The Maharashtra Nurserymen's Association, along with the Association of Environmental Horticulture and Vasu Events and Hospitality, is set to host HortiProIndia 2023, India's largest international floriculture and horticultural exhibition and conference from November 23 to 26 at the New Agricultural College Grounds, Sincha Nagar in Pune.

 

The inauguration is scheduled for 11:00 am on November 23, with Public Works Minister Dadasaheb Bhuse presiding over the event. MP Sunil Tatkare will be the chief guest, and MLA Ashok (Bapu) Pawar of Shirur-Haveli Constituency will serve as the function's President.

 

Diverse array of plants and showcase innovations in gardening

 

The exhibition will feature a diverse array of plants and showcase innovations in gardening. Farmers from India and abroad will participate, and horticulture experts will provide guidance to farmers and professionals. The event is expected to offer numerous employment and business opportunities within the horticulture sector.

 

During a press conference in Pune, Shashikant Chaudhary, President of the Maharashtra Nurserymen's Association, along with Secretary Anand Kanchan, Vasu Events and Hospitality representatives Vasant Rasane, Vishwasrao Jogdand, Santosh Shitole, Bapu Survase, Uday Patil, and Mahipal Rana, shared details about the exhibition. The event will be open to the public, and Pune residents are encouraged to visit between 10 am and 8 pm. The organisers extend an invitation to as many Pune residents as possible to explore the exhibition.

 

Saffron grown in Kishtwar area of Jammu and Kashmir saffron has received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag by the Geographical Indications Registry.

 

Deputy Commissioner, Kishtwar Dr Devansh Yadav broke the news on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) with picture of the certificate.

'Kishtwar Saffron brand gets GI tagged for the first time… Tagged along with Kashmiri saffron – multiple FPO brands coming up now!! Icing on the cake – certified as grade1,' the post reads.

The spice is grown in some parts of Kishtwar region of Jammu along with parts of Kashmir.

 

The legendary most expensive harvest of saffron, popularly known as Kumkum, is also a key cash crop in Jammu’s isolated mountainous district of Kishtwar.

 

Saffron cultivation is a cultural heritage that represents freshness and purity. Kishtwar’s saffron production area is called locally as Mandal.

The food authority has withdrawn a direction that asks food businesses to put 'best before date' in case of non- packaged food items, particularly, sweets.

 

According to the FSSAl, the subject needs further review by the scientific panel.

 

'The directions were issued in parity with the declarations required for the packaged food products under the erstwhile FSS (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations, 2011. Now considering that the FSS (Packaging and Labelling) Regulations, 2011, has been superseded by the FSS (Labelling and Display) Regulations, 2020, the ibid direction have been reviewed and it is observed that the same require further deliberations by the concerned 'Scientific Panel' regarding the declaration of date markings on non-packaged/loose food products,' reads the statement issued by the FSSAI.

 

The withdrawn direction was isued in September 2020, which asked the food businesses to put best before date, on loosely sold food items. However, the FBOs may continue to declare 'best before date' on non-packaged sweet/loose sweet containers/tray on a voluntary basis.

Some of the countries that have been allowed to receive Indian white rice on government-to-government (G2G) deals are seeking waiver of customs duty on the cereal’s consignments. 

 

African countries are the main ones seeking duty-free imports of rice from India, trade sources said.

 

Customs officials imposed a 20 per cent duty on white rice consignments of 5,300 tonnes from Visakhapatnam port last month to Port Louis in Mauritius.  

 

FTA exemption

'Some of the buyers who are getting rice through G2G deals are arguing why India should impose an export duty for such deals.' an exporter said on condition of anonymity.

 

Official sources said while white rice exports, which are G2G deals since the Centre has banned its shipments, are levied a 20 per cent export duty, no tax is imposed on consignments heading to nations with which India has a free trade agreement (FTA). 'India is not imposing export duty on countries which have entered into an FTA with it. That way, there is no duty for consignments heading to Nepal, but it is imposed on those for Bhutan,' the exporter said.

 

NCEL gets mandate

In October, the government allowed exports of 10.34 lakh tonnes (lt) of non-basmati white rice to seven countries on G2G basis. The Directorate-General of Foreign Trade notification on Wednesday said the shipments would be handled by the National Cooperative Export Ltd (NCEL).

