With a view to bail out ash gourd farmers around Thirthahalli in Shivamogga district, Vishwanath Kuntavalli, a mechanical engineer-turned-entrepreneur, created the local variant of the famous 'Agra Ka Petha' a fortnight ago.
The entrepreneur produced the petha on large scale to ensure that the farmers are supported during the lockdown, but he had a huge challenge in marketing them. He found an able ally in the Vande Bharatam Foundation, a network of volunteers from different backgrounds, who helped Kuntavalli’s Ibbani Foods to market the sweets in the city.
“We had earlier joined forces with Hopcoms and delivered fruits and vegetables to all apartments across the city to help farmers. Similarly, we experimented with the petha sweet to support the distressed ash gourd farmers. Several apartments have come forward to buy the sweet,” explained Manohar, a volunteer with the foundation. On Saturday alone, one tonne of petha was moved for sale in Hebbal and Whitefield areas.
Lokesh B H, founder of the volunteer network, said about 250 farmers around Thirthahalli are in distress after they had trouble selling about 2,000 tonnes of ash gourd they produced during the lockdown.
“One kilogram of ash gourd can yield 250 to 300 gm of petha. Over the past few days, they have produced about two tonnes of petha in different varieties like mango, pineapple and the plain variety,” Lokesh said.
While the same sweet with preservatives is sold at Rs 350 to Rs 375 per kilogram, the ‘Araga Petha’ is sold for Rs 250 per kilogram without any preservatives and chemicals, Lokesh added.
Vishwanath said his company is processing about five tons of ash gourd sourced from farmers. “Initially, we sold the pethas at the Thirthahalli and Shivamogga markets, but we couldn’t market it steadily due to the lockdown. So, we reached out to (people in) Bengaluru, where Vande Bharatam is helping us reach apartments,” he said.
Though the sealed pack of petha can last for five to six months, it should be consumed within three days. The petha is rich in dietary fibre and Vitamin B and C, besides calcium. It helps maintain blood pressure too, Vishwanath said.