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AgroPolicy, Trade

All set to achieve an annual target of $23.71 billion in current fiscal

Notwithstanding COVID-19 challenges, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has scripted a new success story by achieving 90 per cent of the export target fixed by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry for the financial year 2021-22.

The APEDA has successfully exported agricultural and processed food products worth $21.5 billion in the first 11 months of the current fiscal and is all set to achieve the annual export target of $23.71 billion for 2021-22. APEDA has a share of more than 5 per cent in achieving this target of $400 billion of mercantile exports in the current fiscal.

Being the highest foreign exchange earner, 91 per cent of the rice export target of $8.67 billion has been achieved by APEDA so far. Rice exports have crossed $8.67 billion from April-February in the current fiscal, India has exported rice worth $8.62 billion, while the export of other cereals has jumped to 105 per cent of the export target of $847 million.

In the fruits and vegetable category, against the export target of $3048 million till February, APEDA has exported F&V worth $2506 million, which is 75 per cent of the total target.

The cereal preparations and miscellaneous processed items have been exported to the tune of $2036 million which is 89 per cent of the export target of $2102 million till February in the current fiscal year, while the export of meat, dairy and products has been recorded at $3771 million, which is 82 per cent of the $4205 million export target fixed till February 2022.

The export of wheat recorded a huge surge at $1742 million during April-January 2021-22, growing 387 per cent over the corresponding period in 2020-21 when it touched $358 million, while other cereals registered a growth of 66 per cent by fetching $869 million during April-January 2021-22 over the corresponding period in 2020-21 when it touched $527 million.

Meat, dairy and poultry products exports grew over 13 per cent standing at $3408 million in April-January 2021-22 compared to $3005 million in the corresponding ten-month period of 2020-21. Fruits and vegetables exports were up by 16 per cent to touch $1207 million during April-January 2021-22 against $1037 million in April-January 2020-21, while processed fruits and vegetable exports were up by 11 per cent to reach $1269 million during the first ten months of 2021-22 against $1143 million in the corresponding period of the previous year.

“We continue to provide assistance to exporters based on clusters approach in collaboration with state governments while taking into consideration objective of Agriculture Export Policy, 2018,” Dr M Angamuthu, Chairman, APEDA, said.

The rise in export of agricultural and processed food products has been also largely due to the various initiatives taken by APEDA such as organising B2B exhibitions in different countries, exploring new potential markets through product-specific and general marketing campaigns by the active involvement of Indian Embassies.

All set to achieve an annual target

AgroPolicy, Agrotech, Dairy, Horticulture, R&D

Ministers discussed ways to improve the agri sector and the role being played by ICAR

The 93rd Annual General Meeting of the ICAR Society was recently organised at the National Agricultural Science Centre Complex, New Delhi.

Delivering his presidential address, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar underlined the establishment of the ICAR in 1929. The pivotal role played by the Council through its research and technology development in creating the food and nutritional security in the country with the untiring cooperation of farmers and scientists over the years was also highlighted by the minister. Tomar underlined the record production of the food grains and horticultural products in the country that has made us self-sufficient to meet not only the domestic demands enabled to supply the same to the different countries as well.

Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying urged for recognising the local techniques of the small farmers. The encouragement of the cheese made from Banshi Gir Cow’s Milk for export was also stressed by the Union Minister. Rupala suggested the ICAR get benefitted from the upcoming three events – G20 Conference, International Dairy Programme and Jamnagar getting International recognition in Ayurveda.

Kailash Choudhary, Union Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare urged for working in pace with the visions of the Prime Minister. He said that there is a scope for working in the field of horticulture. Mentioning a number of plants that are being imported, the minister urged for developing their varieties in the country itself.

Ramesh Chand, Member, NITI Aayog stated that in the current Financial Year, India’s Agricultural exports have crossed $50 billion. He said that there has been an increase of about 22 per cent in a single Year.

Dr Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary (DARE) & Director General (ICAR) underlined the development of 389 new varieties by the ICAR during the last Year. The DG mentioned the focus on crops and pulses varieties. Dr Mohapatra stated that the new research in food crops and horticultural arenas have benefited the country to a large extent.

Raghavji Patel, Cabinet Minister, Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Cow Breeding, Government of Gujarat; Virender Kanwar, Minister of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry & Fisheries, Government of Himachal Pradesh; Tage Taki, Minister Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Horticulture & Fisheries, Government of Arunachal Pradesh were among the Guests of Honor during the occasion.

