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PINEAPPLE TECHNOLOGY
Introduction
Pineapple is one of the prominent fruit crops in the horticulture sector. Thailand is the
largest producer of pineapple in the world. India ranked fifth with a share of 8.2 % of the
world production of pineapples (FAO- 1999). The total area under pineapple cultivation
in India is 75,500 hectares (CMIE, 2001) with a production of about 1,108,793 mt. ‘Kew’
and ‘Mauritius’ are the two varieties of pineapple grown in India. The major pineapple
producing states in India are Assam, Karnataka, Kerala, Meghalaya and West Bengal.
Assam has the largest area under pineapple and it is also the largest producer. Nagaland,
West engal and Bihar are the three states reporting high productivity. Overall, Indian
productivity at an average of 14686 kg /ha compares well with the world average of
18207 kg/ha.

In Kerala, pineapple is cultivated in an area of 9080 hectares with a production of 85837

tonnes (Directorate of Economics and Statistics 1999). The congenial humid climate has
favoured the cultivation of pineapple. The finest quality ‘Mauritius Pineapple’ comes
from Kerala. The produce of Kerala is very much in demand as a fresh fruit throughout
India and also in foreign countries because it is considered the best in quality, sweetness
and has good flavour. Although pineapple cultivation is practised in almost all districts,
the extend and trends of cultivation differ widely among Kerala’s districts. The major
pineapple producing district of Kerala, Ernakulam accounts for more than 54 percent of
the area under pineapple cultivation (Agricultural Statistics of Kerala). In Ernakulam
district pineapple cultivation is more concentrated in certain areas of Vazhakkulam. From
1989-90 to 1999- 2000 Ernakulam district was ranked first having a share of 54.93 per
cent of the total production in 1999- 2000 (Directorate of Economics and Statistics 2000).

Varieties

Mainly, there are two varieties viz., Kew and Mauritius .

1. MAURITIUS

Mauritius is recommended for commercial cultivation for table purposes and distant
marketing, due to its shorter duration, better fruit quality, keeping quality and
transportability.

Season

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Main season of planting is April-May and August-September, but can also be planted in
all months except during heavy rain of June-July. The best time for planting is August.
For getting maximum price and better keeping quality, the best planting time is April-
May. During summer months, if there are no summer showers after planting, irrigation
should be given three weeks after planting for proper establishment.

Cropping system

Mauritius can be grown as a pure crop in garden land, reclaimed lowlands and wetlands
and as an intercrop in coconut and newly planted rubber plantations. In rubber plantation,
it can be grown for the first 3-4 years only.

Forms of cultivation

The pineapple is grown both as a pure crop on converted paddy fields and on upland and
as an intercrop on young rubber plantations, Distribution of pineapple cultivators based
on the form - The majority of the small scale cultivators-Less than 5 Ha- (63%) grow the
pineapple as monocrop while the majority of the medium-5 to 10Ha (74%) and large –
more than 10Ha-(77%) scale cultivators grow the pineapple as an inter crop on new or
young rubber plantations. High productivity of pineapple cultivation in converted paddy
fields is the most influential factor that led to the conversion of paddy fields into
pineapple fields. Non- profitability of paddy cultivation and high cost of paddy workers
are the other reasons reported in this regard.

Land preparation

Pure crop: Prepare the land by digging the area to be planted at 90 cm width in rows /
strips, leaving the interspaces undisturbed. However, ploughing can be adopted in level
land. Planting is done in paired rows of 45 cm distance between rows and 30 cm between
suckers. Suckers may be planted in triangular method in the paired rows. Interspace
between the paired rows is kept at 150 cm. Contour planting may be adopted in sloppy
areas.

Intercropping in coconut garden: Land preparation, spacing and planting are the same
as described above. There can be three-paired rows in between two rows of coconut.

Intercropping in rubber plantations: System of planting is in paired rows at 45 x 30

cm. There will be only one paired row of pineapple in between two rows of rubber.

Wetlands / lowlands: Pineapple is highly sensitive to water stagnation and high moisture
regimes. Hence it is important to provide good drainage, if grown in wetlands. In paddy
lands, pineapple is planted in paired rows at 45 x 30 cm spacing on ridges taken at 60-90

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cm height, depending on the water table and drainage requirement. The ridges are
separated by drainage channels having 60 cm width. The width of the ridges varies from
120-150 cm. Wherever water stagnation and poor drainage are expected, a wider and
deeper channel is given in between ridges.

