Technology initiatives for Coffee Stakeholders

Why in News?

  •  Minister for Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu has launched Coffee Connect – India coffee field force app and Coffee Krishi Tharanga – digital mobile extension services for coffee stakeholders.

Coffee Connect:

  • The mobile app Coffee Connect has been developed to ease the work of field functionaries and to improve the work efficiency.
  • This application provides solution by harnessing the power of mobility comprising the latest technology in easing the whole process of the field.
  • This includes activities like digitization of Coffee Growers & Estates with Geo Tagging, collecting the Plantation details.
  •  It will also help in transparency in the activities of the extension officers and officials, transparency in subsidy disbursement and real time report generation.

Coffee Krishi Tharanga:

  • The Coffee KrishiTharanga services are aimed at providing customized information and services to increase productivity, profitability, and environmental sustainability.
  • The service is pilot tested in the Chikmagalur and Hassan districts of Karnataka State covering 30,000 farmers during the first year and will be extended to remaining growers in a phased manner.
  • NABARD has partly funded the Pilot project.
  • The solution will help in to reach maximum growers in limited period, efficient, timely, customised advisory, improve the efficiency through digitization and leverage existing mobile reach for wider delivery of improved technology.

Coffee cultivation in India:

  • Coffee is cultivated in India in about 4.54 lakh hectares by 3.66 lakh coffee farmers and 98% of them are small farmers.
  • Its cultivation is mainly confined to Karnataka (54%), Kerala (19%) and Tamil Nadu (8%) which form traditional coffee tracts.
  •  New fields are also developed in NE states.
  •  Indian coffee, grown mostly in southern states under monsoon rainfall conditions, is also termed as “Indian monsooned coffee”.
  •  The two well known species of coffee grown are the Arabica and Robusta.
  • The first variety that was introduced in the Baba BudanGiri hill ranges of Karnataka in the 17th century was marketed over the years under the brand names of Kent and S.795.

Coffee Board of India:

  • The Coffee Board of India is an organisation managed by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of the government of India to promote coffee production in India.
  • Head Office is in Bangalore.
  • The Coffee Board of India was established by an act of Parliament in 1942.
  • Until 1995 the Coffee Board marketed the coffee of many growers from a pooled supply, but after that time coffee marketing became a private-sector activity due to the economic liberalisation in India.
  • The Coffee Boards tradition duties included the promotion of the sale and consumption of coffee in India and abroad, conducting coffee research, financial assistance to establish small coffee growers, safeguarding working conditions for labourers, and managing the surplus pool of unsold coffee.
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