Soyameal exports have risen 174 per cent to 13.78 lakh tonnes (lt) during the October-April period of the current oil year to September compared with 5.03 lt in the year-ago period.

 

Higher demand from consuming countries such as Vietnam and Bangladesh among others resulted in rise in shipments during the period.

 

Offtake from the domestic feed sector was up at around 12 per cent at 38 lt during the period against 34 lt a year ago. However, the food sector demand was higher at around 24 per cent at 5.75 lt (4.65 lt) during the period.

 

Crushing projections

Crushing activity during the period gained momentum with the production of the meal rising by around 47 per cent to 57.43 lt (39.11 lt). The market arrivals of soyabean also improved to 84 lt (66 lakh tonnes), despite a bearish trend in the edible oils segment.

 

'Looking to the processing and exports, we have revised upwards the soybean crushing projections for oil year to 105 lt from 100 lt. Similarly, the estimated export of soybean meal through sea and land routes has also been revised upwards to 17 lt from earlier 14 lt,' said D N Pathak, Executive Director, Soyabean Oil Processors Association of India (SOPA), the apex trade body.

 

The upward revision in the projected exports follows the mid-term review of the estimates of soybean production for kharif 2022 which has placed the crop estimates higher at 124.1 lt from the earlier 120.3 lt.

 

SOPA estimated total import of soybean higher at 5 lt from its earlier projections of 2 lt. Further, SOPA estimates the stocks with the plants and traders at 64.88 lt at the beginning of May.

 

Vietnam has been the largest buyer of Indian soyameal at over 4.93 lt, followed by Bangladesh at over 2.17 lt. Vietnam accounted for about 36 per cent of the total Indian soyameal exports, so far.

 

Other major buyers of the Indian meal included Nepal at 89,528 tonnes, Thailand at 67,778 tonnes, Sri Lanka at 51,068 tonnes and the US at 47,678 tonnes.

India’s red chilli production has rebounded during 2022-23 and the crop is seen higher by up to a third as farmers gained control over the invasive pest black thrips that had wrecked havoc in the key producing States of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka. As a result, cold storages are seen up to the brim in these States, according to the traders.

 

'The crop is very good this year, around 35 per cent more than last year,' said Sambasiva Rao, President, All India Chilli Exporters Association in Guntur. Rao estimates the crop size in Andhra and Telangana at about 2.7 crore bags of 40 kg each compared with 2 crore bags a year ago. 'This year, the incidence of black thrips is less. In the previous year it was problematic. Now farmers now know how to tackle it and the crop is good this year,' Rao said.

 

From late last week, the market yard in Guntur, the largest market has been closed for a month for the summer.

 

Higher output

Meanwhile, prices have eased by about 20 per cent from peak levels in March, said Ravipati Peraiah of Vijayakrishna Spices in Hyderabad. Prices which had moved to range of Rs.260-280 per kg during March, depending on the quality, have now eased to the levels of Rs.180-240, he said.

 

Peraiah estimates the total red chilli crop across all producing States to be about 10-15 per cent higher this year. 'Chilli crop, which was impacted by black thrips and excess rains last year, is seen better this year, as farmers have taken to spraying a lot of pesticides and delayed the sowing by about a month,' he said.

 

In Karnataka, the production of Byadgi chilli crop variety, known for less pungency and higher colour content, has rebounded. 'The market arrivals are about 700 per cent more this year on higher crop and the season is seen extending till May-end on delayed arrivals as compared to the normal of mid-March' said Basavaraj Hampali of Hampali Traders in Hubballi. Also the farm gate purchases by masala makers and the trade have been good this year.

 

A higher crop has resulted in cold storages filling up in these States. Karnataka, which has a cold storage capacity of about 60 lakh bags, has already shown an occupancy of 75 per cent, Hampali said. This is in contrast to the situation witnessed last year, when the entire market depended on the carry-forward stocks from the previous year.

 

Rao estimates the cold storages to be full by about 75 per in Telangana and by about 70-75 per cent in Andhra. Farmers are still holding the stocks at the drying yards, he added.

 

Further, Rao said the flare up in prices in the early part of the season led to the masala makers covering their positions. As a result, they are going slow on purchases of the variety of chillies such as 341, DD, Syngenta among others.

Northeast India is fast gaining attention for its rich economic resources and strategic location. It is positioned to serve India’s strategic vision encompassed in the Act East Policy. Economically, the region has large deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and limestone, and a sizable proportion of land under cultivation for agro-horticulture products, bamboo, and rubber. Besides a wide range of natural, archaeological, and cultural tourist sites, this region also provides opportunities for medical tourism.

 

It shares international borders with Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, and Myanmar. The region acts as a land bridge for India’s participation in institutional forums, including the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multisectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation and the South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) program.

 

Furthermore, access to Myanmar offers a great potential to integrate India with other Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries. Nagaland is looking to forge a mutually beneficial investment relationship with Bangladesh, taking advantage of the country’s port facilities to explore new trade avenues.    

