The Dairy Development Department is hoping to get land at Nettukaltheri in the district for relocating its State Fodder Farm which is facing acute space crunch.
The existing farm, at Valiyathura, has shrunk in size with the State government slicing away portions of its land for various purposes. The department is hoping to be assigned approximately 20 acres at Nettukaltheri, close to the open prison, although a formal decision on the matter is awaited.
Minister for Animal Husbandry and dairy Development J. Chinchurani said the matter will be discussed with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan as the land in question is revenue land leased out to the Prisons Department.
Once boasting 131 acres, the State Fodder Farm at Valiyathura has now shrunk to a mere nine acres, out of which eight are used to grow the Hybrid Napier fodder grass which is in high demand among dairy farmers in Thiruvananthapuram district.
In addition to sale of green fodder, the farm supplies root slips and stem cuttings for fodder propagation. It also has a fodder training centre for the farmers.
In recent decades, however, the farm land has been parcelled out for purposes such as the rehabilitation of fishermen families who have lost their homes to coastal erosion. The Dairy Development Department has been scouting for land in Thiruvananthapuram district to relocate the farm. The 2023-24 State Budget ha s earmarked ₹11 crore for a new State Fodder Farm and Model Dairy Unit, targeting accelerated fodder production to reduce the demand-supply gap.
Shortage of good quality green fodder is one of the main hurdles faced by the State in increasing milk production. Fodder cultivation in Kerala meets only 47% of the demand, according to the Economic Review 2022. To meet the demand, the department has been encouraging farmers and dairy cooperatives across the State to grow fodder. The 2023-24 State budget has earmarked ₹8.5 crore specifically for this purpose. Presently, there are 7,755 fodder plots in the State, majority of which are small ones, having between one and 2.5 acres in area.