The Members of ICAR Society; Members of ICAR Governing Body along with Sanjay Garg, Additional Secretary (DARE) & Secretary (ICAR); Sanjiv Kumar, Financial Advisor (DARE) and Senior Officials & Scientists of ICAR were also present during the occasion.

The ministers released the various ICAR Publications and Products during the occasion.

Ministers discussed ways to improve the agri

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy

Discussions were held on all relevant issues in detail including the concerns relating to fishermen and fishing boats

The fifth meeting of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Working Group on fisheries was recently held through virtual mode.

The Indian delegation was led by Jatindra Nath Swain, Secretary, Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. The other members of the Indian delegation included senior representatives from the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of Tamil Nadu, Government of Puducherry, Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard.

The Sri Lankan delegation was led by RMI Rathnayake, Secretary, Ministry of Fisheries, Government of Sri Lanka. The other members of the Sri Lankan delegation comprised of senior officials from the Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Fisheries, Department of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, Navy, Coast Guard, Sri Lanka Police, Department of the Attorney General and National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency.

The Joint Working Group discussed all relevant issues in detail including the concerns relating to fishermen and fishing boats which have been on the agenda of bilateral discussions between India and Sri Lanka for many years.

Jatindra Nath Swain observed that the Indian side is always committed to working constructively with the Sri Lankan side towards the resolution of issues related to fishermen and their livelihoods in a humanitarian manner. He also took up the issue of the early release of Indian fishermen and boats currently in Sri Lankan custody. The Indian side expressed its readiness to work together with Sri Lanka for joint research to enhance the productivity of the Palk Bay fisheries.

Both sides also discussed cooperation between Navy & Coast Guard of both countries in patrolling, an existing hotline between the Coast Guards and related operational matters including cooperation in tracking poaching, prevention of environmental damage due to bottom trawling, addressing grievances of fishermen on either side, besides issues relating to investigation on recent deaths of fishermen and status of apprehended fishermen and fishing boats.

The Indian side highlighted the initiatives taken by the Central and State Governments to diversify livelihood options and reduce fishing pressure in Palk Bay. It also informed that infrastructure has been created to facilitate deep-sea fishing and promotion of alternative livelihood through seaweed cultivation, mariculture and several aquaculture activities.

The Sri Lankan side proposed a faster transition to sustainable fishing in the Palk Bay fisheries and also suggested that India can help them develop the aquaculture sector and the associated infrastructure in Northern Sri Lanka.

The meeting concluded on a positive note, with commitment towards continued cooperation and dialogue to solve the fishermen related issues and to hold the next meeting of the Joint Working Group as per schedule.

Discussions were held on all relevant issues

Agro chems – Fertilizers, World

Averland FC combines abamectin and Vive’s patented Allosperse nano-polymer delivery system

Cotton growers have a convenient new tool to battle nematodes in-furrow with Averland FC nematicide/insecticide/miticide from Vive Crop Protection.

As one of the most economical in-furrow nematicides/insecticides on the cotton market, Hadley Howard, Senior Product Manager with Vive Crop Protection says, “Averland FC is a cost-effective, fertiliser-compatible solution to fight nematodes in-furrow in cotton. With proven nematode protection from Averland FC, cotton growers will maximize early plant stands and get the crop off to a strong start.”

Averland FC combines abamectin and Vive’s patented Allosperse nano-polymer delivery system, making it the only abamectin in-furrow solution registered for nematodes in cotton that also mixes perfectly with liquid fertilizers and other crop inputs.

George Huckabay, Southern Technical Sales Agronomist with Vive Crop Protection says, “Other products used in-furrow for nematodes are not as compatible with liquid fertiliser, and some don’t even behave well in the spray tank when mixed with water.”

“With Averland FC, growers will appreciate how easy it is to use because it doesn’t settle out as quickly, even with high-salt fertilisers like 10-34-0 or 11-37-0,” continues Huckabay.

Infield trials across the cotton-growing region, Averland FC provides comparable activity on nematodes and equivalent yield maximization as Velum Total, but in a more convenient, low-use-rate product. If growers are looking for additional disease control in-furrow, Averland FC is also compatible with most fungicides, including Xyler FC (metalaxyl with Allosperse).

Averland FC combines abamectin and Vive’s patented

Sustainability, World

The company has now started supplying its first sustainable castor ingredients to the personal care industry

BASF is the first chemical company to be certified according to the SuCCESS (Sustainable Castor Caring for Environmental & Social Standards) Code and has successfully finished the certification process by an external body. The production site in Düsseldorf-Holthausen, Germany is also the first site in the personal care industry to be certified. BASF has now started supplying its first sustainable castor ingredients to the personal care industry.

