As the 2021-22 Indian table grape season enters its final days, it looks as though shipments are going to edge last year's total despite the Russia-Ukraine war and unseasonal rainfall.

 

The Nashik district - which produces almost all of the country's export-bound grapes - has so far sent 112,000 tons to overseas markets.

 

The grape export season will continue for the next 10 days, and around 12,000 tons of grapes are still expected to be sent to European countries. That would bring the total just over last year's 120,000 tons.

 

Manik Patil, the director of Grape Exporters' Association of India (GEAI) said he believes the industry will surpass the last year's figure.

 

The district has so far exported 92,000 tons of grapes to European countries, with 60,000 tons shipped to the Netherlands, 11,000 tons to the U.K.,, and 9,000 tons to Germany.

 

According to data provided by the state agriculture department, before the Russia-Ukraine conflict started, 15,000 tons had been sent to the two countries. That compares with 17,600 tons shipped to the two last season.

 

In order to give impetus to Geographical Indications promotion in India, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) facilitated setting up of GI Pavilion in ITPO for five days from 26th April to 30th April 2022. The event offered an opportunity to showcase Indian tradition, culture and enterprising activities under a single umbrella. Twenty-five GI products were showcased at the fair from across the country.

 

A large number of trade visitors visited Aahar 2022, which helped the GI holders build connections and boost their business. These included top ranks of the hotel industry, restaurants, catering industry/institutions, importers, buyers/distributors to source best of the products in the food, hospitality, and equipment sectors. Senior management, professionals like CEOs, managing directors, General Managers also formed a substantial part of the visitors.

 

The GI Pavilion at Aahar 2022 provided the GI holders a platform, not only to their products but also helped them connect with businesses. A 280 sqm GI Pavilion was situated at Hall no. 2 by the Cell for IPR Promotion & Management (CIPAM), an institution under the DPIIT, set up under the category of 'Food products and beverages,' displayed select agricultural/foodstuff registered as GIs ranging from food products such as sweets, spices, cereals, and fruits at the exhibit. Products that were exhibited include Sangli raisins and Solapur pomegranate from Maharasthra, Erode Manjal turmeric from Tamil Nadu, Navara rice and Palakkadan Matta from Kerala, Bandar Laddu from Andhra Pradesh and many more. Tribal Co-operative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) also participated in this exhibit whereby the GIs products from the tribal communities such as Naga Mircha, Chak Hao rice, Assam tea (orthodox) were being exhibited.

 

The exhibits would serve to highlight the GI logo and tagline 'Invaluable Treasures of Incredible India' facilitating effective branding and promotion of GIs, while providing a platform for both national and international engagement. Therefore, proving to be a perfect place for global brand recognition for India’s registered GIs and to create a buzz at international level. Further, considering this was an international event, it was anticipated that the event will promote GIs in various foreign countries.

 

Geographical Indications of India boast of a variety of products including agricultural, natural, manufactured goods, foodstuff and handicrafts. GIs are originated or manufactured in a specific territory, region, or locality and where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of such goods is essentially attributable to their geographical origin. There are currently 390 GIs registered with an ever-increasing number of registrations coming forward.

In a move aimed at providing a global platform for millet products, the Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) launched a variety of millet products for all age groups at affordable prices ranging from Rs 5 to Rs 15 at the AAHAR food fair, which is Asia’s biggest B2B international food and hospitality fair.

 

All the millet products launched by APEDA are gluten-free, 100% natural and patented. The launched products are cream biscuits, salt biscuits, milk biscuits, ragi peanut butter, jowar peanut butter, jowar upma, pongal, khichadi and millet malts (jowar, ragi, bajra).

 

APEDA also launched a variety of 'Millet in Minutes' products under the category of Ready-to-Eat (RTE) such as Upma, Pongal, Khichadi, Noodles, Biryani, etc, which is a breakthrough in the food sector as it’s the first RTE millet product in the market to cater fast-paced world at their convenience in a healthy way.

 

All the RTE products are vacuum processed without any additives, fillers and preservatives. Nutrition value is retained as original with a shelf-life of 12 months in ambient temperature.

 

The APEDA is also working in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare to increase cultivation area, production and productivity of millets, including bajra, jowar and ragi.

 

The 36th edition of AAHAR was jointly organized by APEDA and the India Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO) at Pragati Maidan this week.

