The state horticulture department of Himachal Pradesh have forecast a strong season for apple production after two consecutive seasons of below-average yields.
“We are expecting a production of over 3.75 crore (37.5m)apple boxes (20kg each) this season,” Gurdev Singh, director of horticulture, told the Indo-Asian News Service.
This season’s forecast represents a significant improvement on the previous two years. In 2012 Himachal Pradesh harvested approximately 20.4m cartons. In 2011, this was even lower at only around 13.6m cartons.
This decrease in production was attributed to adverse weather, including a prolonged winter and hailstorms during a key maturing period for the crop.
This season, however, the weather has aided apple production, with snow last winter and positive spells of rain increasing the soil moisture content and aiding the crop in attaining adequate nutrients.
With Himachal Pradesh’s apple industry facing challenges in recent seasons, the state government is considering marketing initiatives including branding the apples and certifying their nutritional value and quality.
“There is need to re-invent the fruit industry in the State,” the principal secretary for horticulture, Tarun Shridhar, told the Hindustan Times.
However, the Hindustan Times reports that regional growers have expressed caution regarding the government’s plans, stating that they require full consultation before any plan is put into action.
