Medicinal plants
As of December 2010, the Spices Board is also setting up a new spices park at Sivaganga on an invest of Rs. 180 million. This park is expected to be operational by March 2011. It would be immensely helpful to farmers of chili, turmeric, medicinal plants and tamarind, as the focus would be to export their products. The proposed spices park would establish machinery for cleaning, sorting, grading, packaging, storing, and sterilizing among others. The focus would be to encourage the farmers to plant chili, a leading crop in Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga and nearby districts, as well as turmeric crops. Medicinal plants, being raised in and around Madurai district, would also get a boost, as it was planned to patronize farmers of medicinal plants.