The United States wants to increase agriculture exports to India and help in the dairy sector, said Ambassador Eric Garcetti on Tuesday as he called for a 'more ambitious' bilateral trade partnership.

 

India’s productivity in dairy has levelled off and American companies can help, he said at the 20th Indo-US Economic Summit organised by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce. US exports would involve the sale of feed grains to India.

 

A trade deal between the two countries has stalled after talks on USA’s demand that India procure its dairy products.

 

'The goal that we should be setting for each other is how we can be more ambitious. Not just settle for another deal. Not just settle, as we have done in the last few months, for bringing down the retaliatory tariffs and trade disputes between our countries. That’s not good enough,' said Garcetti.

 

India is reluctant to open its market to foreign agriculture products as a large share of its workforce is dependent on farming. Garcetti's comments assume significance as India and the US have solved some disputes over tariffs and market access.

 

Last year, India agreed to allow the import of pork and pork products from the US as a part of a bilateral trade deal which will facilitate exports of Indian mangoes and pomegranates. Earlier this year, India lifted retaliatory tariffs on US apples, chickpeas, lentils, almonds and walnuts.

 

India agreed last week to bring down the import duty to 5-10 per cent on some fresh and processed food items as part of a larger dispute settlement between New Delhi and Washington at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Duties will be reduced on import of frozen turkey and duck, as well as blueberries, and cranberries.

 

Garcetti said the need is to do away with 'even the smallest of friction between the two countries in terms of trade', reduce tariffs further and create a predictable regulatory environment.

 

India, as of 2022, was the thirteenth largest destination for $200 billion worth of US agriculture exports, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Of the $2.2 billion worth of US agriculture exports to India, almonds made up for almost half ($1 billion), followed by cotton ($494 million), and ethanol ($211 million), the USDA said in a report last year.

 

India was the largest export destination for US soybean oil, the second-largest for tree nuts, and the fourth-largest for ethanol. The US is India’s fifth-largest supplier of agricultural goods, representing 6 percent of the total import market, behind Indonesia, Malaysia, Argentina, and Brazil.

 

The US is willing to explore ways to get Indian food pre-approved for its market and vice versa by aligning standards, Garcetti said. Robert M Califf, the United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) commissioner, led a delegation to India last week for discussions.

 

India has the highest number of USFDA approved pharmaceutical plants outside the US, more than 665.

India has approved the export of 75000 tonnes of non-basmati rice to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the fourth country to which shipments of the grain have been allowed since an export ban was imposed in July to curb domestic inflation.

 

A government notification on Monday said shipments for UAE will be handled by the National Cooperative Export Ltd, a state-backed enterprise set up in January following a cabinet decision.

 

India, the world’s largest exporter of rice, barred overseas sales in July to cool high cereal inflation, which continues to be in double digits. The government at the time said it would allow shipments to friendly countries for their food-security needs once such diplomatic requests were cleared by the external affairs ministry.

 

Since the ban, India has allowed the export of over 1.4 million tonnes of white rice following requests by Singapore, Bhutan and Mauritius.

 

'As a nation alive to global food-security concerns, India will continue to offer rice to friendly countries after evaluating them provided the exported quantities are used for domestic consumption and not used for trade,' a food ministry official said.

 

The prohibition on exports of the staple by India, which has a 40% share in global trade, sent prices rocketing in world markets, with the FAO rice price index rising to its highest level in 15 years at 40.31% year-on-year in August 2023.

 

Besides, India has also exported broken rice to countries in need since the ban. It has allowed broken-rice shipments of 500,000 tonnes to Senegal, 200,000 tonnes to Indonesia, 100,000 tonnes to Mali and 50,000 tonnes to Gambia.

 

India’s ban on export of non-basmati white rice in July came three days after Russia pulled out of the Black Sea grain deal, sparking fears of a global food shortage. In September last year, the government stopped the export of broken rice. That ban is still in place.

