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AgroPolicy, India, New Zealand

11th India – New Zealand Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting held in New Zealand

A delegation led by the Commerce Secretary, Sunil Barthwal held several constructive and outcome-oriented meetings in New Zealand to work on ways to deepen the existing bilateral relations. These meetings were held with the Minister for Trade of New Zealand Hon. Todd McClay, Acting Chief Executive and Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade of New Zealand, Brook Barrington, the India-New Zealand Business Council (INZBC) and the 11th India – New Zealand Joint Trade Committee (JTC) Meeting.

Both sides acknowledged the existing huge potential in both economies and mutual trade complementarities, there is a substantial potential to increase trade and people-to-people contacts. These meetings had focused discussions on several key areas aimed at promoting bilateral trade and cooperation, marking a pivotal moment in strengthening economic ties and fostering collaboration between the two nations, building upon the existing close ties through people-to-people and business contacts. 

The meetings reviewed progress on market access issues, and economic cooperation projects and explored opportunities for new initiatives. Both sides discussed the establishment of robust bilateral economic dialogue architecture and the creation of working groups in sectors like Agriculture; Food Processing, Storage & Transportation; Forestry and Pharmaceuticals to facilitate ongoing collaboration on key trade and economic issues. Notably, discussions also included cooperation in the horticulture sector, including cooperation in the kiwi fruit sector (quality & productivity, proper storage in pack houses and their suitable transportation) as well as the dairy sector. Once working groups are established, India and New Zealand will review the progress made by those working groups and the recommendations thereof at regular intervals.

The meetings addressed bilateral trade matters of mutual interest, including issues related to market access, non-tariff barriers (NTBs), sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures on products like grapes, okra and mangoes, Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) in Organic products, simplified homologation including through mutual recognition of comparable domestic standards for vehicles, etc. Both parties reaffirmed their commitment to resolve these issues through constructive dialogue and cooperation under the existing mechanism of JTC.

11th India - New Zealand Joint Trade

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, Live Stock

10 foreign missions from different countries along with various International organisations attend the conference

On the occasion of World Fisheries Day, the Dept. of Fisheries, GoI is organising a Global Fisheries Conference India 2023 which began at Gujarat Science City, Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying inaugurated the Special Pavilion and main Exhibition of Global Fisheries Conference India 2023. Minister of States for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying Dr Sanjeev K. Balyan, and Dr L Murugan, Chief Minister of Gujarat, Bhupendra Rajnikant Patel, Ministers of various states, Ambassador of various countries, other dignitaries and heads of various organisations and fisheries research institutes were present in the event.

Parshottam Rupala released the “State Fishes of India Booklet” to encourage each state in India to adopt a fish and conserve its biodiversity. The booklet contains details of 21 fish species adopted as State Fish and declared as State Aquatic Animals. The other key publication released was “Handbook on Fisheries Statistics year 2022” which aims at providing key data points and performance indicators for the Fisheries sector making accurate and reliable fisheries data available to all.

Further, Rupala distributed Group Accident Insurance Scheme (GAIS) claim cheques (Rs 5 lakhs each) to beneficiaries /legal heirs from the states of Odisha and Puducherry, Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to eligible beneficiaries with the loan amount of Rs 35 thousand to Rs 3 lakhs for beneficiaries from Gujarat, Green Fuel conversion kit for sustainable development of fisheries sector that included beneficiaries from Kerala and transponders for beneficiaries from Gujarat.

Sagar Mehra Joint Secretary for DoF, highlighted that the Department of Fisheries organised an event of this scale and magnitude for the first time. He said it is a moment of pride for DoF (MoFAH&D, GoI) to host 10 foreign missions from the countries of France, New Zealand, Norway, Australia, Russia, Spain, Zimbabwe, Angola, Brazil and Greece along with International organisations namely Food and Agriculture Organisation (UN-FAO), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), Bay of Bengal Program (BoBP), Marine Stewardship Council India (MSC), Ministers from the States/UTs of Arunachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura, Goa and Andhra Pradesh.

