Mapro Garden
Mapro Gardens is a garden park in the hill station of Panchgani, Maharashtra, India, situated close to Mahabaleshwar, known for their strawberry produce, [1][2] and a popular tourist destination. It is located in village of Gureghar and developed and maintained by Mapro - a food processing company.
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History
Mapro set up a fruit processing unit at Gureghar with 12 permanent employees and also involving remaining villagers into farming. Mapro provided the farmers technical guidance and also guaranteed to buy their produce. The region has the highest produce of strawberries in India and constant increase in tourist inflow over time. Tourist recognition led to the development of the Mapro Garden which is the popular identity of Gureghar among tourists now.
Gureghar or Mapro Garden is host to the annual Strawberry Festival. Mahabaleshwar contributes to 85% of the total Strawberry produce in India and about 80% is consumed fresh. The Strawberry Festival encourages the strawberry cultivation in the belt. The highlights of this festival are fresh farm picked strawberry lined up on tables for visitors to eat to their fullest as well as traditional folk performances such as Shivkalin Dhol and Lezim, a high energy dance for which dancers are invited from Pratapgarh.
Gureghar also boasts of being one of the first villages to have 100% sanitation with every house having their own biogas plant. Statistics reveal 100% employment in the village, with none under poverty line, and 100% literacy with a 0% dropout rate.
Mapro
Mapro is a food processing company founded in 1959, in the hill-town of Panchgani, near Mahabaleswar - a popular tourist destination near Mumbai and Pune. Mapro was started by Kishore Vora a pharmacist by profession and later (1983 onwards) grown by his nephew Mayur Vora. The high fruit juice content of Mapro's crushes and squashes - 45 per cent, compared to 25 per cent for rivals Kissan and Mala's - made them instant hits.
The rise of modern retail gave Mapro a nationwide network. After tax reforms Mapro invested in setting up three new units in Satara and Pune districts in Maharashtra and Pathankot in Punjab. As of 2012,[3] installed capacity was 100 tonnes a day. As growth in the jams and squashes business started slowing in 2005, Mapro entered the confectionery and chocolate business.
References
- Mapro garden Lonely Planet.
- "Summer break in strawberry county". The Telegraph. 17 June 2006. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
- "A passion for fruit". Business Today. 10 June 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2017.