Economic analysis of production and marketing of coconut in Kollam district of Kerala

Introduction

The coconut palm (Cocos nucifera L.) is recognized as one of the most important tropical crops, providing crucial economic support to millions of people across the world's tropical regions. Often referred to as the "tree of life," the coconut has been valued for centuries for its wide range of uses, including food, drink, oil, medicine, shelter, and timber. Every part of the palm finds an application, underscoring its importance in traditional and modern livelihoods. In recent years, the demand for coconut products has grown steadily, driven by increasing consumer awareness of the nutritional and health benefits of products such as coconut water and virgin coconut oil. A comprehensive understanding of coconut botany, diversity, ecophysiology, production challenges under changing climatic conditions, pest and disease management, postharvest handling, and breeding efforts is critical for sustaining and expanding the coconut sector. With its expanding global relevance, the coconut continues to be an essential focus of agricultural research and development, particularly in tropical and subtropical economies (Adkins et al., 2024) [20] . Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is a plantation crop primarily grown by small and marginal farmers across the world. In India, it plays a vital role in strengthening the rural economy by supporting the livelihoods of over 10 million people. The crop significantly contributes to the national agricultural economy, generating approximately ₹9,000 crores annually towards the GDP and earning around ₹1,200 crores in foreign exchange (Chowdappa and Jayasekhar, 2016) [21] . Beyond its economic importance, coconut acts as a major source of food and income, offering employment opportunities that help alleviate poverty. It is widely revered as "Kalpavriksha" or the "tree of abundance" for its diverse benefits (Thamban et al., 1981) [22] . The current global scenario of the coconut industry reveals both expanding opportunities and emerging challenges. Coconut is cultivated in over 90 countries, primarily across Asia, the Pacific Islands, and South America, covering approximately 12 million hectares with an estimated annual production potential of around 70 billion nuts. India, Indonesia, and the Philippines together account for more than 75% of the global production. The industry has seen substantial growth in recent years, particularly in the development of value-added coconut products, which are increasingly popular in American, European, Middle Eastern, and East Asian markets. Traditional products such as coconut oil, copra meal, desiccated coconut, and coir continue to hold significant economic value, while emerging products like coconut water, virgin coconut oil, coconut milk, and coconut cream are experiencing rapid market expansion. Despite these positive trends, the industry faces www.extensionjournal.com critical challenges, including the spread of invasive pests like Brontispa longissima, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus, Aceria guerreronis, and Aspidiotus rigidus, as well as lethal yellowing diseases in the Caribbean, Americas, and parts of Africa. The discovery of Bogia coconut syndrome in Papua New Guinea, the first such report in Oceania, has further heightened concerns regarding crop health and sustainability. To ensure the long-term viability of the sector, it is necessary to focus on the development of highyielding, pest-and disease-resistant varieties, alongside the adoption of integrated pest management practices. Diversification through coconut cultivation also presents a strategic pathway for countries to strengthen agricultural resilience and reduce dependency on single industrial crops (Hoe, 2018) [22] . Recent developments in the coconut sector highlight the increasing use of modern breeding technologies to address long-standing challenges such as low productivity, vulnerability to pests, and the impacts of climate change. Techniques like marker-assisted selection, genomic selection, and genetic engineering are now being employed to create high-yielding, disease-resistant, and climateresilient coconut varieties. These advancements aim to broaden the genetic base of coconut cultivars, enhance adaptability across diverse environments, and support the growing international demand for coconut products. Despite these promising innovations, the widespread adoption of modern breeding approaches is hindered by factors such as limited research infrastructure, insufficient funding, and a shortage of skilled technical personnel. Strengthening research capabilities, promoting capacity building, and fostering greater international collaboration are essential steps to ensure the sustainable growth and modernization of the global coconut industry (Arumugam et al., 2022) [24] . In Kerala, coconut palm is the most extensively cultivated crop (7,56,890 ha in 2018-19). It grows virtually everywhere in the state. Kerala has a diverse range of landforms that includes mountains, riverine deltas, wetlands, and ecoclimatic conditions that range from high rainfall zones to rain-shadow regions. The soil, climate, flora and fauna of these ecoregions are also correspondingly diverse. The principal crops of the state, including coconut, are cultivated in most of these ecoregions since time immemorial. Coconut is a major crop in the lowlands of Kerala, but the midlands and the slopes of the highlands are also suited for its cultivation (Agricultural Statistics 2018-19) [25] .

Material and Methods

The concepts used in the estimation of fixed costs, variable costs, total costs, gross returns, net returns, producer's share in consumer price, price spread, marketing margins and marketing efficiency are discussed below:

Fixed costs

These included (i) Depreciation on value of fixed assets: Depreciation is a charge on the amount of loss in the value of capital asset due to age and wear and tear resulting for their use. Depreciation in an accounting year, therefore, becomes a cost and is included in the fixed costs. It was calculated by straight line method by deducting junk value from original value and then dividing by number of useful years of assets under study. (ii) Land rent: It was taken as Rs. 30,000 per acre being the modal rate in sample villages during the study period (2024-25). (iii) Interest on capital investment: It was taken as 10% per annum on the investment incurred on machinery, equipment, etc.

Variable costs

The sum total of costs incurred on seeds, fertilizers, plant protection chemicals, human labour, machinery/ tractor hours and interest on working capital for half of the period covered under rapeseed and mustard constitute total variable costs.

Interest on working capital

Marketing concepts 2.4.1 Marketing channels

These refer to the chains of intermediaries through which mustard pass on from the producer to ultimate consumers.  2.5 Analysis of data: Consistent with the objectives of the study, different techniques were used for the analysis of data.  2.5.1 Tabular analysis: For the interpretation and comparison of costs and returns from rapeseed and mustard, marketed surplus on different sizes of farmers and to generate information on other parameters, tabular analysis was carried out.  2.5.2 Garrett's Ranking Technique: Garrett's Ranking Technique was used to rank the problems perceived by the sampled respondents. The degree of response with regard to problems faced by sampled respondents was ranked. The most prevalent problem was given 1st rank and accordingly the next important problem was ranked on the basis of the severity of the problem.

Where,  Rij = Rank given for ith items/problems by the Jth respondent  Nj = Number of items/problems ranked by the Jth respondent

The relative position of each rank is converted into scores by referring the table given by Garrett and Woodworth (1969). Then for each factor problem, the scores of individual respondents were added together and mean score was calculated. The factor with highest mean score was considered to be the most important problem. The prime www.extensionjournal.com advantage of this technique over simple frequency distribution is that the problems are arranged based on their severity from the point of view of respondents.

Results and Discussion

Input utilization

The data in Table 1 shows the per hectare input utilization by coconut farms at the pre-bearing stage, by farm size. Use of hired labour was seen to rise with farm size, with marginal farms needing 30. 19 The farm business income, family labour income and farm invest income followed similar trend with marginal farmers having highest followed by small farmers, semi-medium, medium and large farmers. The Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) for marginal, small, semimedium, medium, and large farmers were 1:1.55, 1:1.58, 1:1.60, 1:1.64 and 1:1.66 respectively with the average being 1:1.61.

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