India's rising preference for healthy foods is showing up in its imports, with a surge in inbound shipments of avocado, dry fruits, buckwheat and olives, even as those of ice-creams, cakes and confectionery, and salad dressings decline.

 

There is also more demand for and higher imports of fruits and vegetables, amid a general sway towards natural immunity boosters since the pandemic.

 

In the first five months of FY24, imports in value terms were up 70% for avocado from a year earlier, while more than doubling in case of shelled almonds, and growing 80% and 62% for pistachio and olives, respectively. Imports of cereals such as buckwheat and millets have also grown sharply, albeit on a smaller base.

 

Climbing imports for these products suggest an increasing demand for high-end eatables perceived as healthy alternatives to those available domestically.

 

'People have continued with healthy and immunity-boosting food products after the Covid-19 pandemic and we expect almond imports to be around 20% higher this year, from the previous year,' said Vijay Kumar Bhuta, president, Dry Fruit Traders Association.

 

Olive oil imports grew 24% in the same five months this year, despite a 60% rise in prices due to two consecutive years of drought in Europe, while imports of palm oil - considered less healthy -declined 26%.

 

Besides, India's free trade agreement with Australia has given a boost to imports of nuts and citrus fruit such as oranges and avocados. Avocados and olives are high-end premium products in India and the high growth is on a low base.

 

'The quality of the Indian avocado - with almost 12% oil content - is different from the South American ones, which are softer, take less time to ripen and have a buttery texture owing to larger oil content of about 18%,' said Mohit Singla, chairman, Trade Promotion Council of India. 'While India is growing large quantities of avocado, the predictability of the Indian variant is often low,' he said, explaining the rise in inbound shipments.

 

Indians also upped their consumption of imported fruit and vegetable juices by 5% during April-August 2024.

 

Mixed condiments and seasonings imports, meanwhile, saw a 4.6% rise to $12.46 million in the five months ended August 31, 2023.

 

In contrast, the imports of several consumption items have declined following a change in consumer preferences post-pandemic.

 

This year, imports of pasta fell 16.25% on-year to $12.91 million during April-August and those of bread, pastry, cakes, and biscuits were down 9.5% to $32.24 million. 'A lot of these confectionery products are now available in India and made with ingredients specific to our taste and requirements. In a way, import substitution has happened,' said an official.

 

India's goods imports in April-September this financial year were $326.98 billion, lower than $372.56 billion a year ago.

Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has been released first Advance Estimates of production of major Kharif crops for 2023-24. The estimation of Crop production relies on data provided by States and is subsequently validated using information from various alternative sources. These sources include reports from the Crop Weather Watch Group (CWWG), Remote Sensing estimates, estimates based on econometric modeling, inputs collected from farmer surveys, and historical trends in crop estimation.

 

As per First Advance Estimates, the estimated production of major Kharif crops for 2023-24 is as under:

 

?Foodgrains  –1485.69 Lakh Metric Tonnes (LMT)

 

Rice  –1063.13 Lakh Metric Tonnes

Maize  –224.82 Lakh Metric Tonnes

Tur  –34.21 Lakh Metric Tonnes

Moong – 14.05 Lakh Metric Tonnes

Urad – 15.05 Lakh Metric Tonnes

?Oilseeds  –215.33 Lakh Metric Tonnes

 

Groundnut  –78.29 Lakh Metric Tonnes

Soybean  –115.28 Lakh Metric Tonnes

?Sugarcane – 4347.93 Lakh Metric Tonnes

 

?Cotton  –316.57 Lakh bales (of 170 kg each)

 

?Jute & Mesta –91.91 Lakh bales (of 180 kg each)     

 

Area under Rice which is the major Kharif crop is estimated to be higher by around 2 Lakh Hectare over previous year final estimate and by around 4.5 Lakh Hectare over average Rice Area. Its production is also estimated to be higher by about 1 lakh tonnes as compared to average Kharif Rice production.

 

Other cereal crops area such as Kharif Maize and Jowar is also estimated to be higher as compared to previous year as well as average area under these crops. Kharif Maize production is estimated at 224.82 Lakh Metric Tonnes as compared to average production of 213.51 Lakh Metric Tonnes registering an increase of about 11 Lakh Metric Tonnes.

