Berhampur: The pickles of Odisha’s Berhampur city, which have earned a name for their taste in the state, are now produced by Mission Shakti women SHGs and sent to Aahar centres of 10 districts.
This has been possible due to the initiative of Mission Shakti department, which was formed recently by the state government. In order to facilitate the women SHGs, a Mission Shakti mall has been opened at Minakshi Nagar in Berhampur with a cost of Rs 50 lakh.
Besides 12 shops selling different varieties of delicious pickles, the mall has a pickle producing unit run by Bighneswar SHG II. The unit was earlier operating from Gosain Nuagaon. It has engaged 10 women members for production of pickles.
The SHG members along with two employees of Berhampur Municipal Corporation (BeMC) have undergone training in pickle making at Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) in Mysore. They were trained on selecting the right ingredients, maintaining hygiene during preparation and packaging.
The SHG is procuring mangoes from local SHGs in Gajapati and Kandhamal districts for preparation of pickles. The SHG, which is producing only sweet pickle now, plans to diversify to other varieties soon. Total 3.5 ton pickles are prepared in the unit per month.
The unit is run with loan from bank due to the intervention of the department. With the assistance from State Urban Development Authority (SUDA), it is exporting the pickles to Aahar centres in Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal, Koraput, Rayagada in southern Odisha and other districts.
While the production cost of pickles at the unit comes to around Rs 47 per kg, it is sold at Rs 51 per kg to Aahar centres. Since the profit margin has remained low, the unit in collaboration with BeMC plans to export its produce to other urban places in the state.
In order to expand the market for the pickles, they are in discussion with several hotels, said N Arun Kumar, who is in charge of the unit.