 

As per the notification, the maximum quantity of rice — 2.95 lt — was allocated to the Philippines, while Cameroon got 1.9 lt, Malaysia 1.7 lt, Cote d’Ivoire 1.42 lt, Republic of Guinea 1.42 lt, Nepal 95,000 tonnes and Seychelles 800 tonnes.

 

The Centre has allowed NCEL to handle the G2G as part of its efforts to promote cooperatives, though a section of the trade has questioned the decision. 'Despite the fact that farmer producer organisations and farmers, from whom NCEL will procure, stand to gain, Customs authorities are imposing a duty,' said the exporter.

 

Burden on poor nations

Sources said NCEL has so far exported 5,301 tonnes to Mauritius and 1,150 tonnes of rice to Bhutan. The organisation is at an advanced stage of negotiations to ship the cereal to the Philippines, Seychelles, Cameroon and Singapore. 

 

Trade sources said while policy decisions are taken by the Commerce Ministry, the duty is imposed by Customs officials, who say the orders are clear and unambiguous.

 

The 20 per cent duty on rice exports increases the landing cost of rice by $80-85 a tonne. For some of the poor African countries, this might be a burden, say trade sources.

 

Currently, Indian parboiled rice is quoted at $515 a tonne f.o.b, according to the Thai Rice Exporters Association. 

 

businessline’sHyderabad correspondent KV Kurmanath who visited Cote d’Ivoire last month reported that Indian curbs have resulted in rice prices increasing by 25-30 per cent in the African nation. Three of the top five countries importing Indian rice are in Sub-Saharan Africa – Benin, Senegal and Cote d’Ivoire – with each buying over one million tonnes in 2022.   

 

Why curbs

India has resorted to curbs on rice exports since September 2022 on food security grounds, particularly when wheat production was affected in 2022 and 2023 due to indifferent weather.

 

As a result, the Centre began distributing more rice under the public distribution system, while also trying to cool prices through such curbs. On September 8, 2022, the Centre banned exports of broken rice and imposed 20 per cent export duty on white rice shipments.

 

On July 20 this year, it banned exports of  white rice. On August 26, it imposed 20 per cent export duty on shipments of parboiled rice. However, the government clarified that it will allow exports to neighbouring and vulnerable countries.

 

Last year, kharif rice production was affected as key growing regions such West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand and western Uttar Pradesh received deficient rainfall. 

 

This year, too, kharif sowing was affected due to the south-west monsoon playing truant and August turning out to be the driest in over 122 years. 

 

During the 2022 kharif, rice production was estimated at 110.51 million tonnes (mt), while this year it is projected at 106.31 mt by the Ministry of Agriculture. 

Needing a greater supply of rice amid stubbornly high prices, the Philippines, which relies on imports to meet demand, has given private traders about a month to buy an additional 1 million tonnes or risk losing permits, Reuters reported.

 

The directive was announced by Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel during a congressional hearing on Nov. 20, where he also assured lawmakers steps were being taken to ensure stable supply of other food items such as sugar and onions.

 

'I told them if they failed to import (the additional volume) within 30 days I will cancel the permits because I don’t want to be held hostage by permits that were issued to them upon their request,' Laurel told lawmakers.

 

Philippine rice imports are handled by private traders, but the state agency procuring rice from local farmers for buffer stocking can import some volume upon approval by the president in an emergency.

 

The additional imports, which mainly are sourced from Vietnam and some from Thailand, should boost domestic supply until the next harvest in March, the agriculture ministry said.

 

Laurel also met with governors of the top 10 rice-producing provinces on Nov. 17, in an effort to boost supply, reduce imports and lower prices for the national food staple. The 10 provinces account for 48% of the country’s total rice production.

 

Governors from Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao who gathered in San Juan City welcomed Laurel’s initiative, saying the consultative meeting was a good first step toward a concerted effort to boost rice production. The Philippines is regularly among the world's largest rice importers.

 

'This is the first time that local government units are being given the opportunity to address the concerns of their respective provinces,' said Nueva Ecija Governor Aurelio Umali, whose province is the biggest producer of rice, accounting for 9% of national production. 'I believe that this kind of leadership he is starting will benefit not only my province but also the country’s food security.'

