UK retail chain Asda is almost doubling its Indian grape volumes from Maharashtra this year under a Bharti Walmart Direct Farm Program initiative, reports www.thehindubusinessline.com.
Asda, which is owned by US retail giant Walmart, is expected to import some 150 containers of grapes under the scheme this year – up from over 80 containers in 2011, the paper said.
The Bharti Walmart Direct Farm initiative helps train farmers, supply chain partners, ensure globalGAP certification of farms and manage post-harvest, packaging and shipments, according to the report.
Bharti Walmart said it would replicate this model to source other farm produce from India. The programme currently covers over 4,000 farmers across Delhi, Haryana, Karnataka and Maharashtra, it said.
