Reasons for fall in export of Indian Agricultural produce during Apr-Dec'14
Reasons for fall in export of Indian Agricultural produce during Apr-Dec'14
Question - “The export of Indian Fruits and Veg during Apr-Dec 2014 came down drastically as compared to the same time during 2013 while the wheat exports were most severely hit". Examine the major reasons behind this fall in export of Indian Agricultural produce during the period.
About the Fall in Exports of Indian Fruits and Vegetables
The export of Indian fruits and vegetables has fallen during April-December 2014 as compared to the same time in 2013. There are many reasons for this which are listed below:
International Reasons
• India’s food export volumes have reduced in the present fiscal as other nations are cutting into the business share through cheaper prices for agricultural and food products, according to officials. For e.g. Pakistan exported cheaper onion to India's customers.
• EU ban on Indian mangoes and other agricultural produce is also responsible for this fall in the exports: EU has banned eggplant, taro plant, bitter gourd as well as snake gourd from India
• General demand for Indian agricultural and food produce has fallen globally on account of competition from other nations
• Devaluation of currency in Latin America, Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States apart from others was also an influential factor in the fall of Indian export share
• Indian rice could not be exported to Iran because the latter had old stock and qualitatively better production of rice on a national scale
• UAE ban on Indian chillies since 2014
Domestic Factors
• Indian did not have an optimal supply season; each item can only be exported in a particular supply period
• Selling produce in local or national markets was also more profitable and economically viable for the exporters
Facts and Stats
• An APEDA/Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority study has found that exports of major agricultural commodities and food products from India have fallen in 2014-2015 as against the year before that. During 2013-2014, India’s export share for fruits and vegetables stood at INR 8760.96 crore which included fruits of around INR 3298.03 crores and vegetables of INR 5462.93 crores.
• The largest fall in the volume of export has been at 36% for wheat, 37% for pulses, and 33% for fruits and seeds for 2014-2015
• There was a 3% fall in the export of fresh vegetables, 7% for fruits and 6% for basmati rice, as per the study
• Other cereals experienced a 10% drop in exports. Export of non-basmati rice from India rose by 12% in the previous year during this period as compared to 2013.
• According to the National Horticulture Database of the National Horticulture Board, the nation produced 81.285 million metric tonnes of fruits as well as 162.19 million metric tonnes of vegetables, during the period from 2012 to 2013.
• Area under cultivation of fruits was pegged at 6.98 million hectares; vegetables was 9.21 million hectares
• India is currently the largest producer of okra and ginger in the world as well as second in the production of vegetables such as onions, brinjals and potatoes.
• India is also a leading producer of several fruits such as bananas, guavas, mangoes, papayas and mangosteens
• The main destinations for fruits and vegetables from India include UAE, the UK, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, The Netherlands, Sri Lanka and Nepal.
