India’s Agriculture Exports touch a historic high of USD 50 billion

What is the News?

India’s exports of agricultural products  (including marine and plantation products) for the year 2021-22 have crossed $50 billion.

About India’s Agriculture Exports

Agriculture exports have grown by 19.92% during 2021-22 to touch $50.21 billion. This is the highest level ever achieved for agriculture exports.

This export growth has been achieved mostly because of a surge in shipments of rice, wheat, marine products, sugar, buffalo meat and raw cotton. For instance,

-Wheat has recorded an unprecedented growth of more than 273%.

-In Rice, India has captured nearly 50% of the world rice market.

-The export of marine products is also the highest ever benefiting farmers in the coastal states.

-Spices exports have also touched USD 4 billion for the second year in a row.

-Moreover, despite facing tremendous supply-side issues, coffee exports have crossed USD 1 billion for the first time.

What are the reasons behind increasing Agriculture exports?

The surge in Agri exports has been achieved because of sustained efforts of the Department of Commerce and its various export promotion agencies like APEDA, MPEDA and various commodity boards.

For example, Farmer Connect Portal has been set up to provide a platform for farmers, FPOs/FPCs, and cooperatives to interact with exporters. This approach has resulted in agriculture exports taking place from hitherto unexplored areas. 

Exports have also taken place from clusters like Varanasi (fresh vegetables, mangoes), Anantapur (banana), Nagpur (orange), Lucknow (mango), Theni (banana), Solapur (pomegranate), Krishna & Chittoor (mango).

Initiatives like the ‘Happy Banana’ train, an exclusive train with reefer containers to transport bananas from Anantapur to JNPT, Mumbai have also been taken to boost exports from unconventional areas.

Source: This post is based on the article “India’s Agriculture Exports touch a historic high of USD 50 billion” published in PIB on 6th April 2022.