 

Nagaland eyes trade potentials with Bangladesh

A delegation led by Business Association of Nagas (BAN) president Mongkum Jamir visited Bangladesh to discuss the potential of bilateral trade at the invitation of Abdul Matlub Ahmad, president of the India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI) recently. The Nagaland businesses plan to export bamboo chips and coffee to Bangladesh, while Bangladesh would send garment products to Northeast India. Nagaland produces world-class coffee that could be processed and exported globally through Bangladesh.

 

The Nagaland businessmen are also interested in exporting fruits for juice and packaged food production. The India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI) and the Business Association of Nagas (BAN) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance trade relations at Niathu Resort in Dimapur on April 6, 2023. The MoU signed on the sidelines of the B20 Business Summit at Kohima will aim to facilitate the exchange of information, expertise and technology in the area of agriculture, food processing, bamboo, tourism, textiles, IT services, mineral and renewable energy.

 

The agreement will also promote bilateral trade and investment between Bangladesh and Nagaland, with both organisations providing the necessary assistance and support to their respective business communities, working together on joint projects and initiatives, reducing trade barriers and improving market access for each other’s goods and services. Bangladeshi government’s support for mutual import-export of agri-based and other resources and suggested a direct Sylhet-Dimapur flight.

 

The geopolitical importance of Bangladesh

Northeast India shares an 800-kilometre border with Bangladesh, offering ample investment opportunities for Nagaland businesses. Siliguri Corridor is one of the most geographical compulsions for India. This narrow corridor separated the whole North Eastern region from the Indian Mainland. Bangladesh creates a broader nexus between the Indian mainland and the North Eastern region. Because Agartala is 1,650km from Kolkata and 2,637km from New Delhi through Shillong and Guwahati.

 

The journey between Agartala and Kolkata via Bangladesh, on the other hand, is only about 550km. Furthermore, the average distance between Bangladesh’s major cities and northeast India is 20 km-300 km. As a result, Bangladesh is always considered crucial for the North-Eastern region’s connectivity with mainland India by rail, road, and river routes. So, the bilateral ties and engagements between India and Bangladesh help in exploring many new windows of possibilities for Nagaland, ranging from trade and commerce to culture and tourism.

 

Several initiatives already in place

The route through Assam is the shortest possible route for Bangladesh-Nagaland trade initiatives. That’s why the connectivity needs to be uninterrupted. India is planning to build a new road link via a four-lane bridge across the Kushiyara River to connect Bangladesh and Assam.

 

India has planned road connectivity with Bangladesh by constructing a 300-metre four-lane bridge over the Kushiyara River and an around 600-metre road in the Karimganj sector of the Indo-Bangla border connecting Karimganj in Assam and Jakiganj Upozila in the Sylhet district in Bangladesh. Nearly half of the 900-metre road project will be in Assam (Karinganj) and the other half in Bangladesh.

 

Once the road will be completed, the trade ties between Nagaland and Bangladesh will get a boost. Not only that but to boost bilateral trade, India and Bangladesh have launched 36 land ports, including five comprehensive depots.

 

The latest one is in Dawki of Meghalaya. The connectivity has been improved with the North East region. The region can contribute more to the strengthening of two neighbouring economies. The businessmen from Nagaland can also invest in developing economic zones in Bangladesh.

 

Moreover, Bangladesh and Nagaland have signed 34 agreements for mutual benefits, paving the way for a stronger economic partnership between the two regions. The collaborative efforts of these business communities will not only boost their respective economies but also foster a stronger bond between the neighbouring countries.

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.

India and the UK will hold their next round of talks for the proposed free trade agreement in June here and both the sides are aiming to conclude the negotiations at the earliest, a senior government official said on Monday. Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) Santosh Kumar Saranagi said that trade negotiations are a matter of give and take and this has nothing to do with elections in individual countries.

 

There will be general elections in India next year.

 

'The effort is to expedite the negotiations...(There was a) Diwali deadline (to conclude the talks last year) was given, but for variety of reasons, it was extended. But the effort on both sides is to conclude it at the earliest,' he told reporters here.

 

The tenth round of negotiation is from June 5-9 here and 'hopefully we will make some substantial progress during that time,' he added.

 

The negotiations were launched on January 13, 2021. The talks cover 26 policy areas/chapters.

 

Investment is being negotiated as a separate agreement -- Bilateral Investment Treaty -- which would be concluded simultaneously with the India-UK free trade agreement (FTA).

 

So far 13 chapters have been substantially closed for negotiations and regular meetings held at higher levels to review the progress of talks and to resolve the outstanding issues.

 

He also informed that the fifth round of talks for a trade pact between India and the European Union (EU) is scheduled from June 19-23 in India.

 

So far four rounds of negotiations have been completed till March.

 

During the last round, negotiations on 21 policy areas in 74 technical sessions were held.

