Farmers in Kerala who develop high-quality seed or crop varieties often brand them under their own name or their family name. However, there are very few farmers who are allowed to add KAU, the acronym for the Kerala Agricultural University, along with their own brand.

Puthara variety of nutmeg developed by Joseph who hails from Vaikaprayar near Vaikom in Kottayam has earned this unique and rare recognition. Joseph, after retiring from FACT, has been enjoying life as a farmer for the last 28 years. Paddy, coconut and nutmeg are the main crops grown by Joseph in his farm. 

The land that he owned close to his ancestral home was raised by dumping mud before growing various nutmeg varieties that have already proved its quality in other farms across the state. He says that he particularly chose these varieties of nutmeg as they promised high yield and good returns. He observed that the nutmegs in some of the nutmeg trees were better in quality and size than others.

Joseph then made the graft buds of the varieties whose nutmeg fruits and mace were bigger in size and weighed more than the regular ones. He showed his special nutmeg trees to a group of experts from the Kerala Agricultural University who had come to train farmers, in 2010. Interestingly, it was also the time when the university was conducting a thorough study about the best nutmeg varieties across Kerala.

Soon, a team of scientists led by Dr Mini Raj reached Joseph’s farm looking for the nutmegs that were unusually bigger in size. They even marked two nutmeg trees in Joseph’s farm for observation and study. After observing the growth and quality of these trees and their produce continuously for five years, the university included one them in their list. This variety of nutmeg is called the KAU Puthara. 

There are only four other nutmeg varieties in Kerala that has this recognition. Dr Mini Raj, who headed the research team says that they had continuously observed 53 varieties of nutmeg at various farms across Kerala before granting the certification to just five varieties. Meanwhile, these varieties have been registered as the unique variety developed by these farmers.

She added that the variety has been adopted by the university, probably a first such instance in India, to ensure that the high-quality buds reach more number of farmers. The farmers who have developed these varieties can sell them, besides producing the buds for the university’s nurseries. 

Joseph says that the dried nutmeg of KAU Puthara weighs at least 10 grams. He claims that some of the selected ones were as heavy as 16 grams. One of the unique features of the KAU Puthara is that they produce nutmegs in huge bunches. A bunch that has 90 – 100 nutmegs weights up to a kilo. Meanwhile, maces that are bigger in size have weighed up to four grams.

The university estimates that the mace produced from the KAU Puthara nutmeg could weigh up to 2.1 grams; this is the weight after the mace has been dried. Besides, the university has also surmised that a tree that is 15 years old can produce up to 2000 nutmegs or 20 kilos of dried nutmeg. Up to 4.2 kilos of dried mace could be produced from these many nutmegs.

Last year, Joseph harvested 350 – 400 kilos of nutmeg from the 70 nutmeg trees that are grown in his farm. Besides, he was also able to sell up to 90 kilos of first-grade mace. The veteran farmer points out that he sells the mace of the KAU Puthara on premium rates due to its excellent quality. Moreover, exporters too contact him for this variety. Last year, the first-grade mace was sold for a whopping ₹2750 per kilo. He claims that no other farmer in Kerala may have got such a high price for a nutmeg variety. 

KAU Puthara has also won countless honours and accolades including the Sugandhasree Award and the AISR certification. The rhizomes and buds of this variety are produced at the university’s nurseries. Meanwhile, the university has also instructed Joseph to develop the buds on his own to be sold to other farmers. However, Joseph didn’t try to turn his nursery into a highly profitable business venture, taking advantage of the university’s recognition.

But, he still produces the buds of the KAU Puthara variety in his farm for the ordinary farmers. As the buds are produced in limited numbers, they are supplied to only those who book in advance. Joseph claims that his nutmeg variety will start blooming and yield fruit within one year of planting the bud. Although Joseph had developed two varieties of Puthara nutmeg, only Puthara 1 variety was able to get the university’s recognition. Meanwhile, Joseph hopes that the university will soon consider the other variety too for approval.
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