The delegation interacted with the exhibitors in the special pavilion that included a demonstration of aquariums, Artificial reefs, Seaweed Cultivation, capture fisheries, marine cage culture, bio floc, RAS, fish feed, LPG converter kits, pearl extraction and nucleus implantation, model of Setcom satellite terminals communication system, eco-friendly movable kiosks, multi-species hatchery etc.

10 foreign missions from different countries along

Acquaculture, Live Stock, World

The opening of the hatchery contributes to realising the goals of Timor-Leste’s National Aquaculture Development Strategy (2012-2030), which includes increasing annual farmed fish production to 12,000 tons by 2030 and supporting an increase in annual fish consumption to 12 kg per year.

The fourth private genetically improved farmed tilapia (GIFT) hatchery has opened on the south coast of Timor-Leste, marking another step in the country’s aquaculture development.

The hatchery was inaugurated by Marcus da Cruz, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Forestry and Philip Hewitt, New Zealand Ambassador to Timor-Leste.

“The Colocau GIFT hatchery is expected to produce more than five million GIFT monosex GIFT fingerlings per year, which will be supplied to local fish farmers in Manufahi and nearby municipalities,” said Hewitt at the event.

“This will have great advantages for the aquaculture sector, enabling fish farmers to produce more farmed tilapia, thereby making it easier for consumers to access fresh fish in the future. This will help combat malnutrition among children in Timor-Leste.”

The Colocau GIFT hatchery was established in partnership with the Same Construction business, the hatchery owner, as part of the Partnership for Aquaculture Development in Timor-Leste Phase 2 (PADTL2) project (2020-2024).

The project is funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and led by WorldFish in partnership with the Timor-Leste Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry and Fisheries (MALFF).

The Timor-Leste Government is committed to scaling aquaculture to enhance the livelihoods nutrition and food security of rural households, explained Marcus da Cruz at the event.

The Colocau GIFT hatchery is the fourth of its kind to be set up by the PADTL2 project. The other hatcheries are spread across the country’s west, east and centre-Leohitu (Bobonaro municipality), Parlamento (Lautem municipality), and Hera (Dili municipality).

These efforts are critical to realising the goals of the National Aquaculture Development Strategy (2012-2030), including increasing annual farmed fish production to 12,000 tons by 2030 and supporting an increase in annual fish consumption to 12 kg per year.

The opening of the hatchery contributes to

Horticulture, New Zealand, Supply Chain, Trade

This year’s mango exports to New Zealand surpassed 100000 kilogrammes, with the possibility of further imports by the end of the month

According to New Zealand’s Ministry of Primary Industries, mango imports from India to New Zealand have tripled this year compared to last year. In 2022, New Zealand imported less than 30000 kilogrammes of mangoes from India, but this year’s figure has already surpassed 100000 kilogrammes, with the possibility of further imports until the end of the month.

Mango season in India typically starts in April and ends in July after the onset of monsoon rains. The increase in the volume of mango imports from India can be attributed to the resumption of services at the Maharashtra Agricultural Marketing Board vapour heat treatment facility in Mumbai, which is one of two facilities licensed to treat mangoes for export to New Zealand.

The suspension of mango exports from Mumbai to New Zealand in July 2020 was lifted in May this year following a virtual audit in February and an in-country audit in April. Mangoes imported into New Zealand must comply with the Import Health Standard and the bilateral agreement between the two countries. The facility in Mumbai has treated approximately 87407 kilogrammes of mangoes in the past three months, which accounts for about 80 per cent of total mango imports from India to New Zealand. However, despite the improvement in trade figures, mango exports from India to New Zealand still lag behind those from Latin America, with Peru leading the pack at 65.7 per cent of overall mango imports to New Zealand, followed by Mexico at 15.3 per cent, Australia at just under 10 per cent, and India at 6.9 per cent. Australia has been overtaken by South and Central American nations as the country’s largest source of mango.

This year's mango exports to New Zealand

Agrotech, Company News, India, R&D

Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) plans to procure 2,500 drones for spraying its products, nano urea and nano DAP (Diammonium Phosphate).

