The Queen pineapple of Tripura has got a geographical indication (GI) tag with the initiative of North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC) along with 12 other fruits and vegetables of Northeast, said officials here on Monday.

 

The officials stated Ministry of DoNER ministry, has facilitated the process of GI tagging and authorized about 800 farmers in the region to get the advantage of exclusive claims of a specific geographical origin and qualities under Intellectual Property Rights across the globe.

 

After NERAMAC, authorized these farmers, working in groups, to use its certifications, the decision

 

is expected to boost the promotion of these unique products of the northeast in the international and domestic markets, officials stated.

 

Besides Queen pineapple of Tripura, Arunachal Orange, Mizo Chilli, Kachai Lemon, Khasi Mandarin, Tezpur Litchi, Sikkim Large Cardamom, Karbi Anglong Ginger, Naga Tree Tomato, 'Chak-Hao' Black Rice, Memang Narang, Dalle Khursani and Naga Sweet Cucumber have also got the GI tag.

 

With a huge demand in Middle East countries and Europe besides, the big cities of India. Tripura government plans to open an auction market for pineapples in New Delhi, the harvesting of which

 

will be started in a week. The pineapple used to sell at Rs 1-2 per piece and during pick season pineapples were dumped on the street, as there were no buyers.

 

However, the situation has changed in five years, and even during Covid19 pandemic, pineapple from Tripura was exported. To promote pineapple, the agriculture department is in talks with the Ministry of Agriculture to host a marketplace of pineapple in New Delhi that will help the traders to reach out to international buyers, officials stated.

 

Tripura is producing the world-renowned Queen Pineapple - spiny, golden yellow in colour, with a distinctive aroma, and has high juice content, tanginess, and sweetness that sets it apart from the pineapples grown in the other Northeast states. The northern parts of Tripura are also producing the Kew verity pineapple, which is also juicy and sweet in taste but bigger in size till the middle of the monsoon.

The 8th meeting of Agriculture Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member countries was held on Saturday via video conferencing under the chairmanship of Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar.

 

Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, China and Pakistan participated in it, along with India.

 

Tomar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emphasis is on the overall development of agriculture in the country through technology.

 

Tomar said in order to maintain the normal functioning of the food supply chain in the present conditions, there is a need for close contact and cooperation between various countries for food and nutrition security.

 

He added that India is the largest employer globally in the agriculture sector, where more than half of our population is engaged in agriculture and allied sectors, while India also represents an important economic activity for many countries.

 

Tomar said India’s public distribution system and price support system for farmers are unique in the world, adding it is the good result of the foresight of our policy-makers, efficiency of agricultural scientists and tireless hard work of farmers that today India is self-sufficient in food grains.

 

India is a leading producer of many commodities like cereals, fruits, vegetables, milk, eggs, and fish.

 

Tomar also apprised SCO member-countries participating in the meeting about India’s direct transfer benefits initiatives, credit facilities, promoting natural and organic farming, and promoting farmer-producer organisations (FPOs).

The Economic Times, in association with Bayer and Knowledge Partner Grant Thornton Bharat, conducted the India Horticulture Future Forum 2023. Herein, subject matter experts, policymakers, industry leaders and representatives of multi-lateral development organisations, as well as farmer representatives in horticulture, deliberated on a range of necessary interventions in the sector. A summary of the event is captured below:

 

In the Indian agricultural and allied sector, over three crore farmers grow horticulture crops for at least one season a year on over 30 million hectares of land. Evidently, there is a scope to greatly enhance production, given the importance of horticulture in terms of nutritional security, enhancing farmers' income and increasing the contribution of the overall agriculture sector to the gross national product (GNP).

 

India is the second-largest producer of horticultural products but enjoys a share of less than 2% as compared to the related world trade. Even today, India is a net importer of fruits and vegetables. Thus, there is scope for India to ramp up horticulture production, targeting increased domestic demand as well as global demand. Many horticulture commodities are protected by tariff walls of up to 40%. There is a need to convert seasonal comparative advantage to year-round competitive advantage. Moreover, production and productivity, post-harvest and processing, market intelligence, marketing and logistics and export-related constraints require to be redressed.

