‘Online store selling banana-based products will be running soon'
The ICAR - National Research Centre for Banana Director R. Selvarajan said that the online store that would sell the banana-based products and other licensed products will be up and running in a month's time.
Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Selvarajan said that he had received positive feedback from the people for the stall that was set up by the centre at a recently held food expo in Madurai.
At the food expo, different varieties of bananas and banana based products were on display.
Some of the value-added products that were displayed at the food expo were banana stem juice and pickles, banana flower thokku, banana health drink mix, banana baby food, low fat chips, kurta, bags, soaps and other banana based products. It was achieved through research and technology, he said.
All the banana-based products and the licensed products will be listed on the online site. The portal is getting ready and the different modes of payment will also be listed on the website. The products will be delivered to any part of the world. A team would be monitoring it, he said.
Apart from these banana based products, three varieties of bananas from Tamil Nadu that had received geographical indication (GI) tag: Kanniyakumari Matti Banana, Sirumalai Hill Banana and Virupakshi Hill Banana will also be available in the online store, he said, adding that out of the eight varieties of bananas that had received the geographical indication tag, three varieties were from Tamil Nadu and were popular.
Mr. Selvarajan said that people would write to the centre inquiring about these products. These products were sold through the centre in Tiruchi. However, with growing popularity among people and demand for the reputed products, the need for the online store had become necessary, he said.
Over 500 varieties of bananas have been developed at the centre and over 200 people have taken licence. A field gene bank to conserve genetic resources was established, he said.
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