UP to export 'Taj' potatoes

The UP State Agriculture Marketing Board has announced the launch of the "Taj brand" of potatoes.

The board, in association with Nafed and the Agriculture Processed Food & Export Development Authority (Apeda), has drawn up plans for the export of 2,000 tonnes of potatoes from the next harvesting season beginning in February.

The board has also obtained the patent for this from the registrar of trade marks and patents, New Delhi.

The potato will be exported at Rs 600 per quintal and later it will be exported on negotiated prices during the lean season from July. The board has also acquired land at Vashi near Mumbai for setting up a cold storage and the grading and sorting plant. The graded potato, with a minimum diameter of 55 mm, will be exported in 25-kg NETLON packs.

"Our biggest market is Sri Lanka, followed by Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and other countries in the Middle East," said Rajneesh Dube, director of the board, adding "though Sri Lanka fetches low prices, it's a good market during the glut season at home".

Dube said markets in Mauritius and Seychelles had good potential and the board would concentrate on these markets during the lean season in July next. UP has annual surplus of 5 million tonnes of potatoes.

The export of potato from India is 22,000 tonnes annually, traded via the Mumbai, Chennai and Tuticorin ports.

"For the first time the board has undertaken direct export of potatoes without the involvement of export agents or middlemen. This would fetch a minimum price of Rs 500 per quintal during the lean season of February-March, when the ruling market price is Rs 200-300 per quintal," said Dube.

For the first time, farmers would be directly involved in the export of their produce. The board has set up the UP Potato Export Facilitation Society, where 21 farmers from the potato belt of Farrukhabad, Kannauj, Agra, Etawah, Manipuri, Ferozabad, Meerut and Hapur have been represented.

The society would also include the representative of the cold storage industry. For these farmers board has organised training programme at National Agriculture Marketing Institute, Jaipur. On the patterns of Maharashtra, board for exploring the export potential would organise buyers-sellers meet at Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Dubai, in July next where the trained farmers would also participate.

The board would share 25% cost of the foreign tours of the selected 11 farmers.

The society for next three years would provide transport subsidy of Rs 1, per KG and Paisa 25 per kg for the promotion of brand for the next three years.

UP accounts for close to 50% of the potato produced in India, follow d by West Bengal. By production standards UP is the 12th largest potato producer at the global level. In current season production is little over 12 million Tons. Against the huge production of 12 million tons, the state has storing capacity of only 7.9 million tons.