 

In view of the nutritional value of the millets, the government has notified millets as nutri-cereals in April, 2018. The millets are a rich source of protein, fibre, minerals, iron, calcium and have a low glycemic index. In March, 2021, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has declared 2023 as International Year of Millets.

 

Because of initiatives of the government, production of millets increased from 14.52 million tonnes in 2015-16 to 17.96 million tonnes in 2020-21 and the production of bajra has also increased from 8.07 million tonnes to 10.86 million tonnes during the same period.

 

In line with the theme of APEDA’s pavilion, - ‘To promote GI products for export’, the apex body to promote agricultural products put on display 33 GI agricultural products at AAHAR. The APEDA also released two booklets which include a catalogue on Agri and Food GI products (APEDA scheduled) and a brochure on Indian GI mangoes.

 

The 33 GI products which were on display to attract the attention of over 100 buyers from 40 countries are Punjab’s Basmati Rice, Karnataka’s Gulbarga Tur Dal, Maharashtra’s Sangli Raisin, Kolhapur Jaggery, Ajara Ghansal Rice, Sindhudurg & Ratnagiri Kokum, Vengurla Cashew and Waigaon Turmeric; Assam’s Boka Chaul, Joha Rice, Karbi Anglong Ginger; Manipur’s Chak-Hao and Kachai Lemon, Mizoram’s Ginger and Chilli, Sikkim’s Large Cardamom, Nagaland’s Naga Mircha, Kerala’s Navara Rice, Pokkali Rice, Kaipad Rice, Palakkadan Matta Rice, Himachal Pradesh’s Kala Jeera, Chulli Oil, West Bengal’s Gobindabhog Rice, Tulaipanji Rice, Bardhaman Sitabhog, Bardhaman Mihidana, Banglar Rasogolla, Rajasthan’s Bikaneri Bhujia and Odisha’s Kandhamal Haladi.

 

AAHAR is a part of the series of export promotion initiatives taken by APEDA, which works under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, to showcase agricultural and processed food products to the global players in the food and beverages industry as the fair is visited by a large number of importers from different parts of the world.

 

Apart from AAHAR, APEDA also organizes national events like Organic World Congress, BioFach India, etc to promote agri-exports.

 

Notably, more than 150 food and agri Products have been registered as GI by the GI Registry till March 2022, out of which 123 GI products fall under APEDA’s category.

 

Also, APEDA created dedicated stalls for exporters from North East Region (NER) and Himalayan states/UTs like Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, women entrepreneurs, Farmer Producers Organizations (FPOs), Start-Ups and exporters of millets and millets products. More than 40 participants participated under these categories and each category will have dedicated stalls in the APEDA pavilion.

 

'The visionary approach, aggressive and consistent efforts of APEDA have enabled India to position itself as a consistent and quality supplier of agri products,' said Dr. M. Angamuthu, Chairman, APEDA.

 

APEDA has also taken several initiatives to promote geographical indications (GI) registered agricultural and processed food products in India by organizing virtual Buyer-Seller Meets on agricultural and food products with the major importing countries across the world.

Located near the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), the MSAMB’s facility in Vashi for exports has necessary infrastructure for exporters to send their fruits to foreign destinations.

 

The Maharashtra State Agricultural Marketing Board aims to treat nearly 2,000 tonnes of mangoes in its facility in Vashi for exports between April and July this year.

 

Bhaskar Patil, DGM, Vapour Heat Treatment and Irradiation Facility Centre (CHT and IFC) ,said the export season looks bullish, especially for the US.

 

Located near the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), the MSAMB’s facility in Vashi for exports has necessary infrastructure for exporters to send their fruits to foreign destinations. Countries like US and Australia require irradiation and hot water treatment before the fruit is exported to them while Japan and South Korea mandate that the export consignment be treated with vapour before it flies out of the original country. Vashi’s centre has all three treatment facilities for ease of exporters.

 

After a gap of two years, exporters from India are gearing up for a good export season, thanks to ease of all Covid-19 restrictions. Meanwhile, the US inspector has arrived after two years which will allow the fruits to be flied out to US. Dr Kathryn Fielder, foreign programme specialist, US department of Agriculture (USDA), has arrived on April 7 and will be staying in the country to supervise the process till June 13. Speaking to The Indian Express, she said that as per the norms, she is expected to carry out randomized checks of consignments to check for mainly fruit fly and fruit stone weevil. 'In case any consignment reports any of these two pests, they are rejected,' she said. Dr Fielder said till Friday, she has not found any stone weevil, but one consignment had fruit fly which led to it being rejected.

