Demand for coffee seedlings increasing in Gulmi

Gulmi, June 14: The demand for coffee seedlings has increased significantly in Gulmi, as the coffee nursery run by the Coffee Development Center in Aapchaur, Musikot Municipality-5, finds it difficult to meet the rising demand.

The coffee seedlings as per the farmers' demand have not been met due to low production, shared Jeevan Acharya, the head of the Center. A demand has been received for 200,000 coffee seedlings from the nursery but only 70,000 seedlings have been produced.

The Centre has stated that coffee seedlings have been demanded from more than 40 districts including Arghakhanchi, Kaski, Syangja, Lamjung, Dhading, and others, including Gulmi.

The center is not able to produce seedlings as per the demand due to lack of necessary resources and human personnel. The Coffee Development Center in Aapchaur is also the Federal Horticulture and National Seed Sowing Resource Center of the Government. 

Commercial coffee cultivation began in Gulmi when the then King Birendra established the Coffee Development Center in Aapchaur in 2041 BS.

Each seedling is currently being sold at Rs. 40 at the Coffee Development Center. The Center has been involved in garden management, seed cultivation, picking and processing. For this, around 50 people are temporarily employed during coffee production seasons. The center has coffee pulping machines, coffee hauler machines, coffee dryers, roaster machines, and coffee spray sow machines.

The center has 184 ropani of land in Aapchaur for a coffee plantation. Centre Chief Acharya said that 12,000 coffee seedlings have been planted in the garden so far while 60,000 coffee seedlings have been planted in six nurseries in Aapchaur.

Coffee is currently being cultivated in an area of about 300 hectares in Gulmi.

In Gulmi, the Agricultural Knowledge Center, Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project, Coffee Development Center Aapchaur, Coffee Research Center Bhandaridanda, and other local level governments are working to promote coffee farming. (RSS)