Pala: Pala Santhom Farmer Producer Company has bagged the state Agriculture Department award for the best Farmer Producer Company for turning local farm produce into value-added products and taking them to wider markets.

Run by the Pala Diocese Social Welfare Society, the company has built an enterprise around local agriculture, combining food processing, marketing and farmer support to create greater value from produce grown in the region.

Established under the Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium of the state Agriculture Department, the company has since expanded into a range of agricultural and food processing activities. At its three acre food factory in Mundupalam, locally sourced farm produce is processed into a range of products marketed under the brand name ‘Pala Nova’.

The products reach consumers through the factory outlet, Agrima farmer markets and Sunday markets organised at parish churches. The company has also secured financial support from the Central and state governments, including grants from the Small Farmers’ Agribusiness Consortium and assistance from the State Horticulture Mission, Agriculture Department and Industries Department.

With technical and financial support from various agencies, the company has also implemented an integrated entrepreneurship project. Its operations include the Agrima Central Nursery and Fruit Village, besides the district level Kerala Grow Store of the Agriculture Department.