It is labour intensive, involves hard work, and is a seasonal activity, but that has done little to deter the traditional occupation of Goa’s popular brews, urak and feni, especially in Canacona taluka.
CANACONA
Canacona Taluka has over 103 cashew plots officially auctioned, adding substantial revenue to the State’s coffers. Last year, the taluka’s cashew plantations produced 61,864 litres of urak, besides cashew feni, according to figures quoted in the local excise office.
According to locals, urak has a significant market demand till mid-June. While the production of urak needs considerable hard work, the availability of the cashew crushing machine to extract the juice has decreased the demand on the labour force to some extent. Workers are, however, needed to pluck cashews from trees and feed them into a juice extracting machine, while the considerable time is spent to ferment urak and cashew feni.
According to Canacona Excise Inspector Chandrashekar Dessai, the government has fixed `3.50 for a litre of cashew juice, while the rate for cashews is fixed at `2.5 per kilo. Private cashew plot owners can sell either cashews or extracted juice to licensed units.
“Major producers of urak and cashew feni are mostly located in the talukas of Sanguem, Quepem, Sattari, and Canacona. The production of urak is always moderate in Valpoi, Pernem, Bicholim, Ponda and Dharbandora,” informed a source in the Excise department.
“In Canacona taluka alone, 103 cashew plots owned by the government have been auctioned off to bidders at varied rates, of which 72 have so far obtained licenses to operate urak/feni distillery units, and this has a revenue of `1,59,950,” informed Dessai.
At the beginning of a season, 35 litres of Urak commands a rate of up to ` 2,500. As the season flourishes, the rate drops to even ` 1,000. Urak is generally sold loose at ` 100 per litre, but this rate also declines as the season progresses.
Cashew feni is rarely consumed in the summer season, but is in higher demand during the monsoon season.
According to sources, urak and feni produced in Canacona taluka has a special market in Vasco, with consumers often ordering large consignments for self consumption and exports.
Keshav Chandra Gaonkar of Badsorem-Gaodongrim owns a cashew plot at Keri-Agonda on auction and also simultaneously operates a Bootho (licenced extraction unit) to extract urak and feni at Agonda.
According to Gaonkar, the cost of labour (eight of them work round the clock), high auction costs and license fees have not made it viable to operate on a cashew plot, given the low profit margins.
“The cashew flowering has not been very good so far, but we still expect a better crop before the season ends in May,” said Gaonkar.
“While the season is yet to pick up, the hard work needed to pluck and collect cashew is an exhaustive exercise. Each cashew needs to be handled to separate the nut, before feeding it to juice extracting machine to extract juice, consuming much time.”
One of his helpers, Satish Velip, explains that Urak is extracted, on average, twice a day. “This cycle increases in the peak season,” says Velip.
Besides extracting urak and feni, Cashew plots biddes also earn by selling cashew nuts. At present, cashew nuts command a rate of Rs 115 per kilo, but the rate subsides as the season progresses.
