In India, mahua flowers are widely utilized to make a regional alcoholic beverage. However, they provide a means of subsistence for tribal women in the Kandhamal area of Odisha. Mahua flowers are used to produce a variety of delectable cuisine items.
Using dry mahua flowers, some 120 indigenous women who are part of the state’s Van Dhan Vikas Kendras manufacture laddus, cakes, jam, toffees, pickles, squash, pakodas, and biscuits and sell them in the neighborhood market. In contrast to other products, mahua laddus are in high demand, said Shantilata Kanhar of Jamjhari village to a media house.
According to Mamata Majhi of Taladandakia village, “the laddu is cooked utilizing components such as cashew, rasi, groundnut, jaggery, and mahua flowers – the key ingredient.
Following a training at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra in Nandurbar, Maharashtra, in February 2023, the ladies began making these products. The district administration assisted with the training.
Every year between February and April, the majority of the tribal women in the area are busy harvesting mahua flowers from the jungle. Mahua collectors in this area were compelled to hold distress sales since the Odisha Tribal Development Cooperative Corporation Limited, a state government-owned organization, failed to acquire the blooms. According to tribal chiefs, they were forced to sell the flowers to the middlemen and local businessmen who supply the distilleries.
