GI-certified Jalgaon bananas exported to Dubai

In a major boost to exports of Geographical Indications (GI) certified agricultural produce, a consignment of fibre and mineral-rich Jalgaon banana has been exported to Dubai.

The twenty-two metric tonnes of GI-certified Jalgaon banana were sourced from progressive farmers of Tandalwadi village, part of Jalgaon district of Maharashtra, a banana cluster identified under the Agri Export Policy.

In 2016, Jalgaon Banana got GI certification, which was registered with Nisargraja Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Jalgaon. India’s banana export has been rising sharply because of the adoption of farm practices as per global standards.

India’s banana exports grew both in terms of volume as well as value from 1.34 lakh metric tonnes valued at Rs 413 crore in 2018-19 to 1.95 lakh metric tonnes valued at Rs 660 crore in 2019-20. During 2020-21 (April-February), India exported 1.91 lakh metric tonnes of bananas valued at Rs 619 crore.

India is the world's leading producer of bananas with a share of around 25 per cent in total output. Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh contribute more than 70 per cent of the country's banana production.

APEDA promotes exports of agricultural and processed food products by providing assistance to the exporters under various components of its scheme such as Infrastructure Development, Quality Development and Market Development. In addition, APEDA also conducts international buyer-seller meets, virtual trade fairs with importing countries to promote agricultural and processed food products.

Apart from this, the Department of Commerce also supports exports through various schemes like Trade Infrastructure for Export Scheme, Market Access Initiative.