250 farmers get nod to use GI tag for 2 agri products in Nagaland

As many as 250 farmers in Nagaland were on Wednesday given user authorisation to use Geographical Indication for two agri products, Naga tree tomato and Naga cucumber. The authorisation would allow the farmers to use the GI symbol and certification on the product they are marketing, enabling them to get better returns, Ashok said.

As many as 250 farmers in Nagaland were on Wednesday given user authorisation to use Geographical Indication for two agri products, Naga tree tomato and Naga cucumber. The growers received the certificates during a GI awareness seminar-cum-exhibition organised here by North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC), under the Union DoNER Ministry, an official said. Small, oval-shaped and tasty, the Naga tree tomato is widely grown in kitchen gardens and orchards of the northeastern state. Under normal temperatures, the tomatoes can be stored for a long time Organically grown, Nagaland cucumber is juicy, soft and sweet.

A GI is tagged to primarily agricultural, natural or manufactured products, handicrafts and industrial goods originating from a definite geographical territory. Over the years, NERAMAC has supported the certification of 13 such agri-horti produce of eight states of the northeast, Managing Director of the marketing organisation, Commodore Rajiv Ashok (Retd), said. Other GI products of the region facilitated by NERAMAC are – Karbi Anglong ginger, Tezpur litchi of Assam, Arunachal orange, Chak Hao (Black Rice) and Kachai lemon of Manipur, Memang Nareng and Khasi Mendarin of Meghalaya, Dalle Khursani and Large cardamom of Sikkim, and Queen pineapple of Tripura. The authorisation would allow the farmers to use the GI symbol and certification on the product they are marketing, enabling them to get better returns, Ashok said.