The wholesale price of apple have fallen by 30 per cent to Rs 60 per kg this year due to higher production and rising imports of the fruit.
In August last year, the wholesale price of royal delicious variety from Himachal Pradesh, which accounts for over 90 of the total crop, was Rs 87 per kg and has come down to Rs 61 per kg last month, as per the National Horticulture Board (NHB) data.
In retail market, this variety was sold for Rs 130-140 per kg last year; it is now available at Rs 100-110 per kg this year.
"Prices this year have come down by 30-40 per cent as the arrivals are higher and all round the year import of the crop has also affected the market severely," said an apple trader at Azadpur.
Several traders said that earlier there was craze apple as it was a seasonal fruit, available from June to November, but now it is available throughout the year as markets are full with imported varieties, especially from China.
"August-September are the peak months of the apple as its majority harvesting is done in these two months in Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. But now markets are flooded with imported apple whole year which is affecting profitability of the domestic growers," a NHB official said.
According to United States Department of Agriculture, India's apple imports have increased 9-fold to 1,86,387 tonne last year, from 20,093 tonnes 10 years ago.
Imports in 2012 were valued at USD 196 million, the USDA report added.
Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir account for about 80 per cent of the total production.
India, the world's third-largest producer of apples, faces a local supply gap due to seasonality, geographical separation and limited infrastructure amid rising demand from an expanding middle class.