 

To curb shipments of parboiled rice, India has also imposed a 20% tariff. In May last year, the country banned wheat export, but the country is not a major exporter of wheat.

 

The reasons for curbs on food export are domestic. The government is battling elevated food inflation amid fears of rice shortage due to the monsoon-disrupting El Nino weather pattern. The country is heading into a festive season when food demand soars. The Modi government also faces a general election next year and state assembly polls in five states this year.

Union Minister of Minister of Food Processing Industries (MOFPI) Pashupati Kumar Paras emphasised the benefits of millets.

 

At the three-day International Conference on 'Millets for Achieving Nutritional and Economic Security', the minister encouraged the participants in various competitions organised during the event by Niftem Kundli,.

 

Winners of the competitions were conferred awards with best wishes for their future.

 

He invited the food processing professionals, innovators, and food enthusiasts to the upcoming mega food event World Food India to be held from November 3-5, 2023 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi.

The Scheme for Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) support which was notified till 30th September 2023 is now being extended till 30th June 2024 at the same rates to the existing export items. This will help our exporting community to negotiate export contracts in the present international environment on better terms. The Scheme is WTO compatible and is being implemented in an end-to-end IT environment.

 

In another development, in line with the Scheme framework, the RoDTEP Committee has again been constituted in the Department of Revenue to review and recommend the ceiling rates under the RoDTEP Scheme for different export sectors. The Committee held its first interaction today at Vanijya Bhawan in New Delhi with the Export Promotion Councils (EPCs)/Chamber of Commerce and discussed the methodology and other issues relating to the Scheme and its implementation. The EPCs in their observations emphasized the need for enhancing the RoDTEP budget allocation and for higher rates to be made available to all export items to help them secure greater market access abroad.

 

The RoDTEP Scheme was introduced by the Government as a duty remission scheme on exports and is being implemented from 1st January 2021. The Scheme provides a mechanism for reimbursement of taxes, duties and levies, which are currently not being refunded under any other mechanism, at the central, state and local level, but which are incurred by the export entities in the process of manufacture and distribution of exported products. Under the Scheme, a support of Rs. 27,018 crores has been extended for the 27 month period till 31.03.2023. The RoDTEP scheme operates under a budgetary framework and for FY 23-24, a budget of Rs 15,070 crores is available to support 10610 HS lines at the 8 digit level.

Hoping to stabilize potato prices, the government of Bangladesh is considering imports. Currently, retail rates are defying the government-set maximum retail price of Tk 36 per kg, according to a top official.

 

'We are closely monitoring the situation. If potato prices do not stabilise within the next two to three days, we will proceed with import,' said AHM Safiquzzaman, additional commerce secretary and head of the consumers' right directorate.

 

The government set the maximum retail price of potatoes at Tk36 per kg on September 14. Despite interventions, Dhaka city continues to see prices ranging from Tk 48 to Tk 55 per kg, surpassing the government rates by a large margin.

 

Director General of the consumers' right directorate AHM Safiquzzaman said the Commerce Minister is actively exploring import options to restore market stability.

Dragon fruit has recently garnered considerable attention from cultivators in Mexico, Thailand and India, due to the fruit’s economic value and its vast health benefits that have led to high demand.

 

In several districts of Uttar Pradesh, numerous farmers are opting to cultivate this exotic fruit alongside traditional crops. They are attracted by the promising returns on investment and government subsidies, a shift from the fruit’s previous exclusive growth in the southern and eastern states of India.

 

'Dragon fruit yields rapid returns with economic production within the first year of planting, reaching full production in 3-4 years. Once planted, a dragon fruit plant continues to produce for 20-25 years, with an average economic yield of 10 tons per acre after two years,' revealed Meva Ram, the district horticulture officer (DHO) of Mirzapur, who introduced the concept to farmers in 2015.

 

'The demand is so high that farmers are struggling to keep up. Even local markets are unable to meet the export demands,' mentioned the DHO, who claimed his region produces the highest number of dragon fruit in the state to his knowledge.

