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Amit Mitra

GCC has the potential to become a major player in the nature-based products market, with the tribal areas in Andhra Pradesh having a wealth of minor forest and agricultural produce, according to Mr A. Vidyasagar, Girijan Cooperative Corporation's Managing Director.

VISAKHAPATNAM, March 27

THE Andhra Pradesh Government-run Girijan Cooperative Corporation Ltd (GCC), which procures minor forest and agricultural produce from the high-altitude tribal areas in the State and markets them after value-addition, is eying the overseas market for its nature-based products. As the first step, the Vizag-headquartered organisation had launched its Web site — apgirijan.com — last week, which lists out its range of products and its activities.

``We are confident that we can make a significant foray into the overseas markets, especially with our range of food products, like French beans, cashew, honey, medicinal plants and cosmetics. Our major marketing plank is the fact that these products are all natural products which are gaining popularity worldwide,'' Mr A. Vidyasagar, GCC's Managing Director, told Business Line.

The cardinal advantage that GCC seeks to gain through the Web site is that it could first generate demand for its products and then procure them from the tribal areas, instead of first procuring and then scouting for market, as is currently being done. "This way we can also give a better price to the tribals. The prospective buyers can interact with us through the Web site and place orders,'' he said.

GCC expects to gain a steady market for its niger seeds and French beans in the UK and US. Another product that GCC will focus on is gum, which is said to be of high quality with a `swelling ability' of 1,300 to 1,800 points as against the common benchmark of 500 points.

``We are particularly confident of marketing our range of cosmetic products, such as sheekakai, soaps and turmeric, as these are all natural products. The turmeric we procure from the tribal area of Paderu (in Visakhapatnam district), for example, has high quality turmeric oil,'' Mr Vidyasagar said.

Another major area that GCC is planning to enter is marketing of a bio-flocculent product that could be used to extract uranium from the ore to a maximum extent because of its high capability to bind atomic minerals.

"A seed called stychnospotatorum is grown extensively in the tribal areas in the State, which has high bio-flocculent properties. The National Metallurgical Laboratory at Jamshedpur and Uranium Corporation of India are presently engaged in research to extract the basic substance from the seed, which can bind uranium. We have already applied for a patent for this product, which will be a very high-value product and which can change the face of our organisation,'' the GCC MD said.

In fact, GCC has the potential to become a major player in the nature-based products market, with the tribal areas in Andhra Pradesh having a wealth of minor forest and agricultural produce. "Our studies have shown that the tribal areas in the State have Rs 18 crore worth tamarind, 2,500 tonnes of French beans worth Rs 45 crore, Rs. 20 crore worth adda leaf and another Rs 20 crore worth medicinal plants. We are hardly tapping ten per cent of the forest wealth,'' he said.

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