 

Indian mangoes, she mentioned, are not allowed in the island station of Hawaii for fear of any contamination with the local flora. The programme is being held under mutual cooperation between the two countries. Patil and other officers of the Board also said that next year onwards the US government will authorise inspectors of the National Plant Protection Office (NPPO) to oversee the process which would increase the window of export. Countries like South Korea and Japan have already authorised NPPO to oversee the process of treatment and has stopped sending their inspectors to India.

 

Patil said till date 100 tonnes of mangoes have been treated in the hot water and irradiation centre for US while 10 tonnes have been given the same for export to Australia. Similarly, 40 tonnes have been treated for European Union at the hot water treatment facility and 12 tonnes have been treated for Japan at the vapour heat treatment facility. In all, nearly 250 tonnes of the fruit has been treated till date for various countries.

 

The facility, which is now running in full capacity, is expected to treat 2,000 tonnes of fruit for exports. Over 1,000 tonnes will be for the US while the rest will be sent to other countries. The centre is expected to earn Rs 145 crores in way of fees of which Rs 5 crore would be the MSAMB’s earning in terms of fees.

To commemorate Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, an initiative by Government of India to celebrate 75 glorious years of progressive India, its rich history, culture and great achievements - Kisan Bhagidari Prathmikta Hamari campaign.

 

As a part of the campaign, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI), under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme, organised the ODOP-based workshop on the processing and value addition of walnuts in Kishtwar district, Jammu and Kashmir.

 

The event was inaugurated by Ashok Kumar Sharma, deputy commissioner, Kishtwar. The ODOP workshop aimed to set the stage for all food-tech stakeholders to impart, discuss and acquaint the stakeholders on the new emerging trends in food processing and technological innovation in Walnut Processing in the Kishtwar district.

 

Vishesh Paul Mahajan, director, Horticulture (Planning and Marketing) Jammu and Kashmir, gave the inaugural speech. He highlighted the importance of the micro food processing sector as the growth driver of the Indian economy and through the PMFME Scheme Government efforts to encourage food processing in India. The Event was moderated by Sunil Singh, District Nodal Officer, Kishtwar.

 

The workshop witnessed the presence of eminent industry speakers sharing their insights for micro-enterprises and farmers to pave the way in walnut-based products to scale to domestic and global levels.

 

Among the distinguished speakers were, Ashok Kumar Sharma, deputy commissioner, Kishtwar. Dr Brij Paul SMS (PP) Department of Horticulture, Kishtwar, who spoke about the Relevance of the ODOP for the district.

 

Speaking on the occasion deputy commissioner Kishtwar appealed the orchardists/farmers to come forward and lay a proactive role in the implementation of rolled out schemes of the departments so that the income of these farmers is increased. Deputy commissioner Kishtwar also informed that district administration is working on the establishment of Model 'Mandi' in the district. He further informed that 50 Kanals of land alongside the national highway in the district has been identified to establish the mandi which will provide a common platform for the display, sale and marketing of the product and also provide national-level access to farmers.

 

Khalid Malik general manager, DIC, Kishtwar conducted a session on Potential Opportunities and Technologies for Micro Entrepreneurs.

 

Dr Syed Zameer Hussain, head, Division of Food Science and Technology, SKUAST-K, conducted a session on Scope and future strategies for Processing and value addition of Walnuts in J&K, particularly in District Kishtwar.

 

The ODOP Workshop under Kisan Bhagidari Prathmikta Hamari Campaign is one of a kind initiative by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries along with the support of distinguished industry experts to educate and guide the farmers in the Kishtwar District of Jammu and Kashmir to make informed decisions in order to scale up their food business in Walnut processing in the present scenario.

 

In addition to the participation of the various eminent guest speakers, the event saw the participation of around 300 farmers, orchardists and Government officials from across the Union Territories and also the food processing micro-enterprises. It was also hosted live successfully and witnessed the vast participation of all stakeholders.

The idea is to create an identity for the farmer for the organic certification process based on Personal Aadhar and ULPIN. According to the sources, the data element of Organic Aadhaar will become the deep foundation for the integrity of India's organic agriculture.

 

After taking action against errant certification agencies, APEDA is now considering implementing 'Organic Aadhaar' for farmers engaged in organic farming under the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) to eliminate the possibility of bogus enrollment.