 

According to the Department of Horticulture, the cultivation of exotic fruits such as avocado, blueberry, strawberry, and dragon fruit is rapidly gaining traction among farmers in Uttar Pradesh, with the Mirzapur, Prayagraj, and Sonbhadra regions leading the way.

The country is maintaining an increasing trend in food grain production since 2015-16. This was stated by Secretary (Agriculture and Farmers Welfare), Shri Manoj Ahuja during the inauguration of  National conference on Agriculture for Rabi Campaign 2023-24 here today. In his address, Shri Manoj Ahuja highlighted that as per 3rdAdvance Estimates (2022-23), production of foodgrains in the country is estimated at 3305 lakh tonnes which is higher by 149 lakh tonnes than the production of foodgrain during 2021-22. Record production is estimated of rice, maize, gram, pulses, rapeseed and mustard, oilseeds and sugarcane. Total pulses and oilseeds production during 2022-23 is estimated at record 275 and 410 lakh tonnes, respectively.

 

 Secretary (DA&FW) said that total food grain production has increased by 31% in last 8 years from 251.54 to 330.54 million tonnes. Oilseeds and pulses have followed the same trend of Exports of agricultural products (including marine and plantation products) for the year 2022-23 which have crossed USD 53.145 billion, highest level ever achieved for agricultural exports. This achievement over the past two years will go a long way in realizing the Prime Minister's vision of improving farmers income.

 

The objective of this conference is to review and assess the crop performance during the preceding crop seasons and fix crop-wise targets for rabi season in consultation with State Governments, ensure supply of critical inputs and facilitate adoption of innovative technologies with a view to enhance production and productivity of the crops.  The priority of government is agro-ecological based crop planning for diversion of land from excess commodities like rice and wheat to deficit commodities like oilseeds and pulses and high value export earning crops. 1st National Conference of Chief Secretaries at Dharmshala under the Chairmanship of  Prime Minister has set the agenda for crop diversification and self sufficiency in pulses and oilseeds in consultation with states. This conference will take the agenda towards logical conclusion.

 

Millets were an active component during India’s G20 Presidency, as part of gift hampers, exhibitions and meals across meetings through IYM 2023. A visit of Spouses of G20 leaders was organized at IARI campus, PUSA on 9 September 2023 during which millet startups, farmers and live cooking dishes garnered central focus.

 

National targets for total food grains production has been set at 3320 lakh tonnes for the year 2023-24, rabi season will contribute 1612 lakh tonnes out of this. Similarly share of rabi crops will be 181 out of 292 lakh tonnes for pulses and 145 out of 440 lakh tonnes for oilseeds.  The strategy would be to increase area through inter-cropping and crop diversification and productivity enhancement through introduction of HYVs and adoption of suitable agronomic practices in low yielding regions.

 

Mustard production has jumped by 37% from 91.24 to 124.94  lakh tonnes in last 3 years.  The productivity saw 7% jump from 1331 to 1419 kg/ha. The area under rapeseed & mustard increased by 28% from 68.56 in 2019-20 to 88.06 lakh ha in 2022-23. The farming community and the State Governments deserve special appreciations for this commendable achievement. Increased mustard production is helping to tide over some of the crisis being faced in imports of palm and sunflower oil.

 

All technical and input related issues concerning rabi season were deliberated in details. Secretary, Fertilizers, Shri Rajat Kumar Mishra stressed on need of timely supply of fertilizers. He shared various steps taken by Fertilizer department to ensure timely supply of fertilizers. Secretary (DARE) and DG, ICAR, Dr. Himanshu Pathak highlighted need for adopting climate resilient practices. He presented global perspective of climate change and adaptation strategies being put in place. Indian experience of combating climate change was shared by NICRA team. Large number of studies conducted under NICRA project have identified climate resilient technologies for different agro-ecological regions.

