,000-odd hectares under ginger, its production has only been about a quarter of the national output, despite the very conducive climatic and topographical features.

This has been owing to obsolete techniques and poor inputs, which is precisely what Pepsi hopes to capitalise on.

Pepsi, in a nutshell, is aiming to eventually replicate its successful corporatism of tomato farming in Punjab, in ginger here, say informed sources.

The company has a massive processing plant in Sangrur district of Punjab, which is fed by local tomato farmers who are made to sign a contract and register as producer-suppliers, at the outset.

More or less, along the lines of the `Putting Out’ system employed by many industries, the company ties up with a bank which bankrolls all the input costs, and the farmers supply their produce to the company at pre-fixed prices. All aspects of crop growing are closely monitored and controlled by the company’s experts.

The biggest advantage to the company, apart from the desired quality and quantity of raw materials, is that it will not have to make heavy investments to buy land for farming. This is particularly attractive in the case of Kerala, where land costs run high.

It is learnt that while Pepsi will initially limit itself to only the procurement of ginger from Wayanad (this district produces about half the State’s output) and elsewhere, the next phase will have it go for contracted production on a large scale.

Once it happens, it will be the first corporate venture of its kind in the State’s agrarian sector. Though other multinational companies like Cadbury’s have been partially sponsoring cocoa cultivation for many years now, there has never been a system of contractual obligation to supply at pre-fixed rates and registration of captive farms in Kerala.

It is learnt that Pepsi is also exploring possibilities for getting the State Government to help evolve a system of territorial exclusivity for such operations, to pre-empt future competition from other players.

This system, already in existence in the sugarcane sector in various parts, has the Government mark out captive farming areas to feed each company on an exclusive basis.

The companies have to provide all required techno-economic assistance to the farmers and agree to lift their produce.

Sources who were met by the Pepsi officials, told The Indian Express that the company was unlikely to set up a processing unit in Kerala. The ginger procured from here would largely be transported to its Sangrur plant to feed its idle off-season capacity, for the time being. Preserved ginger pulp is known to have a ready market abroad, and even in urban India.