Wayanad coffee sector to get renewed push, says Minister Siddique

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Agriculture Minister T. Siddique speaking at the seventh International Coffee Day celebrations at Kalpetta in Wayanad on Thursday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Financial assistance to farmers who suffered crop losses in natural calamities will be disbursed by the end of October, Agriculture Minister T. Siddique has said.

Inaugurating the seventh International Coffee Day celebrations at Kalpetta in Wayanad on Thursday (October 1, 2026), Mr. Siddique said ₹6 crore had been earmarked to clear pending crop insurance claims, and that the amount would be disbursed soon.

From the next financial year, the Agriculture department would introduce a scheme to provide farmers with new planting materials, financial assistance, and fertilisers, in addition to compensation for crop losses caused by natural calamities, he said.

He added that climate change was a major challenge facing coffee cultivation in Wayanad. Cloudbursts, landslides, and mudslides associated with extreme weather events were causing difficulties for farmers. The government and the Agriculture department would undertake a special mission to provide relief to farmers while implementing schemes with the support of the Coffee Board, Mr. Siddique said.

The Minister said coffee productivity in Wayanad was 918 kg per hectare, compared with 1,494 kg in Kodagu. He said the government would initiate measures to increase the productivity and improve farmers’ incomes.

The activities of the Kerala Climate Resilient Agri-Value Chain Modernisation (KERA) should not be confined to coffee development and replanting but should extend to comprehensive measures for the revival of the sector, he said.

Though the Wayanad Robusta coffee had secured the Geographical Indication (GI) tag, greater emphasis should be placed on value addition, Mr. Siddique said. Efforts were under way to develop an ecosystem for converting coffee bio-waste into secondary ingredients. An international branding initiative, ‘Farm to Cup’, would be launched for the Wayanad Robusta coffee, he added.

The government also planned to organise an international summit in the State and hold business-to-business meetings and discussions and sign memorandums of understanding with global export-oriented companies, Mr. Siddique added.

Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty said value addition and infrastructure development were crucial for the development of coffee cultivation, which was the lifeline of farmers and the economy of Wayanad. He was speaking online at the inaugural session of the International Coffee Day celebrations.

Revenue Minister A.P. Anil Kumar said the government aimed to make serious interventions in the agricultural sector. It would give priority to the welfare of farmers in developing coffee cultivation, he added.

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