The Hindu Business Line : Grape traceability system for mangoes soon

Aiding exports
Software will be developed by APEDA
Agriculture Ministry will set up testing laboratories
System will provide complete traceability solution

G. Srinivasan

New Delhi, Aug 14 Buoyed by the success of “Grapenet” that integrates supply chain of fresh grapes exported from India to the European Union, the Department of Commerce will shortly launch “mangonet” to provide traceability of sources for the comfort of importers abroad, in the wake of bio-safety concerns of farm produce.

The Minister of State for Commerce, Mr Jairam Ramesh, on Tuesday made a presentation to the Union Minister of Agriculture, Food & Civil Supplies, Mr Sharad Pawar, on the progress scored by “Grapenet”, a Web-based software developed by APEDA, which has enabled exporters to monitor the pesticide residue, to achieve product standardisation and traceability of the products through different stages of its production, processing and marketing.

Grapenet, a success

Official sources told Business Line here that Grapenet has helped 40,000 grape farmers to band together and adopt uniform farming practices.

They said the success scored in implementing the residue monitoring system and IT-based traceability procedure has enabled all stakeholders and importers and supermarkets in the EU to repose confidence in Indian grapes.

This has also led to doubling of the export of table grapes from India in recent times, with grape farmers enjoying 20-25 per cent better value from buyers post-traceability.

They said grapes exports fetched Rs 250 crore in fiscal 2006-07 and this would go up in the coming years in the light of the new system in place.

When contacted about the extension of similar Web-based monitoring system for mangoes, the Minister of State for Commerce, Mr Jairam Ramesh, said following his presentation today of the headway made by “Grapenet” to Mr Sharad Pawar, it was decided to replicate the grape story in other fresh produce sectors of Indian agriculture.

He said that it was decided that the Ministry of Agriculture and APEDA would collaborate in the case of “mangonet” so that the software would be developed by APEDA and the Ministry of Agriculture would undertake establishing testing laboratories, the cost of which would be borne by the National Horticulture Mission.

Mango clusters

Mr Ramesh further disclosed that it has been proposed to open six clusters of mango in places such as Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh and Malahibad in Uttar Pradesh.

This would provide a complete traceability solution to Indian mango exports, which had earlier been suspended due to resistance from importing countries like Japan and the US on grounds of poor standards.

With fresh mangoes export fetching Rs 140 crore, the proposed “mangonet” would help India emerge as a reliable and quality supplier in the global export market for fresh agriculture produce and benefit large numbers of farmers with better price realisation, Mr Ramesh added.

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