The Hindu Business Line : Rains damage 90% crop in AP grape yards

Agri-Biz & Commodities - Horticulture/Fruits & Vegetables
Industry & Economy - Climate & Weather
States - Andhra Pradesh
Rains damage 90% crop in AP grape yards

Exports may be impacted; prices seen rising sharply this year

We are expecting just 5,000 tonnes this year as against the usual 50,000 tonnes. —Mr Kanaka Reddy, President of AP Grape Growers’ Association.

K.V. Kurmanath

Hyderabad, March 31 It’s going to be a very harsh summer for grape lovers in the country. Unprecedented rains in the last two weeks have destroyed 90 per cent of crop in the grape yards in Andhra Pradesh, the second biggest grape-producing State in the country.

The quality of the remaining 10 per cent too will not be great, giving the farmers little hope of securing at least labour charges.

The result is, grape prices are expected to rise sharply this year, particularly in Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.

“We are expecting just 5,000 tonnes this year as against the usual 50,000 tonnes,” Mr Kanaka Reddy, President of Andhra Pradesh Grape Growers’ Association, told Business Line. “We haven’t heard of this kind of downpour in the last 50 years,” he said.

Grape is grown in Ranga Reddy, Medak and Mahboobnagar districts, mostly in yards adjoining the State capital. As it is, the grape area had shrunk significantly due to the spiralling real-estate prices. The production plummeted to 50,000 tonnes from 80,000 tonnes.

The direct impact could be on exports. Usually, the State exported about 2,000 tonnes of grapes, mostly to the UK, Dubai and the EU.

Though the farmers hope to salvage at least a fraction of the production, industry experts wonder how much of it could be export-ready.

‘waive loans’

“Last year, the State exported nearly 1,600 tonnes. We expected it would go up to 2,000 tonnes this year. But, in all likelihood we may end up with just 200 tonnes,” Mr G.V.K. Naidu, Managing Director of Sam Agritech, a large grower and leading exporter said.

Pushed to the wall, about 600 farmers have organised a dharna at Shamirpet near here, appealing to the Government to waive loans. “Besides the Rs 5 lakh an acre investment, farmers spend about Rs 1.5 lakh an acre on pesticides, water, power and wages. They have to invest Rs 1.5 lakh more without earning any revenues this year,” Mr Reddy said.

Now that there is no production within Andhra Pradesh, farmers in Maharashtra are expected to make a killing as they would get a good price.

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