BASF, Arkema, Jayant Agro-Organics, and the international civil society organisation Solidaridad launched project ‘Pragati’ in May 2016 to improve working conditions, create awareness for sustainable farming and increase yields thanks to more efficient farming practices. The Pragati project was driven by a baseline survey of more than 1,000 castor farmers in Gujarat, where the majority of the world’s castor supply originates.

The goal is to support the sustainable production of castor beans to establish sustainable supply chains that amongst others increase the yields and income of the farmers. Since the project was initiated, more than 5,800 smallholders and over 13,300 hectares of land have been certified for sustainable castor cultivation.

The Code SuCCESS is designed by multiple partners and stakeholders to ensure the objective of Pragati project and to develop sustainability principles for castor seeds that will guide and further allow castor producers to offer certified sustainable castor in the global market.

The SuCCESS Code adopted 11 principles of ownership and provides smallholders with on-field support for ensuring monitoring and compliance with 41 mandatory and 25 non-mandatory control points. Only SuCCESS-certified Sustainable Castor Association (SCA) members can claim to supply sustainable castor products.

The company has now started supplying its

Agro chems – Pesticides, World

The innovation has been applied in Indonesia, the world’s third-largest rice producer

Provivi, a leading provider of pheromone-based crop protection solutions, and Syngenta Crop Protection, announced the commercialisation of Nelvium, a new mating disruption solution, to effectively and more safely control detrimental pests in rice. This crop serves as the primary energy source for half of the world’s people.

While pheromones have been utilised in agriculture for more than 30 years as a pest control method, this will be the first time this innovation has been applied to rice in Indonesia, the world’s third-largest rice producer and one of the world’s biggest rice consumers.

Pheromone solutions provide a foundation service in insect control, ensuring the natural technologies are able to maximise the validity and scalability of pest management systems, significantly decreasing the development of resistant populations.

The innovation has been applied in Indonesia,

Agrotech, R&D

Mitsui will work with the management team and staff of the merged company to strengthen its management foundation

Tokyo based Mitsui & Co, has recently merged two European crop protection distribution business: Certis Europe B V, and Belchim Crop Protection NV/SA, both affiliates of Mitsui’s wholly owned subsidiary, Mitsui AgriScience International SA/NV.

The two companies will merge their operations to form a business with significant presence primarily in the European market. Upon completion of the required formalities, the new company’s name will be changed to Certis Belchim B V in order to capitalise on the brands of both companies.

Both companies have achieved growth as crop protection distribution platforms for the European and North American markets by working with the Mitsui & Co group through strategic alliances with leading Japanese R&D-focused crop protection manufacturers.

Mitsui will work with the management team and staff of the merged company to strengthen its management foundation, achieve the improvement of crop productivity and quality while pursuing environmental protection in agriculture by combining original high added-value products developed by Japanese R&D focused crop protection manufacturers and environment-friendly bio-pesticides and seed treatment preparations, which are strengths of both companies, to create an attractive crop protection distribution platform that will generate new value.

Mitsui will work with the management team

Agro chems – Fertilizers, Agro Universities

This MOU includes joint working on drone technology and demonstrations of agri-drones for spray of fertilisers & agrochemicals

R G Agarwal, Chairman, Dhanuka Agritech Limited and Dr J S Sandhu, Vice Chancellor, Sri Karan Narendra Agriculture University (SKNAU) Jobner signed a MOU on March 24, 2022 between Dhanuka Group & SKNAU, Jobner, Jaipur, Rajasthan for working together for trials, verification of new technology & transferring the same to a large number of farmers.

This MOU includes joint working on drone technology and demonstrations of agri-drones for spray of fertilisers & agrochemicals. Also training of farmers, scientists and other agriculture stakeholders on new technology will be done.

Dhanuka Agritech Limited has earlier signed MOUs with G B Pant University of Agriculture & Technology (GBPUAT), Pantnagar; CCS Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU), Hisar; Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU), Telangana; University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Raichur; Maharana Pratap Horticultural University (MHU), Karnal & Lovely Professional University (LPU), Phagwara, Punjab.

R G Agarwal delivered a presentation titled “Smart agriculture with Precision Plant Protection; Agri-business Entrepreneurship Development & How to increase farmer’s income” as a special invitee, panelist & speaker in the Platinum Jubilee Celebration of the Indian Phytopathological Society & its 8th International Conference 2022 (hybrid) on “Plant Pathology: Retrospect and Prospects” being held from March 23-26, 2022 at SKN Agricultural University, Jobner, Jaipur.