 

For 2023-24, production of Kharif Nutri/coarse cereals is estimated at 351.37 LMT which is slightly higher than the average coarse cereals production of 350.91 LMT. The production of Shree Anna is estimated at 126.55 LMT during 2023-24.

 

The production of Tur is estimated at 34.21 LMT, which is approximately similar to the last year’s production. Further, the area under Urad is estimated at 30.73 lakh hectares which is approximately similar to the last year’s area of 30.98 lakh hectares. However, total Kharif pulses production for 2023-24 is estimated to be lower than previous year due to climatic conditions. Total Kharif pulses production during 2023-24 is estimated at 71.18 LMT.

 

Total production of sugarcane is estimated at 4347.93 LMT which is higher than average sugarcane production of 4222.55 LMT.

 

It's important to note that this first Production assessment for 2023-24 (Kharif) is largely based on the average yield of last 3 years and may undergo change after receiving the yield estimates based on actual crop cutting experiments.

With an early harvest of kharif crops, sowing of wheat, the key cereal of winter season, has begun and preliminary data show there has been a significant jump in the acreage. The planting under mustard, masur (lentil), chana (gram) and maize has also been reported higher from year-ago level.

 

The total area under all rabi crops has reached 59.03 lakh hectares (lh) until October 27, up from 50.30 lh year-ago, the agriculture ministry said Friday releasing the weekly sowing update. There was 27.5 lh covered in past one week, and it would further increase as the temperature in the north falls further.

 

Wheat acreage has been reported at 3.86 lh, up by 78 per cent from 2.17 lh a year ago. Madhya Pradesh has reported 3.51 lh under wheat while Uttar Pradesh 0.16 lh, Punjab 0.10 lh and Uttarakhand 0.09 lh. Though sowing has begun in Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, the government may release the data next week, an official said.

 

Crucial year

After two consecutive years of lower than estimated wheat procurement, 2023-24 season crop production will be very crucial for the government as it has been liberally releasing the stock from the official reserves in the open market to check price rise. The Agriculture Ministry has announced a target of 161.22 million tonnes (mt) of foodgrains output, including 114 mt of wheat and 18.17 mt of pulses in the current Rabi season.

 

In last Rabi season, the country had produced 173.98 mt of foodgrains including 110.55 mt of wheat and 18.44 mt of pulses.

 

Area under pulses up

According to the sowing update, pulses acreage stood at 16.79 lh as of Friday, up by 11.8 per cent from 15.02 lh in the corresponding period last year. The area under chana was up at 12.84 lh from 11.21 lh while that of masur at 2.13 lh against 1.24 lh a year ago.

 

The acreage of all pulses in Madhya Pradesh reached 5.61 lh, Karnataka 5.08 lh, in Rajasthan at 3.50 lh, Uttar Pradesh 0.94 lh, Maharashtra 0.76 lh, Andhra Pradesh 0.33 lh and Tamil Nadu at 0.31 lh.

 

The sowing under oilseeds reached 28.42 lh which includes Rajasthan 14.06 lh, Uttar Pradesh 8.47 lh, Madhya Pradesh 5.23 lh, Karnataka 0.44 lh and Tamil Nadu 0.05 lh. In the corresponding period last year, the oilseeds area was 24.67 lh. Mustard acreage was at 27.58 lh as of October 27, up by 16.5 per cent from year-ago while groundnut has dipped to 0.39 lh from 0.60 lh.

 

Out of 3.50 lh area coverage under winter paddy against 4.05 lh year-ago, Tamil Nadu has reported 3.17 lh and Kerala 0.27 lh.

 

In coarse cereals and Shree Anna, the coverage has reached 6.45 lh, up from 4.39 lh, in which jowar area was 5.44 lh against 3.28 lh and maize at 0.87 lh against 0.82 lh a year ago.

 

The 10 reservoirs in northern region in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Rajasthan, the storage level was at 79.96 per cent of their combined storage capacity of 19.663 billion cubic meter (BCM) as on October 26, whereas it was 88 per cent in the year ago period. The average storage of last ten years as on October 26 was 79.94 per cent of the capacity.