 

Unmilled rice output this year was expected to reach more than 20 million tonnes, above the previous year’s 19.76 million tonnes, the agriculture ministry said. 

 

The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the US Department of Agriculture anticipates the Philippines will import 3.5 million tonnes of rice in marketing year 2023-24. Consumption is seen at 16.4 million tonnes with ending stocks of 3.1 million tonnes.

 

Rice price inflation in the Philippines has slowed in October from the previous month, helping cool inflation to 4.9% last month from 6.1% in September, but the pace of price increases remains outside the central bank’s 2% to 4% target range.

India is developing sea protocols for various fresh fruits and vegetables like bananas, mangoes, pomegranates and jackfruit to promote their exports through ocean routes, a senior government official said on Tuesday. At present, most of these exports are happening by air route because of lower volumes and different ripening periods.

 

The protocol includes understanding voyage time, scientifically understanding the ripening of these commodities, harvesting at a particular time and training of farmers. These protocols will be different for different fruits and vegetables.

 

Additional Secretary in the Commerce Ministry Rajesh Agrawal said shipments through sea route have two advantages - cost and volume.

 

The exercise would help boost exports of fruits and vegetables as shipments through air cargo have a positive impact on the price competitiveness of these commodities.

 

'So far, we are using air routes to export these perishable goods. But now, we are trying to see how we can use the sea route to send these agri products. Now, we have started developing sea protocols,' he said.

 

One of the challenges in agri exports in India has been that the majority of these goods use air cargo, and because freights are high, it reduces the competitiveness of those products, he added.

 

To start with, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), along with other stakeholders, has developed these protocols for bananas.

 

'We did dummy testing in a container, and now, for actual testing, the first container has been shipped to Rotterdam, the Netherlands.

 

'We are confident that it will be successful, and once this is done and importers start accepting it, the volumes will increase in a substantial way,' he added.

 

Importing countries will also have to come on board to accept those consignments.

 

An increase in exports of fresh fruits and vegetables can help push shipments of agri products at a time when India has prohibited exports of non-basmati white rice and wheat.

 

For the trial shipment of bananas, APEDA has enlisted the support of ICAR-Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture (CISH), Lucknow, for technical assistance, while InI Farms has partnered with Del Monte for marketing and distribution in Europe and Maersk for logistics.

 

Despite being the world's largest banana producer, India's export share is currently just one per cent in the global market, even though the country accounts for 26.45 per cent of the world's banana production at 35.36 million metric tonnes.

 

In 2022-23, India exported bananas worth USD 176 million, equivalent to 0.36 MMT.

 

During April-August this year, mangoe exports rose by 19 per cent to USD 47.98 million.

 

Besides the US, the major destinations include Japan, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

 

During April-October this fiscal, exports of fruits and vegetables grew by about 13 per cent to about USD 2 billion.

 

ASEAN Secretary-General Dr Kao Kim Hourn has said that the 10-member bloc of the Southeast Asian countries wants India to join the landmark Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) for greater market access as he asserted that all partners stand to gain from the inclusive, open and rule-based trade pact. Dr Kao also said that India and ASEAN have been working together across different sectors - from space to investment, to tourism, to the defence sector and counter-terrorism, among others - and advocated expanding such cooperation in new sectors.

 

Talking to a select group of Indian journalists here on Monday evening, Dr Kao said joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) would benefit India as the agreement would provide greater market access.

 

He added that all partners will gain from the inclusive, open and rule-based trade pact.

 

The RCEP is a free trade area (FTA) consisting of 10 ASEAN members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam) and five of the bloc's dialogue partners -- China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.

 

The landmark agreement was signed in November 2020. Together, these RCEP participating countries account for about 30 per cent of the global GDP and 30 per cent of the world population.

 

India had pulled out of the RCEP as, according to officials, joining it would have resulted in fairly negative consequences for the country's economy.

 

'Looking ahead, of course, we hope to continue to expand the existing areas of cooperation and also to deepen our cooperation,' he said, suggesting collaboration in the biotech sector, public health facility, renewable energy sector, people-to-people exchange, connectivity and in many other areas.

