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Consumption of imported fruits driven by changing preferences
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Monday, 26 September, 2016, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Nandita Vijay, Bengaluru
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fiogf49gjkf0d Indian consumers are seeking imported fruits. The key reasons for the same are advanced technology, changing consumer preferences and year-round supply. This was stated by IG International, the country’s leading fresh fruit importer and distributor which garners an annual market share of about 15 per cent.
India currently imports 3.50 lakh metric tonnes of fruits per annum, worth about Rs 3,000 crore. This is expected to increase to Rs 4,000 crore in the next two or three years. “From a minuscule figure a few years ago, India’s annual import of fresh fruit is steadily growing,” IG International stated.
A recent report showed that kiwifruit import was growing at a magnificent 60 per cent annually, while citrus fruit imports were growing at 30 per cent and those of apples apples at 20 per cent respectively.
New Zealand is the largest supplier of fresh fruit, accounting for imports worth $7,03,890.79. Chile and Vietnam are second and third, exporting fresh fruit worth $2,48,810.06 and $1,65,005.69, respectively.
“As a result, large volumes of fruits move from one continent to another, reducing seasonality of produce markets. However, there is a need for right infrastructure and controlled atmospheric pressure to maintain the quality of imported produce,” said Tarun Arora, director, IG International.
“Now imported fruits are expensive and more for higher income groups. If the government reduces import tariffs and the marketing margins also shrink, these fruits would be affordable,” he added.
“Rising demand for imported fruits has been driven by rising incomes and the removal of quantitative import restrictions. However, higher prices compared to other domestically available fruits will restrict the increase in consumption,” Arora said.
“Indian consumers are sensitive to high prices which is due to marketing margins, along with the 50% and 30% import tariff on apples and other imported fruits respectively,” he added.
Though India is the world’s second largest producer of fruits and vegetables, fresh produce worth Rs 133 billion (€1.7 billion) is wasted each year due to acute shortage of cold storage and refrigerated transport.
Fruits and many other commodities can be preserved by storage at low temperature, which retards the activities of microorganisms. The low temperature necessary for preservation depends on the storage time required, often referred to as short- or long-term shortage, and the type of product.
Storage capacity needs to be increased by 40 per cent to avoid wastage. There is more wastage of fruits in the southern and western regions of India due to the tropical and humid climate.
The key challenge is the transit time when dealing with perishables. Another issue is the sudden change of rules and regulations of the importing or exporting country, making the entire deal fall through.
There is considerable competition from both physical outlets like bazaars and retail stores and e-commerce channels.
India needs more fruit processing units to add value to the imported fruits. The country has around 6,300 cold storage facilities, with a capacity of 30.11 million tonnes.
However, some 75-80 per cent of these refrigerated warehouses are suitable only to store potatoes, a commodity that produces only 20 per cent of agricultural revenue.
India needs expansion of cold storage infrastructure in an affordable, reliable and sustainable way to increase the contribution of agriculture to the economy.
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