Major agricultural and processed food exports, which are supported by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), increased by a quarter to $13.77 billion (1,07,942 crore) in H1 FY23 from $11.06 billion in the same period last year. APEDA products exported a record $25.6 billion in FY22, exceeding the target. Wheat, pulses and milled goods have seen an increase in export value of over 100%, while guar gum and poultry products have seen an increase of over 80%.
“Where our potential is unquestionably very strong, APEDA will concentrate on value-added and processed food items. APEDA Chairman M. Angamuthu remarked that a focus will be placed on millet-based goods, which have a larger value than raw grains, particularly among the populace. In addition to concentrating on raising the caliber of food goods, “we will also urge exporters to source their products directly from farmer producers’ organizations (FPOs),” Angamuthu said.
With the exception of tea, coffee, spices, and marine items, all agricultural products, broadly categorized into 27 categories, must be promoted by APEDA. APEDA will account for over 50% of the $50.21 billion in exports from the agriculture and related sectors in 2021–2022. Even though wheat exports were outlawed by the government as of May 13, they still increased by 136% in the first half of this fiscal year, from $0.63 billion to $1.49 billion. (Rice and wheat omitted) The market for other cereals increased by 12% to $525 million from $467 million, including maize.
Both Basmati and non-Basmati rice exports rose by 19% to $5.5 billion from $4.6 billion. Due to rising global demand, Basmati exports have soared by 37% to $2.28 billion from $1.66 billion, while non-Basmati rice sales have only increased modestly by 8% to $3.21 billion from $2.97 billion. Non-Basmati rice export price realization decreased from $361 per tonne in H1 FY22 to $358 per tonne in H1 FY23. Contrarily, the realization for basmati rice rose from $853/tonne to $1,057/tonne.
Buffalo meat exports, which account for 12 percent of the APEDA basket, have climbed by 2.7 percent to $1.64 billion from $1.59 billion. The value of shipments of pulses increased by 33% to $330 million from $135 million, and the value of processed fruits and vegetables increased by 19% to $695 million from $584 million a year earlier. In H1 of the current fiscal year, guar gum exports increased by 92 percent to $344 million from $179 million during the same period last year.
