How Adivasi Women in Koraput are Driving Coffee Cultivation but Staying Invisible

In the lush hills of Koraput, Odisha, a quiet but significant transformation is taking place. Coffee, once an unfamiliar crop in the region, has now become an integral part of its agricultural economy. At the centre of this transformation are Adivasi women, who play a crucial role in growing, harvesting, and processing coffee. Despite their efforts, however, they remain largely invisible in the industry, facing low wages, lack of land ownership, and limited access to higher-value markets.

While government initiatives such as the Koraput Coffee brand have brought some attention to tribal coffee farming, the reality on the ground is far more complex. According to Anshuman Rath, co-founder of Kalinga DESIAGRO Foundation, which runs one of the only independent curing facilities in Koraput, “The government has marketed Koraput Coffee as a tribal success story, but when you break it down, the benefits aren’t really reaching Adivasi farmers. Most of them still sell raw fruit at the lowest prices instead of processed green beans, where the real money is.”

Meanwhile, private coffee estates like Madhu Agro Plantation, led by Rajeshwari Reddy, have created employment for local tribal women, offering them more stable wages and better conditions than government-backed schemes. But Reddy, too, acknowledges the deep-rooted structural barriers preventing these women from advancing in the coffee supply chain. “Women are the backbone of coffee farming here,” she says, “but they rarely own the land they work on. That means they don’t get a say in pricing, selling, or even how profits are distributed.”

Adivasi Women and the Reality of Coffee Cultivation

The Coffee Board of India identifies Koraput as one of the key non-traditional coffee-growing regions in India, thanks to its cool climate, high altitude, and fertile soil. The government has actively promoted coffee farming among tribal communities as an alternative to shifting cultivation. However, this has not necessarily translated into economic empowerment for the women who do most of the work.

Women in Koraput’s tribal villages are involved in every stage of coffee production—from planting saplings and hand-picking cherries to drying and sorting beans. However, they are rarely involved in decision-making processes related to sales, pricing, or export. Most of the coffee is still sold as raw fruit to intermediaries, who process and sell it at a much higher price.

“Most Adivasi women here don’t even know how much their coffee is worth after processing,” says Rath. “They sell 100 kilos of raw fruit for Rs. 6,000, while if they processed it, they could make Rs. 40,000 to Rs. 50,000 from the same batch. But they don’t have access to curing facilities or the market connections needed to sell directly.”

According to Rajeshwari Reddy, the absence of local women-led collectives in Koraput’s coffee sector is another major issue. “If women were organised into cooperatives with direct access to markets, they could demand better prices and move up the value chain. Right now, their work is seen as ‘labour,’ not ‘farming,’ and that needs to change.”

The Struggle for Fair Wages and Land Ownership

One of the biggest barriers to economic independence for Adivasi women in the coffee industry is land ownership. Many women work on either family-owned farms or private plantations, meaning they do not directly benefit from profits. Government schemes have tried to address this by allocating land to tribal families, but in practice, the ownership is often listed under male family members.

Reddy points out that this has long-term consequences. “If a woman doesn’t own the land, she can’t apply for farming subsidies, she can’t negotiate with buyers, and she has no security if her family decides to stop farming.” This issue is not unique to Koraput—across India, women own only 13% of farmland despite being responsible for the majority of agricultural labour.

Even on private plantations like Madhu Agro, where workers receive better wages than government schemes, pay disparity persists. “We try to ensure equal pay for men and women, but across the industry, women’s wages are still lower than men’s despite doing the same work,” says Reddy. “One of the biggest problems is that coffee picking is seen as ‘women’s work’, which means it is undervalued. But this is a skill-based job—picking ripe cherries at the right time is critical to quality.”

What Needs to Change?

Despite the explosive growth of India’s speciality coffee market, Adivasi women in Koraput remain trapped at the lowest-paying end of the value chain. According to Rath, the first step towards change is ensuring that women own the land they cultivate. “Without ownership, they will always be labourers, never decision-makers,” he says. “If the government is serious about empowering Adivasi women, it needs to directly transfer land titles to them, not just their families.”

Another critical area is post-harvest processing training. “We need more women-led coffee cooperatives in Koraput,” says Reddy. “Right now, they don’t have the training to process, roast, or package their own coffee. If they could, they would make three to four times what they currently earn.”

Several local organisations have begun addressing these issues. Kalinga DESIAGRO Foundation, for instance, offers small tribal farmers free access to a curing facility for processing their coffee. Madhu Agro Plantation has also started a mentorship programme, training tribal women in speciality coffee processing so they can move up the value chain.

A Future Where Women Are Seen

In the scenic coffee fields of Koraput, Adivasi women work tirelessly to cultivate one of India’s most sought-after coffees. Yet, their labour remains undervalued, and their contributions are invisible. Without land ownership, fair wages, and direct market access, they will continue to be treated as cheap labour in an industry that profits from their expertise.

As the demand for high-quality Indian coffee grows, it is time to bring these women into the spotlight—not just as workers, but as farmers, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders. As consumers, acknowledging their contributions and supporting fair-trade practices can be our step towards brewing not just a cup of coffee, but a cup of change.