 

'We are actively considering it because we want to take all necessary steps to ensure that India's organic products remain among the most preferred in the global market,' said M Angamuthu, Chairman of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA).

 

The European Commission and Switzerland have recognized NPOP standards for production and accreditation of unprocessed plant products as equivalent to their respective country standards. Organic products certified by accredited certification bodies in India are accepted by European importing countries. Negotiations are underway with South Korea, Taiwan, Canada, and Japan to obtain similar recognition.

 

However, some instances of chemical residues were discovered in organic sesame exported to Europe last year, prompting India and the EU to take action (high-risk classification, suspension, and penalty) against certification agencies. Later, India's organic cotton exports were also jeopardized due to alleged data from some phoney farmers' groups.

 

Every plot of land in the country now has a 14-digit identification number assigned by the government. Last year, the Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) scheme was launched in ten states and will soon be rolled out across the country. According to official sources, this could also become a powerful tool for identifying organic land.

 

The idea is to create an identity for the farmer for the organic certification process based on Personal Aadhar and ULPIN. According to the sources, the data element of Organic Aadhaar will become the deep foundation for the integrity of India's organic agriculture. 'Organic Aadhaar combined with Tracenet will create a robust system for effectively planning and monitoring policy measures,' Angamuthu said.

 

Tracenet system, which was launched in 2009, provides information on products exported from the country. Details about the farmer, his land, and the inputs used in the production of the product are made available through the system for products exported from India. APEDA established an expert committee in June 2021 to strengthen and simplify organic agriculture.

 

'Organic Aadhaar is similar to a voter ID card in that it will provide the farmer in a growers group with exclusive protection of organic status and income.' This will protect his rights to sell the produce at a higher price while maintaining his organic status. If implemented, its impact will be felt in the coming years, as it will elevate NPOP to a higher organic standard on the global map,' said S Chandrasekaran, a trade policy analyst.

 

As of March 31, 2021, the total area under organic certification (registered under NPOP) was 43.39 lakh hectares. This includes 26.58 lakh hectares of cultivable land and another 16.81 lakh hectares set aside for wild harvesting. In 2020-21, India produced 34.96 lakh tonnes of certified organic products like oilseeds, sugarcane, millets, cotton, pulses, tea, coffee, fruits, vegetables, and spices.

To commemorate 75 years of India's independence, the Government of India is celebrating the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.' As a part of the celebration, Ministry of Food Processing Industries is organising ‘Food Processing Week 2.0’ from 25th to 30th April, 2022 under ‘Kisan Bhagidari, Prathmikta Hamari’ Campaign by Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare under the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav'.

 

In this direction, Union Minister for M/o Food Processing Industries, Shri Pashupati Kumar Paras virtually inaugurated 75 (seventy five) food processing projects of Central Sector Scheme - Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana today in New Delhi.

 

The total cost of these projects is about Rs.1238 crores, and the Ministry has provided financial support through grant of Rs. 309 crores for these projects. These projects will provide direct and indirect employment to about 36,000 people and benefit about 4 lakh 63 thousand farmers.

 

The Ministry launched the ‘Food Processing Week 2.0’ on 25th April, 2022, through a social media campaign under which awareness about the schemes of the Ministry, the success story of the beneficiaries of the schemes of the Ministry were covered on social media throughout the week. Apart from this, ODOP workshop and exhibition on Processing and Value Addition of One District One Product is also being organized under PMFME scheme in many districts across the country.

 

While addressing the promoters, Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, Shri Pashupati Kumar Paras thanked the promoters of these projects for developing state-of-the-art processing facilities, which will prove to be a milestone in the development of the food processing sector and will greatly benefit the farmers, producers, processors and consumers of the surrounding areas. He also mentioned that as a result of growing urbanization and middle class, there is a constant demand for nutritious processed foods and food processing has the potential to transform India's rural economy.

The Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between India and the United Arab Emirates will come into force on May 1, that would allow 90% of the country’s exports a duty-free access to the Emirates.

 

Officials of the commerce and industry ministry will flag off the first consignment of goods from India to UAE under the pact on Sunday.

 

 

The CEPA is likely to benefit about $26 billion worth of Indian products that are currently subjected to 5% import duty by the UAE, India’s third-biggest trading partner behind the US and China.

 

'We expect exports to go upto $40 billion this year from around $26 billion last year, led by labour intensive sectors such as gems and jewellery,' said Ajay Sahai, director general, Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).