 

'We stand to benefit from the partnership between ASEAN and India. At the moment, we have many mechanisms for cooperation between the two sides,' he added.

 

Recalling Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Jakarta in September to attend the ASEAN summit, he said the grouping 'highly value' its 'partnership' with India.

 

'We were delighted to welcome Prime Minister Modi to Jakarta, where he participated in the ASEAN India Summit. And we highly value our partnership with India,' he said.

 

During the Summit on September 7 in Jakarta, Prime Minister Modi presented a 12-point proposal to expand cooperation between India and ASEAN in a range of areas such as connectivity, trade and digital transformation even as he called for building a rules-based post-COVID world order.

 

The prime minister had reaffirmed that ASEAN is the central pillar of India's Act East Policy and it fully supports ASEAN centrality and its outlook on the Indo-Pacific.

 

Dr Kao said that ASEAN is a maritime community and India is a maritime nation. 'We can collaborate in the maritime sector, for example, maritime cooperation, which is one of the four priority areas under the ASEAN outlook on the Indo-Pacific. Also (we can) work together in the digital economy and sustainability, in the renewable energy sector and people-to-people exchanges and connectivity.'

 

Dr Kao also talked about the contributions of ASEAN-India dialogue relations to ASEAN's community-building efforts and underscored the important role of media in encouraging greater cooperation between ASEAN and India, especially in the areas of cultural exchanges, connectivity and people-to-people ties, among others.

 

He advocated a liberal aviation pact that would facilitate more direct flights between India and ASEAN nations and enhance people-to-people ties and boost tourism.

 

Responding to a question on conflicts in different parts of the world, Dr Kao said that ASEAN is a strong proponent of peace, dialogue and diplomacy.

 

'ASEAN has always been promoting a culture of dialogue, habits of consultation, and of course constructive engagement,' he said, adding that things should be worked out through dialogue and the non-use of force.

 

He hoped that the United Nations would play a constructive role in the resolution of the ongoing conflicts around the world.

 

'We hope that the United Nations will play a constructive role in ongoing conflicts around the world. We believe that the UN has the means and of course, the commitment to work toward the resolution of the conflicts, particularly when we see a humanitarian tragedy unfolding before us,' he said, referring to the Israel-Palestine conflict.

 

ASEAN wants 'peace should be given a chance', he added.

 

The ASEAN or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is considered one of the most influential groupings in the region, and India and several other countries including the US, China, Japan and Australia are its dialogue partners.

 

ASEAN-India dialogue relations started with the establishment of a sectoral partnership in 1992. This graduated to a full dialogue partnership in December 1995 and a summit-level partnership in 2002. The ties were elevated to a strategic partnership in 2012.

 

The ties between India and ASEAN have been on a significant upswing in the last few years with the focus being on boosting cooperation in the areas of trade and investment as well as security and defence.

 

The two sides elevated their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership last year.

 

The 10 member countries of ASEAN are Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia.

Buyers of Indian non-basmati rice are now scouring for brown rice, particularly the Swarna variety, with rice supplies tightening up on the global market, exporters say. 'The Swarna variety is a short length variety of 5.2 mm. Vietnam has begun to buy it,' said VR Vidya Sagar, Director, Bulk Logix. 

 

'We are getting enquiries for brown rice, though we haven’t struck any deal as yet,' said M Madan Prakash, President, Agricultural Commodities Exporters Association (ACEA). Prakash’s firm Rajathi Group exports rice, onion and maize (corn). 

 

'Brown rice is considered at par with parboiled. So, its export is allowed but at a 20 per cent export duty,' said Delhi-based exporter Rajesh Paharia Jain. 

 

Sagar and Jain said brown rice was commanding $500 a tonne f.o.b. 'Only Vietnam has begun buying so far,' Jain said. Sagar said at least 5,000 tonnes could have been shipped to Hanoi so far.

 

Thai subsidy scheme

The development comes at a time when India has banned exports of white rice, except for government-to-government deals, and imposed 20 per cent export duty on parboiled consignments from the country. It has also fixed $950 a tonne as the minimum export price for Basmati rice shipments. 

