CAMPCO Worried Over Imported Arecanut Entering Domestic Market
The matter was recently brought to the attention of Union Home Minister Amit Shah during CAMPCO’s meeting in New Delhi, where CAMPCO sought coordinated measures to safeguard domestic arecanut growers.
Mangaluru: The Central Arecanut and Cocoa Marketing and Processing Co-operative Limited (CAMPCO) has expressed serious concern over the increasing inflow of imported arecanut and its impact on domestic growers and organised marketing institutions.
Addressing reporters on Thursday, CAMPCO president SR Sathischandra said that CAMPCO has urged the Government to strengthen monitoring of imports, enforce import regulations effectively, prevent misclassification and take appropriate measures to prevent imported arecanut from being mixed with or passed off as domestic produce.
The matter was recently brought to the attention of Union Home Minister Amit Shah during CAMPCO’s meeting in New Delhi, where CAMPCO sought coordinated measures to safeguard domestic arecanut growers.
“Of particular concern is the mixing of imported arecanut with domestic produce and its circulation as domestic produce, which affects traceability, market transparency and price discovery, besides putting pressure on domestic prices,” he said.
CAMPCO has also taken up the issue of Mandi Tax on arecanut transactions in Uttar Pradesh, which increases the cost of inter-State trade.
The matter was brought to the attention of Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, keeping in view the principle of “One Nation, One Tax”. The CAMPCO team also met the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh regarding the Mandi Tax.
He said the CAMPCO continues to support scientific research addressing emerging challenges in the arecanut sector. A multidisciplinary initiative is being undertaken for the arecanut ecosystem in Karnataka and Kerala.
The mobile soil testing facility at Puttur is helping growers adopt more scientific farm management practices.
“Renewable energy remains a key focus area for CAMPCO. Existing wind power units meet around 56.81 percent of the Chocolate Factory’s energy requirement, while the 500 KW solar project at Puttur generated 4.79 lakh units during the year,” he said.
A further 580 KW rooftop solar project is under progress, expected to meet an additional 8–9 percent of the energy requirement. CAMPCO is also planning to procure approximately 15 lakh units of power through Open Access.
Speaking about the achievements of the CAMPCO, Sathischandra said that CAMPCO has recorded a strong performance during 2025-26, achieving a total business turnover of Rs 3,735 crore and Profit Before Tax of Rs 49.62 crore.
“This was despite volatility in the arecanut market and challenging conditions in the cocoa sector,” he said.
Reflecting its continued financial strength and commitment to grower-members, the Board of Directors has recommended a 14% dividend for the year.
Arecanut continues to be the backbone of CAMPCO and its core business activity. During 2025-26, CAMPCO procured 58,742.76 MT of arecanut valued at ₹2,924.32 crore, comprising 24,052.07 MT of red arecanut and 34,690.69 MT of white arecanut.
The Co-operative sold 59,088.64 MT valued at Rs 2,985.19 crore, comprising 22,914.53 MT of red and 36,174.11 MT of white arecanut.
The Chocolate Factory recorded 12,606.40 MT of production, while cocoa and chocolate products recorded sales of Rs 488.65 crore, including exports.
“The premium CAMPCO chocolate range is now available at Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru,” the president said.
CAMPCO is organising the International Arecanut Conference 2027 on 16th and 17th January 2027 at Hotel Ocean Pearl, Mangaluru.
The conference will provide an international platform for deliberations on scientific developments, emerging challenges, technology, value addition and the future of the arecanut sector, with a focus on strengthening the interests of growers and promoting sustainable growth of the sector.