Coffee Board, under the Union commerce & industry ministry, has applied for the registration of Araku coffee under Geographical Indications (GI) to protect the unique identity of the coffee, grown by the tribal community of the Araku valley in Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam district.
About 90 per cent of the total Araku Coffee production is exported to countries like Sweden, Switzerland, Dubai and Italy.
The central government, through Coffee Board, is promoting the production of coffee in the Araku valley by implementing the Integrated Coffee Development Project.
The board is facilitating collective marketing of Araku Coffee by providing incentives at Rs 10 per Kg for SHGs and grower collectives.
Through the project, the board extends financial support for replanting and expansion, creation of water harvesting and irrigation infrastructures and mechanization of coffee estate operations.
In non-traditional areas, financial support is extended for consolidation of existing coffee plantations through gap filling and application of compost. Technical assistance is also provided by organising capacity building programmes and field demonstrations.