Sales at farm-fresh outlets in Chennai cross Rs. 1 - crore mark

Within a span of three weeks, the retail sales at the 29 farm-fresh vegetable outlets in the city crossed the Rs.1 crore-mark. The outlets were inaugurated by the Chief Minister on June 20 to supply vegetables to the public at prices less than market rates. This was followed by the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Marketing Federation signing a pact with the National Spot Exchange Ltd., to procure onion, ginger and potato through online method.

Twenty-three outlets are run by Triplicane Urban Co-operative Society and six by Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation. The daily sales in these outlets have increased from Rs.2 lakh to Rs.7.5 lakh, while the quantity of vegetable sold have doubled from 10,250 kg to 27,000 kg per day. According to the sources, it was on July 3 the sales volume crossed the Rs.50-lakh mark with quantity touching 180 tonne.

On July 10, 2013, the sales volume was Rs.1.03 crore and the quantity was 386 tonne. The average daily sales at Kamadenu and Park Town outlets is about Rs.1 lakh each, while in other outlets it is over Rs.40,000. Meanwhile, the State government has released a revolving fund of Rs.10 lakh to 23 outlets for procuring vegetables from 10 agricultural co-operative societies in Krishnagiri, Dindigul and the Nilgiris. The societies in turn will pay the farmers directly.

Following complaints from the public about cramped space, the Food and Civil Supplies Department has started installing rain-sheds in Kamadenu Supermarket, Park Town, Madipakkam and East Tambaram and shifted the outlets in Adyar and Triplicane to a bigger space.

During an inspection in the outlets, the Food and Civil Supplies Minister, Mr. R. Kamaraj, was told that the consumers were able to save up to 40 per cent of their bill at farm-fresh vegetable outlets. Since April 17, co-operative stores and Amudham retail outlets had sold 25,700 quintals of rice at a subsidised rate of Rs.20 per kg.