This honey is value for money
Procurement and processing unit of TSGCC in Nirmal has clientele from across the country
Nirmal: State’s maiden natural honey procurement and processing unit, founded by Telangana State Girijan Cooperative Corporation (TSGCC) in Nirmal town, is making rapid strides with its product becoming a hit among foodies. The unit, known for selling quality honey, has clientele not only from different parts of the State, but also country.
Considering the huge demand for natural honey, gathered by aboriginal tribals from the wild, and to improve livelihood of ethnic tribes who traditionally depend on collecting the forest produce, the TSGCC established the unit, with a capacity of 300 litres per day, in the district headquarters on October 2, 2016. The unit is showing steady growth and registering brisk sales.
“The unit registered the turnover of Rs 5.25 lakh in the initial year. It saw a turnover of Rs 79.21 lakh in 2020-21 as on November 30, indicating a growth by 16 per cent in just five years. It has been recording sales worth over Rs 1 crore on an average. It has sold honey to the tune of Rs 2.94 crore and earned a profit of Rs 58.96 lakh so far,” Nalubola Vijay Kumar, deputy general manager of TSGCC, told Telangana Today.
The TSGCC sells honey with the brand name ‘Giri’. Its USP is pure and natural honey. “It is multi-floral, rock bee and forest honey. It has many medicinal values and ayurvedic properties. That’s why the product has many takers. It has bagged ‘Special Grade’ certification from Agmark. It has been certified by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI),” the deputy GM said.
The processed honey is filled in virgin plastic bottles of different sizes – 250 grams, 500 grams and 1 kg. It is then sent to the main office in Hyderabad from where the honey is exported to New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and many prominent pilgrim centres across the State through its distributors. The pure honey is sold to wholesale dealers for Rs 250 per kg, while the price of the product at retail outlets is Rs 360 a kg.
The product can be purchased in Giri Bazar at the Commissionerate of Tribal Welfare Department in Hyderabad and outlets of Telangana State Khadi and Village Industries Board in Nirmal and Nizamabad district centres. “We are planning to launch a retail outlet in Secretariat and in all district headquarters soon. One can buy the product in several supermarkets across Hyderabad,” Vijay Kumar stated.
Livelihood to tribals
The unit processes honey procured from its six branches — Adilabad, Echoda, Utnoor, Jannaram, Asifabad and Kaghaznagar. The TSGCC identified the aboriginal tribals and provided them with identity cards for collecting the forest produce. It has created livelihood to 2,234 tribals from the wild across erstwhile Adilabad district, bringing respite to ethnic tribes.
The corporation gathers honey from the tribals by offering Rs 225 per kg. It pays out the cost to them every fortnight. It supplies special safety kits, including shoes, gloves, ropes, buckets and dresses, to the ethnic tribes every year. A batch consisting 7 to 10 tribals gather somewhere between 10 and 20 kgs of honey a day.
TSGCC to tie up with Flipkart
TSGCC is all set to tie up with e-commerce giant Flipkart to sell honey across the globe. Authorities and representatives of the e-retailer held talks on Wednesday.
“Under the Flipkart Samaritan scheme, we are going to tie up with the e-commerce giant. Promotion of the product has begun. We will soon be able to reach customers from various countries with the help of the online shopping platform. We are exploring other ways to expand our business,” Vijay Kumar, deputy general manager of TSGCC, said.
The corporation currently has 18 dealers across Telangana who supply the product to supermarkets.
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