News on Potato Stats, Trade, Prices from India

Snacks and beverages manufacturer PepsiCo plans to invest $5 million by 2020 to expand its sustainable farming programme in India.

In an effort to limit the spread of the Potato Cyst Nematode, the government of India has prohibited the movement of seed potatoes from Himachal, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand and Jammu Kashmir to other states

Potato prices in India are not going to come down in the near future as the production of the crop has been reportedly around 20 per cent lower this year in potato growing states.

Higher potato prices are reported in various states of India (Punjab, West-Bengal), offering relief (Punjab) or even a windfall (West-Bengal) for farmers.

Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal said the Indian federal government was planning to draw a sustainable roadmap to keep soaring prices of staples tomato, onion and potato under control.

The potato production in West Bengal is expected to drop from last year’s 11 million tonne to 8-10 million tonnes in 2018, but is unlikely to impact the price, officials said.

Four months after farmers dumped potatoes on road in Mohali and other parts of the Indian state Punjab, seeking remunerative price for their potato crop, state government has allowed the staple food’s export to Russia and the Middle East.

Potato farmers in the Indian state Punjab are headed for another season of dwindling profits because the cold storage facilities are still flooded with old crop - and several other states are in a similar situation.

In India, the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) is starting the production of frozen French Fries in October of this year. They have set up shop in North Gujarat, close to McCain Foods India and Hyfun Frozen Foods

Last Wednesday in Delhi, potato farmers from Uttar Pradesh handed out free potatoes to the public in protest against the steeply falling prices of the vegetable in Agra.

With their product rotting, potato growers in Indian East Punjab are suffering huge losses and Jalandhar Potato Growers Association (JPGA) has demanded urgent export of potatoes to Pakistan and availability of express rail rakes for transporting their produce to southern states.

The potato production in India is estimated to be around 47 million tonnes for this crop year, just behind the all-time high witnessed in 2014.

Gujarat's Banaskantha district has mashed Agra (Uttar Pradesh) in potato production, taking the No. 1 rank in India.

The government of India Tuesday removed the minimum export price (MEP) of potato, which was imposed in July, to boost shipments of the kitchen staple.

Despite a fresh crop arriving at the wholesale market in Vashi (Mumbai area), retail prices of potatoes show no decline

The government of India today imposed minimum export price (MEP) of USD 360 per tonne on potato to increase domestic availability and cool prices.

Aiming to boost potato exports, the Indian government is considering identifying ‘pest-free zones’ for the staple in production clusters of the growing states like Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.

Potato farmers in Gujarat are a happy lot this year, as they are getting better prices for their produce despite 15% increase in potato production.