Selection of suckers

Suckers are selected from disease and pest free healthy plants. Suckers are to be graded
into those having 500-750 g and 750-1000 g. The graded suckers are planted in different
blocks or plots, to get uniformity in growth and flowering. Bigger suckers give early
yield. Dipping of suckers in 1% Bordeaux mixture and 0.05% quinalphos will protect the
suckers against diseases and pests.

Planting

After preliminary land preparations, planting is done in small pits of 10-15 cm depth at a
spacing of 45 cm between rows and 30 cm between plants in the rows. There is no need
to plant the suckers in trenches.

Flower induction

The pineapple crop is very responsive to the induction of flowering by plant growth
regulators. Pineapple cultivation in Vazhakkulam area and commercially viable after the
induction of the flower inducing chemical Ethephon in this area by the beginning of the
1980s. This had made it possible for farmers to schedule the flowering of the plant and
harvest to synchronise with the season of high demand and price.

For inducing uniform flowering, 25 ppm ethephon is applied on physiologically mature

plants having 39-42 leaves (7-8 months after planting). The solution for application in
1000 plants is prepared by adding 1.25 ml of ethephon (3.2 ml of 39% ethrel or 12.5 ml
of 10% ethrel), 1 kg urea and 20 g calcium carbonate to 50 litres of water. Pour 50 ml of
the prepared solution to the heart of the plant during dry weather conditions (when there
is no rain during the time of application).

Flowering starts by 30 days and completes within 40 days of growth regulator

application. Fruits will be ready for harvest by 130-135 days after the application of
growth regulator. Harvest over different months / seasons could be obtained by carefully
phasing / planning the planting and growth regulator application.

Ratoon Cropping

The plant crop after harvest can be retained as ratoon crop for two more years. After the
harvest of the plant crop, chopping the side leaves of the mother plant should be done for

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easy cultural operations. The suckers retained should be limited to one or two per mother
plant. Excess suckers if any should be removed. Earthing up should be done. Other
management practices are same as for the plant crop.

2. KEW

Kew is a variety recommended for large-scale commercial cultivation in Kerala. The

package of recommendations for its cultivation is detailed below.

Preparation of the land

Prepare the land for planting by ploughing or digging followed by levelling. Depending
on the nature of land, prepare trenches of convenient length and about 90 cm width and
15-30 cm depth. The trenches are to be aligned at a distance of 165 cm from centre to
centre.

Selection and treatment of suckers

Select healthy suckers of uniform size weighing 500-1000 g. Keep suckers in open space
under shade in a single layer for about 7 days for drying. Strip off a few lower old dried
leaves. Allow the suckers to dry and cure for another 7 days. Dip the cured suckers in 1%
Bordeaux mixture at the time of planting.

Planting

Rake the soil and plant the suckers in double rows at spacing of 70 cm between rows and
30 cm between plants. Limit the depth of planting to 7.5 to 10 cm. Adopt triangular
method of planting in each trench so that the plants in two adjacent rows are not opposite
to each other (plant population 40400 / ha).

Induction of flowering

For inducement of uniform flowering, apply 25 ppm ethephon (2-chloro ethyl phosphonic
acid) in aqueous solution containing 2% urea and 0.04% calcium carbonate as follows:
The mixture (50 ml/plant) is to be applied pouring into the heart of 16-17 month old
plants (39-42 leaf stage) during dry weather. For treating 1000 plants, 50 litres of the
solution would be required. (The ingredients for preparing 50 litres of the aqueous
solution are ethephon 1.25 ml, urea 1 kg and calcium carbonate 20 g, made up to 50 litres
with water. The dosage has to be fixed depending on the availability of commercial

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formulation and the active ingredient contents). Flowering will commence from 40th day
after application and complete on the 70th day.

Water Management for Kew and Mauritius

During summer months, pineapple variety Kew should be irrigated wherever possible at
0.6 IW/ CPE ratio (50 mm depth of water). It requires five or six irrigations during dry
months at an interval of 22 days. Mulching the crop with dry leaves at 6 t/ha will help to
conserve moisture.

Wherever irrigation facilities are available, providing irrigation in summer months at two
weeks intervals results in good fruit size and high yield. If there is no irrigation facility,
the crop should be scheduled for harvest before summer months (before March).

