Until recently, the air in Veeramangudi, in Papanasam taluk of Tamil Nadu’s Thanjavur district, used to be scented with the aroma of caramelized sugarcane juice, thanks to the more than 100 family-run jaggery units here. Recently, however, these factories have started closing due to yellow leaf infestation in the sugarcane crop.
In their heyday, these units specialized in soft and crumbly atchu vellam (jaggery set in cubic wooden molds). A 2024 GI application from the Veeramangudi Atchuvellam Producers’ Association, Thiruvaiyaru, reveals that factories in and around the village produce around 245 tonnes of jaggery (7,000 35 kg bags) annually.
Pongal, jaggery and disappearing traditions in Tamil Nadu
Atchu vellam makers here cater to larger retailers in Thanjavur and also sell their stock at the Neikkarapatti jaggery market near Palani, says P. Sathyaseelan, a third-generation farmer and jagger maker from Veeramangudi. “It’s no longer a profitable business. We’re only continuing because it’s our family tradition and we don’t want it to die out like other rural occupations,” he says.
A 30 kg bag of Veeramangudi atchu vellam usually costs around ₹1,350 in the market. “That is quite a reasonable price, but lately we have not been able to get even this because of unusable crops,” adds Sathyaseelan.
Sugarcane juice is boiled until it caramelizes and thickens before it is put into wooden molds to make Veeramangudi atchu vellam. | Photo credit: R. Vengadesh
Close-up view of freshly made Veeramangudi atchu vellam cubes. | Photo credit: R. Vengadesh
An integral part of Tamil Nadu
Jaggery is an emotional ingredient in Asian cuisine. It appears in home remedies, Ayurvedic medicines and as wedding gifts and is a flavor determinant in traditional sweet dishes like pongal, thothal/dodol and chikki, besides being a spice stabilizer in sambar and rasam.
In Tamil Nadu, one of the five major sugarcane producing states in India (along with Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat), many rural communities rely on the production of sugarcane jaggery (known as vellam) and palm sugar (karuppatti) to satisfy larger retailers, especially during the festival season that runs from October to March.
During the Pongal festival celebrated across the state this week, making sakkarai pongal – a sweet concoction made from freshly harvested rice, mong dal and jaggery in clay pots on firewood stoves – is a cherished ritual symbolizing prosperity and thanksgiving.
‘Sakkarai pongal’, a sweet preparation made of rice, mong dal and jaggery, is the staple of the Pongal festival celebrations in Tamil Nadu. | Photo credit: Getty Images
Traditionally, vellam makers are farmers who grow their own sugarcane and process it to make jaggery in small thatched work sheds in their fields. Sugarcane ‘bagasse’ (the dry pulpy residue left after juice extraction) is used as fuel to cook jaggery syrup in large flat-bottomed pans.
Tamil Nadu, which is predominantly a self-sustaining cottage industry, includes Salem, Erode, Namakkal, Madurai and Virudhunagar. Many villages in the Cauvery delta region also produce artisanal jaggery in significant quantities.
Other variants of GI marked jaggery
Marayoor Sharkara, Kerala
Handcrafted, with a pronounced unsalted sweetness and commonly used in Ayurvedic medicine
Kolhapuri gul, Maharashtra
The most exported variety from India
Muzaffarnagar gur, Uttar Pradesh
The city has India’s largest jaggery market, accounting for 20% of the country’s total jaggery production
Made with care and precision
The master chef and his assistants continuously stir the sugarcane juice for up to two hours until it thickens. | Photo credit: R. Vengadesh
Recently, before heavy rains hit the Cauvery delta region, farmer Aravinth and his associates prepared a batch of atchu vellam with a mix of old and new technology. Gone are the cattle-powered juicing machines, replaced by a noisy motorized thresher. The juice is directed through a built-in channel into the copra, a giant metal flat pan placed on top of a raised clay stove that is lit by large doses of bagasse fibers. The master chef and his assistants continuously stir the juice with long paddle spoons for up to two hours until it thickens. “You can’t leave the mixture unattended because it can easily burn when the caramelization starts,” says Sathyaseelan.
In a traditional workshop near Thanjavur, workers pour and level hot jaggery syrup into wooden molds. | Photo credit: R. Vengadesh
The concentrated cane sugar syrup is removed from the pan and allowed to rest for a while before being poured into the wooden-framed atchu (mould). After approximately 15 minutes, the molded molding is tapped from the frames, cured for 30 minutes, and then bagged.
Rows of traditionally shaped cubes of atchu vellam (jaggery) could be chilled. | Photo credit: R. Vengadesh
On the brink of change
The labour-intensive production technique has reduced the number of jaggery producers in many regions of Tamil Nadu. Modern industrial mills have moved processing from farms to factories. “Many farmers are withdrawing from sugarcane cultivation as its harvesting requires extra labour. And with prolonged hot weather, most of the crop is used to make juice or refined sugar. Only those with financial resources can afford to produce jaggery profitably,” says M. Karthikeyan, secretary, Tamil Nadu Jaggery Traders Association, Madurai.
However, health conscious urban consumers are driving the demand for quality jaggery. “In today’s culinary world where farm-to-table and local ingredients are used for sustainability, jaggery stands out naturally. Unlike refined sugar, it is produced with very little processing,” says MS Raj Mohan, Executive Chef and Head, Department of Hotel Management, GTN Arts College, Dindigul.
Mohan says that jaggery also scores over white sugar for its taste and aroma. “In classic recipes, replacing jaggery with white sugar changes the taste, texture and overall soul of the dish. It mixes well with spices like cardamom, ginger, cumin and pepper and contains minerals like iron, calcium and potassium.”
nahla.nainar@thehindu.co.in
Published – 14 Jan 2026 20:35 IST