 

The conference raised concern at large yield gaps in crop production with farmers practice compared to improved technologies. JS (Crops & Oilseeds), Smt. Shubha Thakur gave vision for pulses and oilseeds for next 5 years to make country self sufficient in these commodities. For pulses, it is proposed to achieve the target of 325.47 lakh tonnes by 2025. Special projects like inter-cropping, targeting rice fallows, expansion in high potential districts and non-conventional regions will bring additional area under oilseeds. All this will increase domestic production of annual edible oilseedsfrom current level of 362 to 541 lakh tonnes and edible oilproductionfrom 85 to 136 lakh tonnes by the end of 2025-26. The renewed focus will help in reducing the import dependency from 56% to 36% in next 5 years. Additional Secretary (Agriculture) and senior officers from DA&FW, ICAR and officers of different State Governments participated in the National Conference.

A delegation of senior officials from Brazil on Tuesday met Maharashtra Agriculture Minister Dhananjay Munde here and held discussions with him on agriculture, agricultural trade and investment.

 

The members of delegation included Secretary of the Brazilian Embassy and Head of the Department of Trade & Investment Wegner, Ambassador of Brazil in India Kenneth Nobrega, Consul General Joao Mendona, Angelo Quiroz of the Department of Agriculture and other officials.

 

In the meeting, there were discussions on ways to maximise production of soybean in low rainfall, experiments on climate change and in agriculture, its research, more production of sugarcane in less water and reduction of import duty on currants in view of huge demand in Brazil, the study of all things that are useful to farmers due to mechanisation with Brazil.

 

There was also discussion on sending researchers of the University of Agriculture to Brazil on behalf of the Government of Maharashtra.

 

Munde informed the visiting delegation about traditional agricultural practices in Maharashtra and the new experiments being done in it and also gave information about the investment opportunities in agricultural sector in the state.

 

The delegation invited Munde to Brazil in November. Apart from this, he has been invited to attend an event in Delhi as well.

India on Monday said that it has allowed the export of 75,000 tonnes of non-Basmati white rice to the UAE.

 

In a notification, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said: 'Export of 75,000 MT of non-Basmati white rice to the UAE is permitted through National Cooperative Exports Limited.'

 

India exported $2.2 billion of non-Basmati white rice in FY23 of which Kenya, Madagascar, Benin and the UAE were among the top destinations.

 

In July, India prohibited the export of non-basmati white rice but said that exports will be allowed on the basis of permission granted by the government to other countries to meet their food security needs and based on the request of their governments.

 

Last month, the country decided to allocate export quotas of non-basmati white rice to Bhutan, Mauritius and Singapore. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade, in a statement, said that exports of 79,000 metric tons of non-basmati white rice would be allowed to Bhutan, 50,000 tons to Singapore and 14,000 tons to Mauritius.

 

In a remarkable display of collaborative effort, the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare spearheaded by the National Center for Cold Chain Development (NCCD), continues its dedicated mission to sensitize cold chain stakeholders across the nation. The resounding success of their recent endeavor, the India Cold Chain Conclave organized in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, stands as a testament to their unwavering commitment.

 

Attended by a distinguished assembly of around 400 delegates, including luminaries such as Chief Secretary Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta and Advisor to Governor Shri Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar, the conclave served as a platform for constructive dialogue and knowledge exchange. This grand assembly organized on 20th September, was further graced by the esteemed presence of J.S (Horticulture), Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Priya Ranjan Verma; COO, NCCD, Sh. Asheesh Fotedar; Director Horticulture Kashmir, Sh. Ghulam Rasool; Chairman PHDCCI-Kashmir, Vice Chancellor SKUAST-K, Sh. Ganai and several other concerned officials.

 

The Chief Secretary, Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta lauded the approach of bringing this important conclave to Srinagar and pressed for increasing the capacity of CA stores in valley to benefit the growers. Advisor to Governor Sh. Rajeev Rai Bhatnagar pointed out the importance of the event and extended full support to farmers, growers and CA enterprise.

