The betel leaf, grown in regions around Madurai, has a huge market; cultivation of the leaf has been recorded for centuries now
An application seeking a Geographical Indication (GI) tag for the famous Sholavandan betel vine (vetrilai) has been filed by the Centre for Rural Education and Development, Madurai.
The application process was facilitated by the MSME Intellectual Property Facilitation Centre, NABARD Madurai Agri Business Incubation Forum (MABIF), and was filed by P. Sanjai Gandhi, IP Attorney and Advocate, Nodal Officer, Geographical Indication Registration of Products.
This particular betel leaf is grown in places like Sholavandan, Irumpadi, Karuppatti, Mattaparai, Mannadi Mangalam, Mullipallam, Thiruvengadam, Thenur and Thuvariman, all around Madurai district.
Sholavandan and Vadipatti blocks are situated along the Vaigai basin, and the soils of the region are fertile. The farmers of the region assert that the soil was one of the factors contributing to the betel quality, Mr.Gandhi mentioned in his filing. “Betel leaf chewing and consumption are very common and has been in practice here since ancient era,” he added.
Betel cultivation in Madurai is mentioned in the famous Tamil literary piece, ‘Maduraikanchi’ dated to the 2nd – 4th century AD.
An inscription at the Jeynagar Narayana Perumal temple, one of the famous temples in Sholavandan, built by Kulasekara Pandian in the 5th century AD, says, “The betel farmers in the Sholavandan area should donate the income of betel cultivation to the Jenaga Narayana Perumal temple and can get three times the amount donated to the temple from the king of Pandya, Madurai”.
P.Sivakumar. CEO, NABARD MABIF, told The Hindu that this particular betel leaf has a huge market. Commenting on the overall betel market in India, he said, “The country has exported 6,159.39 MT of betel leaves worth ₹26.18 crore/ $3.55 million in 2020-21.” Last year in November, an application for the grant of a GI tag was filed for the Authoor Vetrilai, a betel leaf that comes in three different variants – Nattukodi, Pachaikodi and Karpoori.
The market price of the betel leaf fluctuates from time to time: it falls between June – September and shoots up during special occasions like wedding seasons and festivals. The prices hover anywhere between ₹55 to ₹170 per kg.
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