Nutrient Management

Manuring for Kew

Apply compost / cattle manure at 25 t/ha as basal dressing. Apply fertilizers at the
following dosage:

Dose N:P2O5:K2O

Per plant per year (g) - 8:4:8

Per hectare per year (kg) - 320:160:320

Apply full dose of P2O5 at the time of planting. Nitrogen and K2O may be applied in
four splits, during May-June (at planting), August-September, November and May-June
(2nd year)

Note: In places where rains are scanty during November, N and K2O may be applied in
three equal splits - two doses in 1st year (May-June and August-September) and the third
in May-June of the second year. After application of fertilizers, cover with soil by
scraping the sides of trenches.

Manuring for mauritius

Apply compost / FYM at the rate of 25 t/ha at the time of planting. Apply fertilizers at the
rate of 8:4:8 g N:P2O5:K2O per plant per year. Full dose of P2O5 is applied as basal at
the time of planting. Nitrogen and K2O are applied as four equal split doses after
planting. First dose may be applied at 40-50 days after planting and thereafter at 60-70
days intervals.

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Weed Management

Weed control for Kew variety

For effective and economic weed control, use weedicides. Pre-emergent spray with
diuron 3 kg or bromacil 2.5 kg in 600 litres of water per hectare completely controls all
types of weeds in pineapple plantation. If there is subsequent growth of weeds, herbicide
application may be repeated at half the above dose. Spraying should be done when there
is adequate moisture in the soil. Avoid periods of heavy rainfall for spraying.

Weed control for Mauritious variety

Pre-emergence (within a few weeks after planting) spray of diuron @ 1 kg/ha in 600
litres of water can keep the field free of weeds for about four months. For subsequent
weed control, herbicide application is repeated. For controlling Mikania micrantha
(vayara valli or American valli), spot-application of diuron can be adopted. Spraying
should be done in moist soil, but avoiding rainy periods.
Weeds in interspaces can be controlled by spraying glyphosate 0.8 kg/ha or a mixture of
2,4-D 0.5 kg/ha and paraquat 0.4 kg/ha. While spraying in interspaces, care should be
taken that the weedicide shall not fall on pineapple plant.

Pest Management
For control of mealy bugs, adopt the following measures: Apply quinalphos at 0.025%,
fenitrothion 0.05% or fenthion 0.05%. Destroy grasses and other monocot weeds, which
serve as alternate hosts for the pest.

Mealy bugs (Dysmicoccus brevipes / Pseudococcus bromeliae): Spray quinalphos 0.025-

0.05% or fenitrothion 0.05% or fenthion 0.05% or chlorpyriphos 0.05% or dimethoate
0.05% or monocrotophos 0.05%. Care should be taken that the spray shall reach the base
and also the sides of the plant. The plot should be kept weed free. For the control of
mealy bugs, control of ants is a must. Hence apply carbaryl to control ants in its colonies
in the farm.

Scale insects (Diaspus bromeliae): The spraying of chemicals for the control of mealy
bugs, mentioned above, will be sufficient for the control of scale insects.

DiseaseManagement
No serious pests or diseases are noticed in the crop except for light incidence of leaf spot
disease and of the mealy bugs.

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For control of leaf spot, spray with any one of the following fungicides when symptoms
of the disease are noticed:

Bordeaux mixture 1%, 225 litre / ha

Zineb 1 kg in 225 litre water / ha
Mancozeb 1 kg in 225 litre water / ha
Ziram 1 kg in 225 litre water / ha

Root rot / heart rot / fruit rot caused by Phytophthora sp. is common in poor drainage
conditions. Providing drainage is most essential. The water table should be at least 60 cm
below the soil surface. Badly affected plants should be destroyed and the remaining
plants should be drenched with 1% Bordeaux mixture in the soil. Leaf spot can be
controlled by spraying 1% Bordeaux mixture or 0.2% zineb / mancozeb / ziram.

Plant protection

Sun burn: During summer months it is necessary to protect the fruits from scorching sun
by putting dried grasses, coconut or arecanut leaves.