IoTechWorld Avigation Pvt Ltd announced that it has emerged as a leader in the IFFCO drone project and secured a large contract from major cooperative IFFCO to supply 500 drones, which will be primarily used to spray nano liquid urea and DAP.

Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) plans to procure 2,500 drones for spraying its products, nano urea and nano DAP (Diammonium Phosphate). IFFCO also plans to create 5,000 rural entrepreneurs, who would be trained for spraying via drones.

Gurugram-headquartered IoTechWorld, the manufacturer of India’s first DGCA-type certified drone ‘AGRIBOT’, has been Co-Founded by Deepak Bhardwaj and Anoop Upadhyay. IoTechWorld Avigation is also backed by leading agritech company Dhanuka Agritech Ltd.

“We are indeed privileged to receive the single biggest order for the purchase of Krishi-drones from IFFCO. The company will deliver 500 drones to IFFCO by December 2023,” said Upadhyay.

He further said that since IoTechWorld’s inception, the endeavour has been to promote technological innovation in the field of agriculture, and the company is the pioneer of Krishi-drones in the country.

Elaborating on the large supply order from IFFCO, Co-founder Bhardwaj said the drone market is rapidly growing, and there has been tremendous demand from various companies, including fertiliser and pesticides companies as well as from rural entrepreneurs, including farmers.

“Our AGRIBOT (Krishi drone) has been specially designed and programmed for fertilisers. The order from IFFCO is a testament to our strength in the agri-drone segment. We aim to help farmers and Agri Entrepreneurs in the Implementation of made-in-India Nano Urea and Nano DAP newly launched by IFFCO,” he said.

Besides IFFCO, IoTechWorld Avigation has partnered with agrochemical company Syngenta and has undertaken 17,000 KM of drone yatra in various parts of the country.

“We are expecting 5-6 times more demand in the current fiscal compared to last year, with a target of selling more than 3,000 drones in this fiscal year. We are also exploring opportunities for exports. The Government’s recent decision to liberalise the export policy for drones opens up a gamut of opportunity, and there is a huge demand in overseas markets,” Upadhyay added.

The company is also in discussion for exporting drones in regions like SAARC, South East Asia, Latin America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Oman, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Philippines, Nepal, and Africa, which are the focus countries of IoTech export sales.

The company is also extensively focusing on creating awareness about the benefits of using drones in agriculture. IoTech has also set up several small pilot training organisations where people are trained to fly drones.

Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO) plans

AgroPolicy, Horticulture, Supply Chain, Trade

Apples from the US to compete on the level playing field with other countries

With the decision to the resolution of six outstanding World Trade Organisation (WTO) disputes between the US and India through mutually agreed solutions as jointly communicated during the official state visit of the Prime Minister to the USA, India will remove additional duties on eight US products, including apples.  

The decision will not result in any negative impact on domestic apple producers and will result in competition in the premium market segment ensuring better quality at better prices for consumers.

After the removal of this duty, the apples from the US would compete on a level playing field with other countries.

The decision will ensure that only premium quality apples could be imported for which there exists a specific market segment and specific demand.

An additional 20 per cent duty was imposed on US apples in 2019 in response to USA’s measure to increase tariffs on certain steel and aluminium products. There is no reduction on Most Favoured Nation (MFN) duty on apples which is still applicable on all imported apples including in the USA at 50 per cent.

The import of apples from the world has been stable in the range of $ 239 – 305 million (except in 2021-22 when it was $ 385 million) in the last five financial years since the application of these additional duties on US apples. The import of apples from the USA has decreased from $ 145 million (127,908 Ton) in FY 2018-19 to only $ 5.27 million (4,486 Ton) in FY 2022-23.

The market share of the US apples was taken by other countries due to the imposition of additional retaliatory duty on US apples. This is reflected as the import of apples from countries other than the US increased from $ 160 million in FY 2018-19 to $ 290 million in FY 2022-23. Turkey, Italy, Chile, Iran and New Zealand are other top exporters to India of apples which took the market share of the US.

Apples from the US to compete on