Author: AgroAsia

Govt will allow sugar exports upto 100 LMT The government has decided to allow export of sugar upto 100 LMT with a view to maintain the domestic availability and price stability during the sugar season 2021-22 (October-September). As per the order issued by DGFT, with effect from June 1, 2022 till October 31, 2022, or till further order, whichever is earlier, the export of the sugar will be allowed with specific permission of the Directorate of Sugar, Department of Food & Public Distribution. The decision came in the light of record exports of the sugar. In sugar seasons 2017-18, 2018-19…

Guidelines have provision for two years moratorium and then five years of repayment expected to provide relief to financially weak sugar mills which have availed SDF loans In order to facilitate rehabilitation of financially weak but economically viable sugar mills that have availed loans under the Sugar Development Fund Act, 1982, the Department of Food and Public Distribution issued guidelines for restructuring of SDF Loans under Rule 26 of the SDF Rules 1983 on 03.01.2022. The complete Guidelines are available at https://dfpd.gov.in/sdfguidelines-sdf.htm and at https://sdfportal.in. The outstanding amount of default of SDF loans is Rs. 3068.31 crores (as on 30.11.2021)…

By Rituparna Majumder, Senior Manager – Life Science Advisory, Sathguru Management India is home to the largest number of beehives (12.2 million) and is the eighth largest producer in the world, producing about 62,000 metric tonnes (MT) of honey worth Rs 21.1 billion (2020- 21). Today India contributes to only about 3.6 per cent of global natural honey exports worth Rs 6.62 billion, of which 73 per cent is exported to the US. The Indian honey market is anticipated to reach Rs 38.3 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 10.31 per cent, according to IMARC report. The country’s…

The trial is being conducted to achieve a proof of concept for greater yield with BVT’s natural precision agriculture system Bee Vectoring Technologies International Inc. has announced the Company’s first US demonstration trial on stone fruit, with a conventional cherry grower in Washington. The trial began during the mid-April bloom period and will continue through summer harvest. The United States is the world’s second-largest cherry producer, second only to Turkey, (1) with cherries representing the most acreage of all stone fruits. There are an estimated 85,000 acres of sweet cherries in the US, (2) with Washington, California and Oregon growing…

The event emphasised on the need to take strong measures to increase the export and production of honey and generating employment for the beekeepers In a bid to highlight the importance of beekeeping as part of the Integrated Farming System in the country, India Honey Alliance (IHA) in collaboration with the National Bee Board, hosted a webinar – ‘Hive to Home 4.0 – The Busy Bee’. It witnessed participation of experts from across the honey value chain and emphasised on the holistic development of the beekeeping sector and creating a more enabling environment for the bees and beekeepers. The session…

In addition to honey, the activities of the magical insect lead to a variety of in-demand products and valuable benefits to agriculture including increase in crop production. Beekeeping is one of the oldest agri-allied industries in India. Besides honey, it includes the production of propolis, beeswax, bee venom, pollen, and royal jelly. Honeybees also present an uncommon opportunity for diversification in agriculture. The honeybee also contributes to sustainable agriculture by increasing farm yield through pollination and helping in environment-friendly disease and pest management. Production of crops such as blueberry, strawberry, tomato, sunflower, apple, canola and pulses have increased in the…

Future Crops finds greener pastures, zero carbon emissions in wind power and solar energy. Netherlands based Future Crops, Ltd., has taken its vertical farm a further step off the grid by shifting to reliance on 100 per cent renewable energy. Harnessing the natural green powers of solar and wind energy, the company also is solving the primary hurdle to bringing the industry to a substantially greater carbon-neutral position, all while advancing its sustainability goals. Over the past decade, vertical farms have been cropping up as creative method of boosting food resilience and bringing food sources closer to home. Multistory indoor…

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted the company a patent for its Pod Shatter Reduction (PSR) Trait. Cibus, a leader in precision gene editing in agriculture, announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted the company a patent for its Pod Shatter Reduction (PSR) Trait. The PSR Trait, developed using the company’s Rapid Trait Development System® (RTDS), strengthens the sheath that contains the Canola (oilseed rape) seeds and, in so doing, reduces pod shatter yield losses. Pod shatter refers to the pre-harvest release of oil seeds when the pod seam and connective tissue of the…

Chickpea researchers got an opportunity to observe in person and select desirable germplasm among over 10,000 accessions that originated in more than 50 countries. With an aim to enhance use of chickpea germplasm in India’s crop improvement, ICRISAT Genebank organized a germplasm field day at its global headquarters in Patancheru and displayed chickpea germplasm diversity and trait-specific sources to various researchers participating in the event. Chickpea researchers got an opportunity to observe in person and select desirable germplasm among over 10,000 accessions that originated in more than 50 countries. This included pan genebank accessions from ICRISAT genebank (>3,500 accessions) and…

A total of 27 new varieties, were validated as nominated by more than nine Indian National Agricultural Research & Education System (NARES) breeding network partners. Researchers in India have identified new rice varieties that could adapt to specific requirements of the different environments in the country after a series of on-farm trials (OFT). The results of the rigorous trials were presented in a two-day technical workshop online organized by the India Seed System and Product Management team of the International Rice Research Institute on 5-6 May, 2022. A total of 27 new varieties, including some pipeline varieties were validated as…