Harvesting
Pineapple is a perennial fruit crop and the returns continue, usually, for a period of 3
years in case of variety ‘Mauritius’ and 4 years in case of variety ‘Kew’. With the
application of Ethephon and fertilizers the first yield is obtained within 10-12 months.
Observing the colour change is the most common method of determining the maturity of
fruits. When at least two or three rows of eyes at the base turn yellow, pineapple is ready
for harvest. Harvesting is done by cutting the fruit stalk and placing the fruits in piles or
on to the vehicles. Fruits for fresh fruit market are often marketed with crowns.

Processing

A number of pineapple processing units are coming up in the State apart from the ones
currently in operation, targeting overseas markets. Agreenco is setting up a pineapple
processing unit in Kannur at an investment of Rs 26 crore for exporting canned slices to
the US. To be operational by February next year, this unit will export 15,500 tonnes of
packaged pineapple a year. The project is being set up in collaboration with Ashco Inc of
the US.

Nirmal Agro Industries is setting up another processing unit in Kochi, which plans to
export 130 tonnes of canned pineapple a day to the US. This unit will be operational in
the next 3-4 months.

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Nadukkara Agro Processing Co Ltd (NAPCL), maker of the `Jive' brand of packaged
fruit juice is also there in the scene. Jive fights with brands such as Tropicana from Pepsi
and Real from Dabur for its survival. Jive, which comes in two flavours - Splash, a
mango-pineapple nectar, and Punch, a pineapple drink. NAPCL launches a mango
flavour under the `Jive Mango Joozy' brand. NAPCL also makes candies from pineapple.
The other stream of business is making pineapple and mango juice concentrates, which
the company sells to other packaged drink makers in the national and international
markets.

Marketing

In Kerala, major share of the produce reaches the market during the months of February
to April and the arrivals are very low during the rainy months of June and July. In
Ernakulam District a specialized local pineapple market has been functioning for the past
10-12 years at Vazhakulam. Pineapple trading is there in the market more or less
throughout the year, even in lean seasons. It is estimated that only 30% of the total
produce is reaching the market, whereas the rest is being traded at the farm gate itself.
During the last five years, the lowest price received by the producer was Rs 2.5 per Kg
and the maximum price was Rs 9 per Kg.

Apart from internal trade in other local markets, fresh fruits are being transported to other
areas like Mumbai, Ahammedabad, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Mysore, Surat etc and
also to Middle East countries. During February – April months, on an average 100 Mt of
fresh pineapple is getting transported daily to distant places like Mumbai, Banglore and
sometimes it may go upto 500 mt. Experience has shown that during this long journey,
through torturous roads which were constructed very badly and virtually not maintained
at all, as much as 30 per cent of the fruit could be damaged.

Export
The export of pineapple products from India have been almost negligible. Because of the
perishability, from Kerala, pineapple in the fresh form is traded only on a limited scale
and mostly in the neighbouring regions like Middle East. Exporters from have found it
extremely difficult to compete in the global market due to substantial price difference.
One of the reasons may be the very high incidence of air freight .Same is the case with
pineapple products because India is a high cost producer of relatively poor quality which
fetches the lowest prices. The raw material and processing costs are high comparing the
international norms.

Can Kerala be competitive?

Kerala has the right agro-climate, pineapple producing clusters of areas, access to the
state of the art technologies, and not too bad a cost economics in production and

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processing with potential for substantial improvements. Well thought out commercial
strategies linking production, processing and marketing have to be evolved keeping in
mind that world markets for pineapple products are already quite crowded.

Kerala is extremely well suited for growing pineapple under natural conditions without
fertilizers, irrigation and pesticides. By default, the product could be even labelled as
organically grown.

The Vision
According to FAO projections, the world market for fresh pineapples is expected to
expand over the next decade. The global imports of fresh pineapples are projected to
reach 922 000 tonnes by the year 2005. The developed countries are expected to increase
their global share from 89 per cent to 90 per cent and that would absorb most of the
expected increase.. Europe is expected to remain the largest import market with 484 000
tonnes exported to be imported by the year 2005. Imports into the EC would amount to
461 000 tonnes, or 50 per cent of global pineapple imports. France would account for a
large proportion of EC imports. By 2005, the French are expected to import 133 000
tonnes, or 29 per cent of total EC imports. Ample opportunities are available for us to
move to the forefront. From 1986 onwards, Central America and the Caribbean countries
also started exporting pineapple to Europe since ships carrying their bananas could also
carry pineapple. In the same way we should build future strategies on restructuring of
export trade so as to attain a leading position.

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