 

Both sides also discussed modalities for exchange of offer in goods and services.

 

India's commerce secretary and EU's DG (Trade) will meet in August to review the progress.

 

About India-Canada trade agreement, the DGFT said that negotiations are at advance stage in goods and services market access.

 

Seventh round of talks was held during April 3-6 in Ottawa, Canada.

 

Apart from traditional areas, the interim agreement may cover areas like SMEs, trade and gender, environment and labour.

 

On the comprehensive India-Australia agreement, he said that good progress was made in the agreed tracks and detailed work plan with indicative deadlines has been drawn up.

 

It is envisaged by both the countries to hold the 3rd and 4th round of negotiations during 5th-16th June and 3rd-14th July, respectively, so as to pave the way for early conclusion of the negotiations.

 

On the G20 talks, he said the second Trade and Investment Working Group (TIWG) meeting is now scheduled to be held on May 23-25 in Bengaluru.

 

In dedicated technical sessions, G20 delegates will deliberate on priority on WTO (World Trade Organisation) reform along with key deliverables on identified priority issues on trade for growth and prosperity, resilient global value chains, integrating MSMEs in global trade, and efficient logistics for trade.

 

The meeting will set the stage for building consensus among G20 countries on deliverables and outcomes proposed by India on global trade and investment-related issues.

CSIR-Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI), Mysuru, sees that regular training programmes are much needed for skill development for entrepreneurs and students among others.

 

Training programmes allow participants to keep pace with the technology advances as food entrepreneurs and industry workforce need to align with the changes in the area of advances in  knowledge and skilling required.

 

In this regard, CSIR-CFTRI is organising around 25 regular training programmes/Skill Development Programmes/Short Term Courses in this financial year under CSIR Integrated Skill Initiative, encompassing all the major areas in food science and technology. These courses are of short duration, but intensive and packed with lectures and demonstrations. The faculty members for the courses have vast experience in specific areas of food science and technology. These courses will be held from 3rd Week of May 2023 onwards and will end during third week of January 2024 in different time intervals.

 

The demonstrations and practical classes are conducted in the state-of-the-art laboratories and pilot plants of CSIR-CFTRI. Training includes theory and hands-on practical sessions on: Food Safety Issues; Paddy and Rice Processing; Animal Cell Culture; Liquid Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (LC -MS); Flour Milling Baking and Confectionary Technology; Fumigation and Pest Management; Rodent Management;  Electrical Safety in Food Processing Industry; Molecular Biology; Post- Harvest Technologies for Fruits and Vegetables; Grain Processing; Spice Processing; Sensory Analysis; Probiotic Dairy Product Development; Food Analysis; Food Packaging; Edible Oil Extraction.

 

Successful participants will be given participation certificate at the end of the course.  Due to its short duration and condensed, focused and capsulated syllabus, the short-term courses are well received by students, academicians, employed and entrepreneurs who are unable to spare more time.  At the same time, these programmes are extremely beneficial for unemployed youth or entrepreneurial aspirants to establish their startup venture based on food processing. 

 

The Institute is a Training Partner (TP) for conducting Skill Development Programs (SDPs) aligned with National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under Skill India Mission of Government of India for the skills like Baking Technician/Operative (FIC/Q5005), Food Microbiologist (FIC/Q7603) and Spice Processing Technician (FIC/Q8502).

 

Academic Institutions/Government Departments/Industry/FPOs can contact CFTRI for custom made programmes exclusively designed for their students/staff/sponsored-participants in the area of food processing.

 

CSIR-CFTRI has trained nearly 2,800 personnel in 2022-23 under various training streams such as Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme, farmer-centric training programmes, SDPs aligned with NSDC and short-term courses.

India’s overall exports in the just concluded financial year 2022-2023 were worth USD 775.87 billion, a growth of over 14 per cent and almost USD 100 billion more than last year’s figures, official data released by commerce ministry showed on Monday. In 2021-22, the overall exports were at USD 676.53 billion.

 

In 2022-23, India’s merchandise and services exports rose 6.74 per cent and 27.86 per cent to USD 450.43 billion and USD 325.44 billion, respectively.

 

Among various steps the government took was to launch a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme in varied sectors, including electronic goods, to make Indian manufacturers globally competitive, attract investments, enhance exports, integrate India into the global supply chain and reduce dependency on imports. These seemed to have reaped dividends.

 

Coming to April 2023-24, overall exports were a little higher year-on-year at USD 65.02 billion, up from USD 63.75 billion in the same month last year.

 

India’s merchandise imports in April declined by 14 per cent to USD 49.90 billion as against USD 58.06 billion. April’s merchandise imports were the lowest in the last 21 months.

 

India’s imports from China in April were 5.56 per cent lower at USD 7.5 billion.

 

Similarly, imports declined from UAE, USA, and Saudi Arabia. The decline from these Middle east countries is mainly on account of cooling crude oil prices.

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 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).