Image Source: Koppert India

India’s apple farmers are sounding the alarm. With Washington apples gaining a stronger foothold in Indian markets, the Apple Farmers’ Federation of India (AFFI) is urging an uncompromising stance on import duties in the ongoing India–US trade negotiations.

In a sharp escalation, AFFI has appealed to the Chief Ministers of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh to form a joint delegation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding that tariff protections for domestic growers remain non-negotiable.

At the center of the standoff is a proposed rollback of duties on imported American apples—at a time when shipments from the U.S. are already surging. Imports are projected to reach 6 lakh metric tonnes this year, up from over 5 lakh MT in 2023–24—despite existing duties. Since 2001, foreign apple imports have grown thirtyfold, now accounting for over 22.5 per cent of domestic production, compared to just 1.7 per cent two decades ago.

The implications are severe. Over 8 lakh apple-growing households, primarily in the hill states, face economic precarity as low-priced imports undercut local produce. Domestic growers, operating under fragile mountain ecologies and rising climate risks, argue they simply cannot compete with subsidized U.S. produce landing at Indian ports.

AFFI has also urged the Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, during his upcoming visit to J&K, to publicly commit to defending Indian growers against trade concessions that jeopardize their livelihoods.

As India walks a tightrope between deeper U.S. trade ties and protecting vulnerable domestic sectors, the humble apple has become a symbol of a larger question: Can free trade coexist with farmer security?