 

Some of the critical constraints confronting the horticulture sector and necessary interventions may be viewed as follows:

Production: Farming practices since the green revolution have affected soil and water health. There is less focus on soil health management due to the urea-centric production approach, which also leads to nutrition deficiency. India uses 66% more fertiliser per hectare compared to the USA. The use of bio-stimulants is also barely two kg per hectare or 4% of that in Brazil, which has demonstrated commodity-export-led growth. In addition, the dearth of adequate inputs like seeds and planting materials and crop protection products has affected yield. Furthermore, irrigation and credit constraints affecting the application of technology in farming, including in mechanisation, are other smallholder farmers’ limitations. Moreover, the scale of government intervention is marginal compared to the needs of the sector. In this context, private sector participation is vital. For instance, the private sector can play a huge role in improving the availability of quality planting material and help in digitisation and agtech services. It can also provide solutions to farmers around crop advisory, purchase of inputs and mechanisation and fulfilment of credit needs at scale. Propagation of micro irrigation and watershed management systems is also key. Farmer producer organisations (FPOs) may also serve as facilitator platforms for the widespread delivery of services.

 

Post-harvest and processing: There is a limited post-harvest facility in India, and cold storage is limited mostly to potatoes. Though presently, significant commitment and investment are made by the Government of India in developing storage infrastructure through a range of schemes. With new agtech, automation of activities in warehousing and logistics is also taking place.

 

There is a research and development (R&D) shortfall in processable horticulture varieties. Presently, the capacity utilisation of processing facilities in the country is also only to the tune of 25 to 30%. Supply-related security of processable varieties throughout the year is required to encourage investment in processing facilities and infrastructure. This implies that in order to extend storage life, post-harvest infrastructure is key. The packaging ecosystem needs to be developed, and post-harvest nutrition losses also need to be targeted.

 

Market intelligence: India is constantly facing gluts and scarcity of horticultural crops every other year. Market intelligence in advance on supply, demand and prices is critical for production planning by farmers, and related systems need to be developed as well. FPOs may also be developed as aggregation platforms.

 

Exports: Indian horticulture products are facing tariff walls in developed countries, along with non-tariff, phytosanitary requirement-related barriers. Quality produce, conformance, aptly exploiting free trade agreements (FTAs), sea protocols and traceability systems are important to promote fruits and vegetables in the international market. Development of post-harvest and logistics infrastructure to facilitate the evacuation of marketable surplus is also key to helping farmers avoid resorting to distress sales during harvest.

 

Agtech: The supply and demand side of agtech services needs to be developed. These range from drones to financial services providing platforms. Other emerging technologies are irrigation management through Internet of Things (IoT) devices and pest, disease and soil management through artificial intelligence (AI) models.

 

The forum concluded with a resolution to evolve an Indian horticulture consortium representing leading stakeholders. Six working groups are to be constituted addressing:

Inputs: Availability and access to quality planting material, crop protection solutions, farm mechanisation, etc.

Digitech: Advisory services, traceability, etc.

Logistics: Supply chain effectiveness systems and market-linked post-harvest storage

Finance: Access to credit and insurance

Marketing and exports: Orienting FTAs, market intelligence and ensuring conformance

Processing: Incentivising value-addition

A cluster value-chain-based approach is being progressively adopted by the government, which will be adopted to take Indian horticulture to its deserving world market leadership position.

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has released data indicating that the United States has become the largest market for organic honey exported from India. The data shows that 80% of India's organic honey exports are sent to the United States.

 

Until February of FY 2022/23, the manufacturers earned around Rs 1,293.96 crore by exporting 58,471.80 tons of honey to America. Besides America, UAE (Rs 69.72 cr), Saudi Arabia (Rs 30.63 cr), Libya and Morocco are other favourable export destinations for organic honey from India.

 

Meanwhile, recent years witnessed a growing appeal for organic honey produced in the country, with an export of 73,51.97 tons and a 25 per cent increase in revenue generation recorded last financial year. Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Punjab and Bihar are the largest producers of honey in the country.

Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, and Textiles, Government of India said that business is not just about numbers but about building relationships, partnership, collaborating, learning, technology and innovation. During the Trade and Investment Promotion Event for the Agricultural and Food Processing sector with Indian companies and Canadian importers on the sidelines of SIAL-2023, Toronto, Canada yesterday, the Minister said that focus has to be on shared prosperity for people across the world making all stakeholders in the value chain prosperous.

 

Sh. Goyal said that this is an opportunity to celebrate the Canada-India partnership and there is a huge potential of growth in the expansion of business and engagement between the two countries. He said that value addition of food products is a priority area. Sh. Goyal stressed that Indian businesses must focus on quality, scale, design, packaging, etc. to earn the confidence and trust of consumers and businesses in Canada.

 

The Minister appreciated the participation by Indian businesses at SIAL 2023 as it showcased India to the world. He said that the challenge ahead is to organize a larger and bigger trade show in the food industry in India or abroad showcasing the best we have to offer across continents. Sh. Piyush Goyal said that SIAL 2023 offered an opportunity to hone product quality and marketing skills of the food industry. Sh. Goyal said that 'World Food India' in November 2023 can serve as the platform that can showcase the best of India & collaborate with businesses across the world. He said that as a part of outreach as G20 President, Government and businesses need to put their best efforts in this respect.

 

The Minister said that the food industry is a high profile, high profits and high growth sunrise sector. He said that it is a focus area of Government and businesses as it directly impacts agriculture in India by adding value to the products of farmers and encouraging diversification of crops, fruits, vegetables. Sh. Goyal said that this industry’s contribution to the growth story of India is immense and valuable as it brings better life for the families engaged in farming and agriculture related sources of livelihood.

 

The Minister highlighted that there is multifold growth potential in the bilateral trade of India-Canada in this sector. Sh. Goyal said that the food industry has been able to bring the best of India into Canada and promised encouragement by the government in expansion of their businesses in Canada. He said that the export of agri-based products, foodstuffs, food products, marine products, etc. from India is rising but there is huge potential for more exports of these products.

 

Sh. Goyal said that millets are becoming popular amongst consumers in India and the world, it is important to highlight the nutritional and health benefits of millets especially among the youth who need high energy and high protein food intake. He said that millets can be a game changer in promotion of the Indian food industry. The Minister praised the serving of millets at the event.

 

In another meeting with Canadian companies inToronto, Canada earlier yesterday, Sh. Piyush Goyal invited the people and businesses from Canada to visit India. He said that the India that they will visit now is truly a New India. The Minister also invited them to join the B20 Sessions and sectoral engagements being organized across the country under India’s G20 Presidency. He also encouraged the Canadian companies to hold Board meetings in India.

 

Sh. Goyal said that India is not only the fastest growing large economy but also a consistently growing economy. He said that as India grows as an economy in the next 25 years, he invited Canadian businesses to be a part of India’s growth journey.

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said India's strong recovery in the aftermath of the pandemic is a 'bright spot for the global growth outlook'.

 

But at the same time she also underscored the dilemmas faced by emerging market developing economies between climate security and growth, as they manage 'overlapping crises and socio-economic transformation'.

 

Addressing a G7 seminar on economic policies for welfare in Niigata in Japan, the minister stressed the need for balancing sustainable growth with environment in the short and long run. She also called for ways to measure 'empowerment going beyond indicators such as gross domestic product'.

 

The minister is in Japan to attend the G7 meeting. India, which has the G20 presidency for the current year, is an invitee to G7 finance ministers and central bank governors (FMCBG) meeting.

 

She also shared India's focus on digital public infrastructure and green hydrogen 'as a foundation for sustainable and inclusive growth and as an example of innovative policy toolkits' by emerging market developing economies, the finance ministry tweeted.

 

Participating in the first session of FMCBG dialogue, Sitharaman highlighted the resilience as well as unique development challenges of emerging market developing economies. She called for bolstering cooperation among all stakeholders for timely resolution of the debt crisis being faced by vulnerable nations.

 

In the second session of the FMCBG Dialogue focussed on sustainable growth, the minister underlined the need to bolster multilateral development banks to 'address trans-boundary challenges'.