 

Besides Indian export curbs, the global rice market has been starved of supplies with Thailand now providing subsidies to its paddy farmers to hold back their produce at least until March 2024.

 

The Thailand Cabinet has approved a 55 billion baht (Rs.13,030 crore) scheme to hold back their paddy for at least five months. Bangkok Post reported that loans have also been approved for cooperatives to buy the paddy. 

 

Farmers holding back their produce would be paid 12,000 baht (Rs.28,450) and an additional 1,500 baht (Rs.3,550) for storage. The plan is to hold back 3 million tonnes so that domestic prices of the cereal will not surge. 

 

Prices firm up

The US Department of Agriculture has estimated Thailand’s rice production at 19.5 million tonnes (mt) for the 2023-24 season against 20.91 mt in the previous one. 'Thailand’s move is a clear indication that a clear picture of the global rice market will be available only around April. India should wait until then before reviewing the curbs,' said trade analyst S Chandrasekaran.

 

He also called for 'occasional' scrutiny of Basmati rice shipments since unscrupulous elements could over-invoice non-basmati white rice and export it. 

 

Thailand’s scheme has resulted in rice prices firming up in the global market, apart from Indian rice crop facing weather woes. 'Two weeks ago, parboiled rice prices were around $490/tonne. Now, they have increased to $510-515,' said Bulk Logix’s Sagar. It is still competitive compared to Thailand’s $585 and Pakistan’s $546-550.

 

Tardy FCI buy

But prices could head south since the Food Corporation of India (FCI) is saddled with huge stocks, he said. 

 

As of November 1, FCI had 20.04 mt of rice stocks, higher than 16.6 mt a year ago. Stocks are higher despite FCI procurement this marketing year from October being 4.4 per cent lower at 16.13 mt. 

 

Trade sources said FCI’s rice procurement has been tardy and a clear picture will emerge around the third week of December. 

 

According to National Centres of Environmental Information, an arm of US weather agency National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, at least 26 per cent of India is under drought. The NCEI pointed to reports that said South-East Asia is also reeling under drought due to the El Nino weather phenomenon. 

 

El Nino impact

In particular, it said Indonesia’s rice production will likely drop by 2 per cent to 30.90 mt. Other reports said Thailand is attempting cloud seeding though its Agriculture Ministry is worried over El Nino impact on rice production. 

 

El Nino has impacted India’s south-west monsoon as a result of which it ended up in a nearly 6 per cent deficit. However, the rains have not been evenly spread, affecting kharif crops as a result. 

 

The Ministry of Agriculture has estimated kharif rice production at 106.31 mt this year compared with 110.51 mt last year. India’s rice export curbs are to ensure domestic food security. 

 

After the successful export of varieties of agricultural products like mango, fresh green vegetables, and marigold flowers, the water chestnuts from the local ponds in Varanasi are all set to hit the Gulf markets with their first consignment soon to go.

 

The first consignment of 400 kg water chestnut is being sent to Dubai.

 

Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for ‘vocal for local’ and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has been focusing on the promotion of exports of locally sourced indigenous and ethnic agricultural products.

 

'We are sending the first consignment of the locally produced water chestnuts to the UAE,' said a senior official of the APEDA, an apex body under the Ministry of Commerce & industry.

 

APEDA chairman Abhishek Dev emphasized the immense potential of agricultural products exports from Uttar Pradesh and said the APEDA is making all possible efforts to promote agri-export in Purvanchal region, especially in Varanasi, and will continue to do so.

Organic farming is catching on in India, thanks to a growing preference for healthier, sustainable food choices

 

Sikkim is India’s first and only State to attain 100% organic farming status.

 

Now, the Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu is aiming to become the first organic district in the south by 2030

 

It’s been 200 years since the British introduced exotic vegetables such as potato, carrot, cauliflower, and plantation crops like tea, coffee in the Nilgiris district.

 

Gopalakrishnan, who has returned to India from the United States, is practicing organic farming near Ooty.

 

In a one-acre plot at Kuruthikuli village, Gopalakrishnan has planted 10 varieties of greens, Broccoli, beetroot, Bok choy, cauliflower, carrot, cabbage, Kale, radish, peas, double beans, celery, turnip, potato, Parsley, chamomile and medicinal plants.