 

The Joint Secretary (Horticulture), Sh. Priya Ranjan spoke about the importance of sustainable cold chain and how NCCD is propelling the development of Cold chain sector with focus on energy, technology, climate which in turn will bring more investment opportunity to the UT of J&K.

 

Joint Secretary, Sh. Priya Ranjan articulated the pressing need for sustainable cold chain development in the Himalayan region. He emphasized the strides made in establishing comprehensive guidelines and executing extensive studies, awareness campaigns, and capacity-building initiatives. These concerted efforts are crucial considering the challenges we face in a world where resources are under threat due to a burgeoning global population.

 

As we stand at the precipice of a future fraught with challenges, the imperative to balance economic progress with environmental preservation has never been more pronounced. The vision of sustainable development resonates deeply, offering a blueprint for a harmonious coexistence between progress and the protection of our precious ecosystems.

 

In this era of rapid technological advancement and heightened consumer expectations, the cold chain sector assumes a pivotal role. Preserving the integrity of perishable goods with environmentally conscious and energy-efficient cooling solutions has become paramount. The urgency to address climate change concerns and mitigate the impact of conventional refrigerants on our environment has never been more acute.

 

The COO, NCCD, Sh. Asheesh Fotedar spoke about the work NCCD has been doing relentlessly in the development of Cold chain and how importantly this event was designed and brought to Srinagar by NCCD to cater to the sustainable development of Cold chain in valley, which has witnessed an unprecedented growth in last six to seven years.

 

The JS along with Director Horticulture, COO NCCD visited the IIKSTC at Pampore to see the infrastructure which has been created for the benefit of farmersand reiterated Government commitment towards holistic development of saffron sector.

 

Under the able guidance of JS (Horticulture, MOA&FW) Sh. Priya Ranjan along with Sh. Asheesh Fotedar, COO of NCCD, Director Horticulture Sh. Mir visited IGC-Lassipora which has become a major hub of modern CA stores in the South Asia tobore witness to the transformative strides taken for the benefit of farmers.

 

This hands-on approach showcases a dedication to progress that transcends rhetoric, underscoring the tangible impact of their initiatives.

 

The Directorate of Horticulture, represented by Sh. Mir, along with Sh. Priya Ranjan and Sh. Asheesh Fotedar, extended their gratitude to JKPICCA for their invaluable support to the 1st India Cold chain conclave – Himalayan Chapter which was concluded at SKICC on 20th September 2023.Sh. Priya Ranjan lauded their collective vision for sustainable cold chain development in the valley as beacon of hope for a brighter, more environmentally-conscious future.

 

Sh. Asheesh Fotedar reiterated that NCCD stands committed to providing unwavering support and technical assistance to the association, Cold Chain owners, growers, and other stakeholders, ensuring the continued growth of the cold chain sector in the region.

 

The JKPICCA president, Sh. Majid Wafai,Sh. Izaan Javeed and other young entrepreneurs of valley thanked NCCD for bringing a National Level Conference to Kashmir valley. They also lauded the way NCCD brought international speakers, financial institutions, energy specialists etc. to Kashmir for this conclave and put development of CA stores valley on an international map. The president JKPICCA also requested to make this event a yearly event in Kashmir for the benefit of local farmers, growers, enterprises who otherwise have limited access to global changes that are happening on the Cold chain industry. The JKPICCA also requested NCCD that JKPICCA represents the largestlocal Cold chain enterprise in Valley and next event should be allowed to be organized by JKPICCA.

 

The COO NCCD assured that NCCD is working hard to bring awareness among masses and it would be given a thought and decision regarding this would be taken at appropriate time keeping in mind the benefits of local famers, growers and NCCDs vision of making this industry more energy efficient and climate friendly.

 

The conclave received invaluable support from key partners, including the JKPICCA directorate of horticulture, BEE, and ISHRAE, all of which contributed to the resounding success of the program. This collective effort underscores the growing recognition of the vital role played by sustainable cold chain development in India.