R G Agarwal explained the large opportunities available to increase Indian GDP from Agriculture sector. Dhanuka Group has always believed in working in PPP mode with the Government & Agricultural Universities to benefit our farmers.

Agarwal during his presentation announced an annual award of Rs 50,000 for 5 years for the best pathology scientist who will be decided by the jury to be appointed by the Indian Phytopathological Society. This award will be known as the Dhanuka Scientists Award & will be handed over in the annual function of the Society.     

This MOU includes joint working on drone

Agrotech, North America

CNH Industrial also intends to invest in the expansion of Raven’s existing Innovation Campus in Baltic, South Dakota

CNH Industrial has opened a new engineering centre in Scottsdale, Arizona. This facility will support the rapid growth of the company’s Raven precision agriculture technology business as it develops cutting-edge customer solutions.

“Our industries are undergoing a significant tech transformation and CNH Industrial wants to attract a growing talent pool of engineers and digitally-focused professionals that will shape this future,” said Kevin Barr, Chief Human Resources Officer, CNH Industrial. “Our new Scottsdale hub will be an attractive, dynamic and innovative workplace where we will accelerate progress in the digital, automation and autonomous spaces.”

In addition to the new Scottsdale location, CNH Industrial also intends to invest in the expansion of Raven’s existing Innovation Campus in Baltic, South Dakota, located minutes away from its Headquarters in Sioux Falls. These facility upgrades will provide more space and resources for customer-inspired engineering, testing and research. The investments in Scottsdale and Baltic will bolster the Company’s engineering talent base, support the demand for innovative aftermarket solutions, and further Raven’s technology integration and advancements for the Case IH and New Holland Agriculture brand platforms.

These sites complement CNH Industrial’s current footprint in Arizona, which includes its nearby R&D facility in Casa Grande and proving grounds in Maricopa.

“Our integration with Raven is rapidly accelerating technology delivery to customers. It allows our Engineering teams to efficiently go from ‘code to cab’ to develop and deploy new technologies. These sites combined with our existing activities will reinforce our commitment to having engineers work closely with our customers,” said Parag Garg, Chief Digital Officer, CNH Industrial.

CNH Industrial also intends to invest in

Agro Universities, Dairy

A small scale dairy processing unit with a budgetary allocation of Rs 9.91 lakhs has been established at Vaniyampara Village of Coastal District, Thrissur

The ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute, Goa signed an Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (KVASU), Pookode, Wayanad, Kerala for establishing the Farmers’ Producers’ Organization (FPO) / Self Help Groups (SHGs) / Community Organizations (COs) of the tribal farmers of the coastal districts of Kerala.

Dr R Solomon Rajkumar, Senior Scientist & Liaison Officer, ICAR-CCARI, Goa represented the ICAR-CCARI, Goa for signing the MoA on the behalf of the Director, ICAR-CCARI, Goa.

As a part of the collaboration, a small scale dairy processing Unit with a budgetary allocation of Rs 9.91 lakhs has been established at Vaniyampara Village of Coastal District, Thrissur.

The senior officials of ICAR-CCARI, Goa and KVASU, Kerala were also present during the occasion.

A small scale dairy processing unit with

Agro Universities, Water

The scientists have developed a user-friendly, simple device – Soil Moisture Indicator

A team of scientists from ICAR-Sugarcane Breeding Institute, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu recently received the TERI-IWA-UNDP Water Sustainability Award – 2021 (WINNER).

The award was conferred by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) in partnership with the International Water Association (IWA) and UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) to recognize the exceptional efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to water.

The scientists including Dr K Hari, Dr D Puthira Prathap, Dr P Murali, Dr A Rameshsundar, Dr B Singaravelu and Dr Bakshi Ram received the Award in the Category of “Excellence in Water Use Efficiency in the Agricultural Sector” from Bharat Lal, Secretary, Lokpal of India; Shoko Noda, UNDP Resident Representative in India, UNDP and Dr Vibha Dhawan, Director General, TERI on the occasion the World Water Day – 2022 during the event organised at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi.

The scientists have developed a user-friendly, simple device – “Soil Moisture Indicator (SMI)” employing the participatory action research approach which helps the farmers in assessing the soil moisture levels while scheduling irrigations, thus, ensuring considerable saving of the irrigation water. The SMI usage was found to conserve the water resources, increase farm profits and save electricity and labour, thereby, leading towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.

