Kerala   

Pro-active advocacy for coconut stressed

KOCHI: It is not merely enough to seek restrictions on the import of palm oil, which is undoubtedly a close substitute for coconut oil, but the State needs to have a pro-active advocacy for coconut, senior officials of the Kochi-based Coconut Development Board have said.

They point out that the weak demand in coconut market is an offshoot of the decline in the consumption of coconut and coconut products. Lifestyle changes have resulted in the abandonment of many of the traditional usages of coconut and coconut oil. A case in point is the virtual disappearance of the oil bath that used to be considered as a sine qua non for thick and lustrous hair in Kerala. In the cuisine too, the use of coconut has seen a sharp and significant reduction mainly on account of the adverse propaganda against the use of coconut and coconut oil. The various studies conducted by reputed institutions have failed to establish a relationship between the consumption of coconut oil and cardiovascular disease. This fact has been reinforced by Union Health Minister Anubumani Ramdoss in Parliament in answer to a specific question on the subject. Yet, this doubt continues to linger in the minds of a large number of people. Added to this is the availability of cheaper substitutes and the high level of advertising done by competing edible oils.

It may be recalled that the Union government, in a move aimed at protecting the coconut farmers in Kerala, had banned import of palm group of oils through the ports of the State.

Now crude palm oil, refined, bleached and de-odorised palmolein and other grades of the commodity are not permitted for imports through the ports of Kerala, as per a notification of the Directorate General of Foreign Trade .The move by the Centre follows after a drastic fall in prices of coconut oil. On October 16, the government had barred import of palm oil through Kochi port. The decision was challenged in Kerala High Court, which finally allowed the ban to continue. The edible oil industry feels that the government should have considered other options than banning palm oil imports through Kerala ports. The Solvent Extractors Association had opined that this type of selective step do not fit in with the framework of a free market economy and merely adds to the cost of cooking oil to the consumer and is not in the public interest.

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