 

 

India will benefit from preferential market access provided by the UAE on over 97 % of its tariff lines which account for 99% of Indian exports to the UAE in value terms, especially for all labour-intensive sectors such as Gems and Jewellery, Textiles, leather, footwear, sports goods, plastics, furniture, agricultural and wood products, engineering products, medical devices, and automobiles.

 

 

Sahai said that India’s $250 million to the UAE of pharma exports could see a sharp increase as both sides have also agreed to a separate Annex on pharmaceuticals to facilitate access of Indian pharmaceuticals products, especially automatic registration and marketing authorisation in 90 days for products meeting specified criteria.

 

New Delhi will offer preferential access to the UAE on over 90% of its tariff lines, including lines of export interest to the UAE.

 

India and the UAE on February 18 had signed CEPA with a view to boosting bilateral trade to $100 billion over five-years from $60 billion now.

 

 

'This $100 billion target can actually be achieved in 2-3 years,' said an industry representative.

 

The bilateral trade pact is India’s first in the region and the first comprehensive trade agreement with any country in a decade.

 

In services, India has offered market access to the UAE in around 100 sub-sectors, while Indian service providers will have access to around 111 sub-sectors from the 11 broad service sectors such as ‘business services’, ‘communication services’, ‘construction and related engineering services’, ‘distribution services’, ‘educational services’, ‘environmental services’, ‘financial services’, ‘health related and social services’, ‘tourism and travel related services’, ‘recreational cultural and sporting services’ and ‘transport services’.

India-Mauritius trade agreement may include safeguard mechanism related provisions to protect the domestic industry from a sudden or unusual surge in imports of goods, according to sources.

 

The agreement between the two countries came into force on April 1, 2021. After the implementation of such pacts, provisions can be added to the agreement if both sides agree to that.

 

 

The sources said a chapter on general economic cooperation is also expected to be included in the pact, which is officially termed as Comprehensive Economic Cooperation and Partnership Agreement (CECPA).

 

The safeguard mechanism comes into play when there is a sudden increase in imports of any commodity, which can impact domestic industry and under that provision, concessional customs duty on that particular good is replaced with existing taxes, which is applicable to all nations. The mechanism also includes stricter rules of origin to prevent any routing of products from a third country.

 

 

The sources said that the finalisation of both these issues - inclusion of safeguard mechanism and general economic cooperation in the pact - would require approval from the Union Cabinet.

 

 

The commerce and industry ministry has sought views of different ministries on the matter, after which it would approach the Cabinet.

 

India and Mauritius signed the CECPA, a kind of free trade pact, on February 22, 2021.

 

Several Indian products, including textiles and chemicals, are enjoying the benefit of greater market access at concessional duties in Mauritius under the agreement.

 

 

The pact covers 310 export items for India, such as food and beverages, agricultural products, textile and textile articles, base metals, electrical and electronic items, plastics and chemicals, and wood.

 

Mauritius has benefited from preferential market access into India for its 615 products, including frozen fish, speciality sugar, biscuits, fresh fruits, juices, mineral water, beer, alcoholic drinks, soaps, bags, medical and surgical equipment and apparel.

 

The current pact is a limited agreement, which covers trade in goods, rules of origin, trade in services, technical barriers to trade, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, dispute settlement, movement of natural persons, telecom, financial services, and customs procedures.

 

 

CECPA is the first trade agreement signed by India with a country in Africa.

 

India's exports in April-February 2021-22 to Mauritius stood at USD 666.44 million, while imports were at USD 64.83 million.

 

There is a provision for a permanent safeguard mechanism in the India-UAE trade agreement.

 

Similarly, in the India-Australia economic cooperation and trade agreement, there is a provision for a safeguard mechanism that includes stricter rules of origin to prevent any routing of products from a third country, and it also deals with any unusual surge in imports. It was signed on April 2 this year.

India’s wheat exports scenario has changed drastically in less than a month. From focus on touching a new record, the talk has not veered around curbing overseas shipments.

 

NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand discusses the issue with Sanjeeb Mukherjee. Edited excerpts from an iterview. What is your assessment of the wheat supply and demand scenario? As per our assessment, wheat production in 2022-23 is expected to be around 6-10 million tonnes less than the second advance estimate of foodgrains production which in February 2022 had pegged wheat output at 111.32 million ...