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Cashew feni should be patented: Negi NT Staff Reporter Panaji Oct 1: The Goa chief secretary, Mr Dev Singh Negi today said that Goa needs to bring in legislation whereby some areas in the state could be declared as organic farming areas because organic produce commands higher prices in the market. Mr Negi also suggested that the cashew feni which is unique to Goa, should be patented before some other entity patents it. Mr Negi delivered the keynote address at a one-day conference on ‘Value addition in agriculture and horticulture produce in Goa’, at which he was also the chief guest. Stating that Goa ranks high in production of coconut and arecanut and is the largest exporter of cashewnut, Mr Negi called Goa a “blessed state” as far as agriculture is concerned. Though the tourism sector is hogging more attention here, it can be badly affected by any stray incident like the September 11 catastrophe in New York showed. That is why we must not only diversify into agriculture, we must raise the productivity and bring down the cost of production. The cost will only come down if we raise the productivity, Mr Negi said. He said, “‘Value addition can be done not only at the post-harvest stage but also at the production stage itself. More area needs to be brought under cultivation and multi-cropping needs to be introduced.” Farmers need to adopt scientific farming methods especially organic farming, he added. Goa can become hub of exports for several agricultural produce but first the mindset of Goan people regarding agriculture should change, Mr Negi said. During the technical session, the agriculture secretary, Mr Amit Yadav spoke on ‘Introduction to Value Addition’. Mr Yadav said among the areas for value addition in agriculture in Goa, one is to bring more efficiency with higher productivity levels. The paddy yield is only 2.9 tonne/hectare in India whereas in the United States the paddy yield is 6.2 tonne/hectare. He said the state could look at opening of the agriculture sector for exports and also look into new areas like agro tourism, organic farming, medicinal, aromatic plants etc. Mr Yadav said value addition in agriculture is important because it increases the margins the producers receive for their products. He also said agriculture contributes 25 per cent of the gross domestic product, provides 56 per cent of employment and sustains 69 per cent of the population. Whenever there is high GDP growth in the country, it is largely due to higher growth in the farm sector, he said. Importantly, Mr Yadav listed the following as some keys to success in value addition in agriculture; choosing something you love to do, following demand driven production, creating high quality product, starting small and growing naturally, making decisions based on good records, establishing a loyal customer base (preferably local), providing more than just food or produce and planning for the future. Value addition means changing the way the commodity is marketed, changing the form of the commodity before it is marketed, changing the way the commodity is packed for the market and growing commodities for special markets, Mr Yadav said. Other experts, including the chairman, Cashew Export Promotion Council of India, Cochin, Mr P Bharatan Pillai also spoke during the technical sessions. The director of agriculture, Mr Ramesh Joshi proposed a vote of thanks.