 

The water level in the 150 major reservoirs in India dropped further by two percentage points this week as nearly two-thirds of the country received deficient, largely deficient or no rain since October beginning. According to data from the Central Water Commission (CWC), the storage dropped to 71 per cent (127.591 billion cubic metres) of the 178.784 billion cubic metres (BCM) capacity this week from 73 per cent (129.636 BCM) a week ago.

Concerned over recent increase in wheat and atta prices, the Food Ministry on Friday announced an increase in the quantity offered for sales through weekly e-auction by 50 per cent to 3 lakh tonnes. It also allowed traders to buy double the quantity they are currently entitled to. The new changes will come into effect from November 1.

 

'To increase the availability of wheat in the open market and to further stabilise the prices of wheat, with effect from November 1, the maximum quantity a bidder can purchase under Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) has been increased to 200 tonnes from 100 tonnes and the total quantity offered per e-auction across India has been increased to 3 lakh tonnes (lt) from 2 lt,' the ministry said in a statement.

 

Traders have been kept out from the ambit of wheat sale under OMSS in order to avoid hoarding of stocks, the ministry said. Regular checks and inspections are also being made at flour mills of the processors who have been purchasing the wheat under OMSS, it added. So far, Food Corporation of India (FCI) has carried out 1,627 checks across the country.

 

96% wheat sold in latest auction

Meanwhile, in the last e-auction held on October 26, out of 2.01 lt wheat offered for sales from 444 depots, 1.92 lt (close to 96 per cent) was sold. Of the 2,763 empanelled buyers participated in the bid, 2,318 were successful in securing the quantity.

 

The weighted average selling price was Rs.2,251.57/quintal for fair and average quality (FAQ) variety wheat against its reserve price of Rs.2,150, whereas the average selling price of under relaxed specifications (URS) was Rs.2,317.85 against reserve price of Rs.2,125/quintal, the government said.

 

As a part of government initiative for market intervention to control the retail price of rice, wheat and atta, weekly e- auctions of both wheat and rice have been organised since June last week.

In a bid to raise awareness about the benefits of millets and their cultivation, the UP government is all set to host the Sri Anna Mahotsav from October 27 to 29, 2023. This three-day event, held at the Indira Gandhi Pratishthan in the state capital, aims to encourage the use of millets and recognize the efforts of progressive farmers who have contributed to millet production.

 

The event, coming just before the Krishi Kumbh, will witness the inauguration by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on its first day. The Sri Anna Mahotsav is set to be a state-level workshop where farmers from different divisions will come together to share their experiences and knowledge.

 

On the opening day, farmers from six divisions will converge to discuss millet cultivation and consumption. The second day will see participation from farmers in five divisions, and on the final day, seven divisions will join the event. In total, fifty progressive farmers from each division will be part of this initiative.

 

The primary objective of the Sri Anna Mahotsav is to create awareness among both the general public and farmers regarding the cultivation and consumption of millets within the state. Millets are gaining recognition worldwide for their numerous health benefits and their role in sustainable agriculture.

 

To further promote millets, approximately 40 stalls featuring various millet-based food products will be set up during the event. This will give attendees the opportunity to taste and appreciate the diverse culinary offerings derived from millets.

 

In addition to fostering millet awareness, the state government has announced plans to honor farmers who have made significant contributions to millet production. This recognition aims to encourage more farmers to explore millet cultivation and drive its adoption across the state.

 

The Sri Anna Mahotsav is not only a celebration of millets but a step towards making them a more prominent part of Uttar Pradesh's agricultural landscape. By engaging farmers, the government hopes to spark a millet revolution that will not only boost agricultural sustainability but also improve the health and nutrition of its citizens.

With the demand for basmatirice shooting up in the country, the premium fragrant variety is becoming a target of unscrupulous players, who are flooding the market with adulterated rice. This is not only casting a shadow on exports sometimes; it is misleading unsuspecting consumers who end up buying substandard basmati rice.  

 

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), which has recently come out with a set of standards for this premium rice variety, has launched a nationwide awareness campaign in association with the industry to promote the quality standards.

 

'We have been receiving complaints, particularly from rural areas, against adulterated basmati rice and duplicate brands. We have alerted all our field officers to collect samples from supermarkets and retail outlets frequently and send them for testing,' G Kamala Vardhana Rao, Chief Executive Officer of FSSAI, said.

