Kerala company rolls out banana stem juice along with other banana-based value-added products

Like many other banana farmers, Mohamed Poothalaparambil also used to discard the trunk or pseudostem after harvesting the banana. But, not anymore. The 65-year-old farmer from Vazhakkad panchayat in Malappuram, takes out the edible, tender-white or pale green stems or vazhappindi from inside these trunks and supplies it to a unit where juice is extracted from these stems, bottled and sold.

Mohamed is now a regular supplier of banana stems to the manufacturing unit of Banaza Enterprises, which is the agri-business partner of Greendom, an FPC (farmer producer company), which has over 450 banana farmers as shareholders.

“I had no idea about the product till the people from the company got in touch with me,” says Mohamed, whose family has been into banana farming for several decades. “I have already supplied nearly one tonne in the last one-and-half months.”

Malappuram district leads in banana cultivation in Kerala. The farming is concentrated in Vazhakkad and Vazhayoor panchayats, where more than 1,100 farmers are cultivating the crop on over 200 hectares. Panchayats such as Cherukavu, Muthuvalloor and Pulikkal in the district also have banana cultivation.

Mohamed Poothalaparambil taking out banana stem from the banana trunk
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SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

While banana fibre is used to make eco-friendly products and vazhappindi predominantly goes into the preparation of different side dishes, Kerala is yet to warm up to the idea of extracting juice from the latter.

“Even though bananas are grown extensively in Malappuram, farmers do not get enough profit by selling just the fruit,” says Basheer PP, vice chairman of Greendom, and an office-bearer of Banaza, which has a five-member director board.

“That was when we thought of introducing value-added products, and one of them is the stem juice. No part of the banana plant goes to waste. Not many in Kerala have thought about extracting juice from it, despite its many health benefits,” Basheer adds.

The juice, rich in nutrients, has been proven effective for weight loss and to tackle indigestion and kidney-related ailments. “We have the support of our agricultural officer and officials with NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development). Technical know-how and training was provided by ICAR-NRCB (National Research Centre for Banana) at Trichy,” Basheer says, adding that the company has the support of Startup India and Kerala StartUp Mission.

Basheer recalls having seen several old timers consuming the juice directly from the stem once the trunk was cut. “They used to have it often because of the health benefits. It took so long for us to tap into its business potential.”

Banana stem being put into the machine to extract the juice at Banaza Enterprises unit at Kottupadam in Malappuram, Kerala
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SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Before the official launch, Banaza sold 1,000 bottles to a cross section of people to gather their opinion. This included Ayurveda hospitals, gyms, health clubs and individuals. “The feedback was positive and we launched it a few months ago,” Basheer says.

The drink comes in four flavours — ginger, fennel, nannari (Indian Sarsaparilla) and mint. It has sugar and sugar-free versions, with stevia used in the latter. There is a plan to introduce a blueberry-flavoured drink as well.

Basheer explains that once the banana harvest is done, the stem must be taken within three days. “The trunk should be cut one or two feet from the ground and two feet from top. The stem taken out is then put in water for one or one-and-half hours before it goes into the machine. We have a customised machine at our unit at Kottupadam in the district.”

Basheer mentions that the farmers who provide the stem are given ₹5 per kilogram. If they supply in huge quantities the amount will go up.

Mohamed, who belongs to Vazhakkad panchayat, adds that fungal attack is a threat and such stems cannot be used to extract juice. There have been occasions when he had to discard stems in bulk before being transported to the unit.

The daily production capacity of the unit is 1,000 litres, and it is currently being sold only in Malappuram district, especially to hospitals, sports centres, post-pregnancy care institutions etc. “We plan to sell it in a couple of malls. Meanwhile, enquiries are coming in from other districts as well. We got a massive response at the recently concluded VAIGA expo at Thiruvananthapuram.”

A staff at Banaza Enterprises with some of the value-added products manufactured from banana plant and its parts
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Besides stem juice, the unit manufactures other value-added products from banana such as banana fig chocolate, banana biscuits, flavoured banana chips (peri peri and Spanish tomato), banana jam, banana health drink mix, and banana powder. Other products manufactured by Banaza include flavoured tapioca and taro chips.

Basheer adds, “We have another plan in place. The residue after extracting the stem juice will be dried and powdered to be used in cookies.”

Except robusta, all other banana varieties are used to make the products. “States such as Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are exporting stem juice, mainly to Australia and Malaysia. It is available on online delivery platforms as well, but the rates are high compared to our price,” he says. The drink comes in 250ml (₹60 for the one with sugar and ₹70 for the sugar-free drink) and 500 ml bottles.

Contact: 9072800205

Published – February 28, 2026 11:51 am IST