Coconut Cultivation in India: Productivity, Challenges and Policy Reforms

The Union Budget 2026- 27 announced a new ‘Coconut Promotion Scheme’ aimed at rejuvenating old, non-productive coconut gardens and expanding cultivation along coastal areas.

• India is the largest coconut-producing country, with 30.93% share of global production, & ranks second in terms of productivity.
  • The productivity per palm in India is higher than in Sri Lanka, the Philippines, and Indonesia. 
  • For Example: In places like Anaimalai in Tamil Nadu, dwarf x tall hybrid palms regularly produce 250-300 tender coconuts per tree.

About Coconut Plantation

• Scientific name: Cocos nuciferaCoconut is a major plantation crop of tropical India.
• India is the world’s largest producer and consumer of coconut.
• It is often called “Kalpavriksha” (tree of heaven) due to its multiple uses.

• Major Producing States 
  • Traditional Belt (West Coast)
    • Kerala
    • Tamil Nadu
    • Karnataka
  • Expanding /Non-Traditional Areas
    • Andhra Pradesh
    • Odisha
    • Gujarat
    • Assam
    • Maharashtra
• Global Production: Production of coconuts is concentrated on island and coastal areas, such as Fiji and Samoa, as well as in the humid tropics, such as the Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia.

Economic Importance of Coconut

• Coconut water: A natural electrolyte drink that aids hydration, digestion, and post-activity recovery, while supplying potassium, magnesium, and antioxidants for heart and muscle health.
• Healthy fats (medium-chain triglycerides): Coconut is rich in medium-chain triglycerides, easily digested and quickly converted into energy. 
  • These fats improve metabolism, support gut health, and provide sustained energy.
• Coconut shell is used for handicrafts and activated carbon production.
• The coconut palm provides food security and livelihood opportunities to more than 12 million people in India.

Government Initiatives

• Coconut Development Board (CDB): The Coconut Development Board (established in 1981 under the Ministry of Agriculture) promotes production, productivity, processing, value addition, and marketing of coconut and its products, with a focus on farmer welfare and export promotion.
• Technology Mission on Coconut: It focuses on strengthening production, processing, and marketing linkages, promoting value-added products such as virgin coconut oil, coconut chips, and coconut-based beverages.
• Coconut Palm Insurance Scheme:  It provides insurance coverage to coconut farmers against natural calamities and pest/disease outbreaks, reducing financial risks.
• Coconut Promotion Scheme: It focuses on replacing old and non-productive coconut trees with high-yielding varieties to improve farm output and long-term sustainability.
  • It will be guided by the Coconut Development Board.

Challenges

• High Domestic Prices Despite Global Leadership: India is the world’s largest producer and consumer of coconut, yet domestic prices remain significantly higher than international prices due to strong internal demand and supply constraints.
• Rising Temperatures and Climate Stress: Temperatures in plantation regions are projected to rise by 1.6–2.1°C by 2050 and up to 3.2°C by 2070, increasing drought stress through higher vapour pressure deficit.
• Declining Suitability of Interior Regions: Studies have found that large parts of interior peninsular India, including parts of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh, along with the south interior region of Tamil Nadu and the east coasts could become less suitable for coconut cultivation in the coming decades as a result of climate change.
• Flawed Policy Implementation: 
  • Overlapping Subsidy Framework: The Coconut Development Board already offers a 25% capital subsidy for coconut value addition, making the similar scheme of the National Horticulture Board redundant, especially given its additional inspection and compliance requirements.
  • High Investment and Compliance Barriers: The ₹150 crore Cluster Development Programme of the National Horticulture Board failed to take off due to high investment and compliance barriers that excluded FPOs and cooperatives from meaningful participation.

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Way Forward

• Establishment of Mother Palm Gardens: Large tracts of land vested with the State horticulture departments and universities can be used to establish mother palm gardens. 
• Strengthening Research for Climate-Resilient Varieties: Similarly, the state should consider strengthening research in institutions like the CPCRI and the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, so that they can identify and breed heat-tolerant, drought-resilient, and disease-resistant genotypes. 
• Enabling FPOs and Private Nurseries for Mass Multiplication: Farmer producer organisations (FPOs), cooperatives, and credible private nurseries should also be enabled to mass-produce these resilient seedlings.
• Shift from Large Clusters to Pilot-Based Models: Instead of large, centrally designed clusters, smaller cooperative pilot models with marketing partnerships involving firms like Amul or ITC should be tested in specialised hubs such as Tiptur (ball copra), Anaimalai (tender coconuts), and Pollachi (coconut oil) to generate more practical and scalable lessons.

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