 

Addressing the 10-city national roadshow - Basmati Rice - No Compromise - virtually on Thursday, he said the authority had set the standards for basmati rice for the first time in August 2023. 'The consumption of basmati rice is increasing. So there is a need to ensure quality standards are conformed to. The standards cover quality, flavour, aroma, texture, and moisture,' he said.

 

Domestic offtake

Ayush Gupta, Business Head of KRBL Ltd (a leading exporter of basmati rice), said the country produced about 7.5 million tonnes of basmati rice. 'Of this, about 4.5 mt are exported and the remaining 3 mt are consumed domestically. While the hospitality sector consumes 60 per cent of the 3 mt, the remaining quantity (about 1.8 mt) is consumed by individual consumers,' he said.

 

He said a large chunk (1.2 mt) of the basmati rice consumed by individuals was unbranded, leaving a huge scope for adulteration. 'This is impacting the image of basmati rice. Since they are mixing it with ordinary rice varieties, they are able to sell it cheap,' he said.

 

Educating ecosystem

The countrywide roadshow is aimed at educating the ecosystem about the new standards and creating awareness on adulteration.

 

Harinder Singh Oberoi, Director of National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management, felt that there was a need to develop a tool kit to easily test the samples.

 

'We have mooted the idea with the industry. If we get funding, we can develop a simple testing equipment, which can assess the quality in a few minutes,' he said.

 

'Adulteration in basmati rice doesn’t mean that it will spoil the health of people. Since they mix it with other rice varieties, there are no health risks. But it is the question of deceiving the consumers,' he pointed out.  

Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal will attend the Group of Seven (G7) Trade Ministers' Meeting in Osaka, Japan from 28-29 October, 2023. The Minister will also have bilateral meetings with a few G7 countries, invitee countries and a few International organisations such as WTO, on the sidelines of the outreach programs.

 

Trade Ministers of G7 Member States hold an annual meeting with the aim to meet the current global challenges related to Trade and Investment and to set the course for a better future. Under its Presidency this year for the G7 Trade Ministers meeting to be held during 28-29 October 2023, Japan has invited India along with a very few other invitee countries (Australia, Chile, Indonesia, and Kenya) to participate in the outreach program to be held on 28 October. Apart from them, International organisations such as WTO, ERIA and OECD have also been invited.

 

This year, Japan has selected contemporary topics for the outreach program namely, 'How to enhance Supply Chain Resilience' and 'Promote Trade and Sustainability- environment, Development and digital, including prospects for WTO MC13'.

 

The G7 is an intergovernmental political forum consisting of the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Italy, France, Canada and Germany. Additionally, the European Union (EU) is a 'non-enumerated member'. G7 meetings are organized around shared values of pluralism, liberal democracy, and representative governments. G7 Members constitute 10% of the world’s population but cater to around 40% of World GDP.

Stressing on the need to provide farmers with quality seeds, Union Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said the government aims to develop new varieties using traditional seeds to ensure they are only on par with the world’s highest yielding varieties, but also contain health benefits.

 

Launching the newly established Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Ltd (BBSSL), which was approved by the Cabinet in January, Shah said the share of India in the global seed trade is less than 1 per cent and that he was confident the seed cooperative would strengthen the country’s position.

 

The BBSSL has an authorised share capital of Rs 500 crore and has been established with an initial paid-up share capital of Rs 250 crore, shared equally by IFFCO, Kribhco, Nafed, National Co-operative Development Corporation (NCDC), and National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). The rest will be held by primary agricultural credit societies (PACS) and other cooperatives once they become members.

 

Shah unveiled the logo, website and brochure of BBSSL and distributed membership certificates.

 

Benefiting small farmers

The minister said that BBSSL has made a small beginning but is set to make a major contribution in India’s seeds production, conservation, promotion and research efforts.

 

He said small farmers, who are left out of privately controlled seed chain development, can benefit by becoming members of local PACS, which will be roped in by BBSSL for seed production. 'The entire profit made by this cooperative will be distributed among farmers directly into their bank accounts,' he announced.