Dr G Hemaprabha, Director, ICAR-SBI, Coimbatore underlined the successful testing of the SMI Device in the sugarcane farmers’ fields of the three agro-climatic regions in Tamil Nadu before its launch. She stated that the device’s utility in the conservation of water resources had been successfully demonstrated in many other crops besides sugarcane across the country. 

Dr Hemaprabha said that the Institute has given the licence to 19 firms from the States / Union Territories of Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Chandigarh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana for the commercial production of SMI.

The scientists have developed a user-friendly, simple

AgroPolicy, Trade

Goyal was speaking on the sidelines of the ongoing Parliament Session

Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Commerce and Industry and Textiles has said that the Centre stands committed to buying the excess stocks as per quality standards from Telangana.

Speaking on the sidelines of the ongoing Parliament Session, Goyal pointed out that in 2014-15, Rs 3391 crore was paid as MSP of paddy to farmers of Telangana. However, in KMS 2020-21, the Union government paid Rs 26,610 crores as paddy MSP to the farmers of Telangana.

“The Central Government stands committed to buy whatever excess stocks are there in Telangana, after their own consumption, in the form of raw rice and as per the quality specified by Food Corporation of India (FCI), as per the MoU with the Centre, as was committed by the state government in writing to the union government,” he said.

Goyal also briefed about the rice procurement process. He said that the Centre procures the rice based on the consumption pattern and demand of various states. The states after procuring the rice, keep stock for domestic consumption of the state and the balance is taken by the Centre.

Goyal was speaking on the sidelines of

Agrotech, World

PhenoGene is a game-changing solution for plant breeders to optimise breeding strategies

Phenome Networks in collaboration with KeyGene introduces PhenoGene, a game-changing solution for plant breeders to optimise breeding strategies.

PhenoGene, based upon an algorithm developed by KeyGene is now available as a novel module in the PhenomeOne software, as a decision support tool to optimise breeding strategies for any crop. The PhenoGene module enables breeders to design the ideal plant, the so-called ideotype, based on genetic trait information from multiple parents, and calculate the fastest and most efficient breeding schedule, to combine favourable traits from multiple parents into a single variety.

The PhenoGene algorithm provides the most efficient recipe for which crosses to perform, how many plants to use in each generation for each cross, and how many generations are required to achieve that requested genotype in the most efficient way mathematically possible.

In discussions with Phenome Networks, KeyGene scientists recognized the value of converting this optimiser into a user-friendly tool integrated into the PhenomeOne software suite, in order to make it available for a large number of breeders across the globe.

Phenome Networks is the company behind the well-known PhenomeOne package that already supports thousands of breeders all over the world in data collection, data management, and breeding intelligence. The breeding optimizer is made available as a module called PhenoGene of the PhenomeOne package on a SaaS (Software as a Service) basis.

Using the tool breeders can develop and compare different breeding strategies to integrate beneficial traits from multiple parents. Moreover, the results of the algorithm show the total costs and time that it takes to develop the variety, which can be reviewed by breeders and matched to the actual resources and time to market.

PhenoGene is a game-changing solution for plant

Acts & Schemes – Centre, AgroPolicy

Discussions were held on various aspects of Kisan Credit Card Scheme for improvement and better implementation

A meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare was recently held. The committee discussed various aspects of the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme for improvement and better implementation.

Addressing the committee, Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said that the government is running a campaign for saturation of KCC to farmers to cover all leftover PM KISAN beneficiaries. He said that all the administrative charges up to Rs 3 lakh of short term loans i.e processing fee, inspection fee, ledger, folio charges etc have been waived off so that the maximum number of farmers can get the loan at a cheaper rate through the Interest Subvention Scheme.

The minister also told the committee members that the form for KCC has been simplified and directions have been sent to banks to issue KCC within 14 days of receipt of the complete application form. As a result of sustained and concerted efforts by banks and other stakeholders in the direction of providing access to concessional credit to farmers, a major milestone has been achieved by covering around 2.94 crore farmers under the KCC scheme with the sanctioned credit limit of Rs 3.22 lakh crore as on March 4, 2022, the minister added.

A presentation on details of KCC scheme was given by Joint Secretary Ritesh Chauhan. The committee members raised their concerns and gave suggestions for further improvement of the scheme. Tomar thanked the committee members for their valuable suggestions and assured them that the Ministry will look into each suggestion and will come out with favourable solutions for the betterment of farmers. He also requested members to put their efforts into creating awareness about KCC among the farmer community in their respective constituencies.

Discussions were held on various aspects of