Why does India's agricultural export performance remain weak despite high production levels? What measures would you suggest to improve agri-export competitiveness?

India aims to export around $1 trillion of agri-produce by 2030, currently India is around $40 bn. High production → a) 2nd largest in wheat & spice after China → b) 2nd in fruits & vegetables → 1st in mangoes, papaya, etc → c) 2nd in sugarcane after Brazil, 7th in coffee → d) Leading in spices, etc e) largest producer of pulses (23%) → f) Millet production → 15% of world → g) Fisheries → 3rd largest producers 4th in export → h) Poultry animal husbandry → also leads

Why export strength weak: (1) MSP leading to inflated prices → less competitive in international market (2) Yes market exploitation → exports concentrated to Europe, DS → rice, largest shares, famous meat (3) EU tops dominate export market → rice largest shares, famous meat (4) Quality issues → Zea phytosan-heavy measures (5) Poor branding → a) made in India brand not competitive (6) Lack of food processing → only 2%, meat, 23% milk (7) Productivity issues → 10% not in pulses, oilseeds, etc (8) Tech adoption low → Farm mechanization 40%, US 60% (9) Small landholding → 1.08 hectares → less productivity & scaling (10) Competition from west → New Zealand

Suggestions: (1) Learning from best practices → a) Australia b) US in New Zealand in corn milk product management (2) R&A support → only 0.6% of agri GDP split on MoA (3) Explore new markets → Egypt food grain needs, Latin America (4) Quality cheeks → follow Codex Alim entasis at FAO (5) Labs for testing & packing (6) Branding → sold of APEDA, MPEDA (7) Codut to farmers for enhancing mechanization, yield → NABARD (8) Promote FPOs & cooperatives for scaling (9) Innovation, eg AgriSuPP scheme for agri startups (10) Food processing → Kisan Sampada (11) Crop diversification → op, ToFs

— ASTHA JAIN · AIR 9