 

Of the 787 lakh quintal seeds required annually, only 372 lakh quintal is available through organised retail, leaving an untapped potential for 415 lakh quintal (estimated value of Rs 40,000 crore), for which farmers rely on their own crops and that of their neighbours.

 

Highlighting the potential of the cooperative sector in the seed business, he said it should aim to grow its share from less than one per cent of certified seeds production to 33 per cent.

 

BBSSL will work in collaboration with ICAR, IARI, central and state agriculture universities, and Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) as there is no competition with these organisations, the minister said.

 

Promoting local R&D

He said seed production in India is by and large based on the technology of other countries and was confident that Indian agriculture scientists, if given a good platform, will develop varieties having the highest yield in the world. The BBSSL will also work in R&D of seeds, he added.

 

He pointed out that lack of access to scientifically produced certified seeds affected not only farmers but also the country’s foodgrain production.

 

'There is a need to conserve traditional seeds of India and distribute those among farmers to ensure health-proof production of foodgrains and other food items as well as fruits and vegetables. This task will also be performed by the seed cooperative,' Shah said.

 

BBSSL will focus on production, testing, certification, processing, storage, labelling, packaging and exports of seeds simultaneously, he said, adding that the entire ecosystem will use modern technology with world-class facilities.'

Saudi Arabia and India are looking to develop economic ties and boost the SR196bn ($52bn) trade relations between the two countries.

 

The Federation of Saudi Chambers held a Saudi-Indian roundtable to review investment opportunities in the Kingdom.

 

Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, FSC Chairman Hassan Alhwaizy, Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Suhel Ajaz Khan, and more than 100 representatives of Saudi and Indian entities and companies took part in the meeting that explored Indian investment prospects in sectors specified in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, economic trends and developments in India, and the opportunities available to Saudi business owners in this country.

 

Saudi-India trade

Goyal said that the visit made by Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to India achieved historic results for relations between the two countries.

 

He underscored India’s unique position as an economic and investment destination for foreign investors, with its large market size exceeding 1.4bn people, and said that his country has an economic vision that targets $2tn annually in overall exports.

 

Goyal said that the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC) will boost international trade and cooperation, and the volume of future investments in the two counties, highlighting the Indian companies’ desire to enter the Saudi market.

 

Alhwaizy highlighted India’s ongoing 75-year economic partnership with the Kingdom, and the fact that the Kingdom is India’s fourth trading partner and the second largest energy supplier; it registered SR196bn ($52bn) volume of trade in 2022, a growth of 51 per cent.

 

He expressed his appreciation for the Saudi-Indian Strategic Partnership Council efforts, which, he said, has brought about a major shift in the trade and investment relationship between the two countries in recent years.

 

He said he was looking forward to seeing new partnerships formed in:

 

Green hydrogen

Manufacturing

Energy

Agriculture

Food security

Healthcare

Information technology

 Saudi-Indian Business Council Chairman Abdulaziz Al Qahtani said that in the course of 26 years, the council played an important role in strengthening economic relations and encouraging partnerships between business owners in the two countries, adding that India is an important market for KSA companies, and Indian investors have great opportunities in the Kingdom.

 

FSC and the Federation of Indian Industry signed a memorandum of understanding at the meeting, stipulating strengthening economic relations, ensuring coordination between business owners and companies in the Kingdom and India, and cooperating in trade and investment.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday held discussions with his Saudi Arabian counterpart Majid bin Abdullah AlKassabi on ways to further promote trade ties between the two countries. Goyal was in Riyadh for two days to attend the seventh edition of Future Investment Initiative (FII).

 

'Discussed how the robust India-Saudi trade ties can be further scaled to make global supply chains more resilient,' Goyal said on social platform X.

 

He also met Saudi Arabia Energy Minister Prince Abdul Aziz Bin Salman Al-Saud; Investment Minister Khalid A Al Falih; Industry and Mineral Resources Minister Bandar bin Ibrahim AlKhorayef; and Governor Public Investment Fund (PIF) Yassir Rummayyan.

 

Goyal talked about the multiple opportunities offered by India.

 

The bilateral trade between the countries stood at USD 52.75 billion in 2022-23 against USD 42.86 billion in 2021-22.

 

India received USD 3.22 billion in foreign direct investment from Saudi Arabia between April 2000 and June 2023.