Neera: The failed promise and lost potential of Kerala’s health drink

By the side of the ill-maintained Pandarapadam-Keloth road near Ayyappanchery in Kerala’s coastal Alappuzha district stands a semi-derelict building with its compound overrun with weeds. The company set up its Neera processing plant using the initial capital of ₹5 lakh raised from within the group, a ₹1.5-crore loan taken from the Kerala Financial Corporation at 14.5% interest, and another ₹80 lakh mobilised from coconut farmers as shares. According to an estimate given in the Indian Coconut Journal published by the CDB in 2015, if 1% of the total coconut trees in Kerala were used for tapping Neera, the State would get around ₹5,400 crore, including ₹2,700 crore for farmers, ₹1,350 crore for technicians, and ₹405 crore to the exchequer in the form of tax. According to Kerala Consortium of Coconut Producer Companies Ltd, the CPCs made a capital investment of around ₹27 crore, including bank credits and funds raised from farmers, in the Neera business alone and their total loss from Neera operations touched ₹40 crore by 2017. Vinod Kumar P., chairperson, Kerala Consortium of Coconut Producer Companies Ltd, says marketing Neera in aseptic packs will increase its shelf life by up to nine months without affecting its quality and help turn around the fortunes of the ailing sector.