"Development of microbial treatment of ret liquor generated in a coir ...

For any industry to achieve sustainability the raw material should be
with consistently good quality. This requirement is not always met with coir
industry where the quality of fibre, the raw material, is left to the vagaries of
nature, as the quality varies from season to season and place to place.
Retting yards with very good tidal influence generate comparatively good
quality fibre because aeration leads to faster degradation of the products of
fermentation which under normal conditions tend to accumulate and
adversely effective the quality (Bhatt and Nambudiri, 1971). A better control
over the quality of this raw material has to be acquired for the smooth
running ofindustry.
May be because of its traditional nature, the people who are involved
in this industry are the financially weaker sections of the society and this is
especially true with those who work in the retting yards. With the
argumentation of literacy programmes the newer generation becomes
increasingly reluctant to work in such environments and all of them aspire
for 'decent jobs'. This sociological transition shall adversely affect the
industry in large in the next century. The longer duration required for the
completion of retting makes one to wait longer for getting the returns from
the money invested. Further it is complained that the entire lot of the husks
dumped are not able to be retrieved always which result in substantial loss.
8