HE may be new to the ginger industry, but Ravin Vikash, 34, is sure making his presence felt and he plans to continue with this trend in what is becoming a lucrative business.
“I only started farming on a commercial scale in 2011 when I took over my father’s 10-acre lease at Lomaivuna. The lease is from the landowners of Navolau Village. It was a really difficult start for me having to secure the lease under my name as this is a long process. However, I grew up in this area and so I know the rewards of hard work as a farmer,” Ravin said.
Ravin was educated at Lomaivuna Secondary School up to sixth form before pursuing a certificate in automotive engineering at the Fiji Institute of Technology in Samabula, now known as the Fiji National University’s Samabula campus. He decided to return to his roots (farm) after his father got sick.
He now owns Naitasiri Hire located in Lomaivuna Sector 5. The business is registered as a hiring company, because in addition to farming, he runs a business with an excavator, a nine-tonne truck, two carriers, a twin cab and a pick-up truck as part of his fleet of machines.
“The purchase of vehicles for hiring was always my long-term plan. However, I have been able to achieve this in such a short span of time with the assistance FDB (Fiji Development Bank) has given me. My first loan was for my 10-acre land and the second one was for the excavator currently in demand from farmers.”
Ginger is his prime produce with an 85 per cent germination rate. His farm is semi-mechanised especially during the land preparation stage as it is the largest cost in ginger farming. He produces his own planting material each season.
“We used to plant dalo and cassava as our main crops. However, since ginger prices have gone up and the markets, overseas and locally, are opening up so I decided to devote my farm to ginger.
“Compared to root crops, it involves less work and the harvest is only in six months with prices as high as 95 cents per kg for the green ginger and $5 per kg for the matured ones.”
Ravin has a contract to supply ginger to Frespac in Lami which means he has a sure market for his produce.
In 2014, Ravin was named the Best Ginger Farmer of the Year by the Ministry of Agriculture during the Central Agriculture Show on September 12 in Nausori. This was after he set the record for highest tonnage of ginger in Lomaivuna with 38 tonnes.
In November, he was also awarded the FDB Small and Medium Enterprises Award for agriculture in the mixed farming category. He also won $2500 for his efforts.
“FDB has been a major contributor to my success from my humble beginnings until receiving the two awards. I know that if I can work hard and have FDB by my side, I can achieve my dreams and more. The service provided by FDB is very good as they are very flexible with us and attentive to our needs. They visit us every now and then just to talk and get feedback from us on our developments which is something we really appreciate.”
Besides the 10-acre farm, Ravin has secured another 10-acre lease at Lomaivuna
“I’m only using 1/3 of the land, becauase with ginger we need to rotate after each harvest and leave the land to fallow. This allows the land to recover its nutrients and get rid of unwanted fungus before we can replant it. If we keep on replanting after harvest than the ginger will not yield its full potential.
“I will be harvesting my ginger earlier next year so roughly I will be getting between $25,000 to $34,000, gross, from that.”
Ravin is planning to utilise his new lease to plant ginger and to use the proceeds from this 10 acres to invest in about 10 to 20 chicken sheds from Crest Chicken as he is looking to poultry to complement his ginger earning. This, he says, is also going to cut the cost of manure as the chickens can provide this.
“I’m aiming for the SME awards again next year so my plan is to increase my farm and business so that come next year there is evidence of growth in the business.”
Partnering with our clients to ensure progress is something we do very well at FDB.
* Lote Raboila is the FDB’s media and community relations officer.
