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Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) is planning to send trial shipments of mangoes and pomegranates to the USA and the European Union by sea with the aim of bringing down the transport cost of exporting fresh fruits, the Commerce and Industry Ministry said on Tuesday.

“The move is being undertaken as a significant breakthrough has already been achieved with bananas being successfully shipped by sea to the Netherlands in November and to Russia in January,” the ministry said.

The ministry said that APEDA in collaboration with the Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture (CISH) has embarked on a proactive initiative to develop sea protocols tailored for the export of fresh produce to long-distance markets.

“This strategic endeavour aims to optimize the export process for promising fresh fruits, facilitating efficient transportation and reducing logistics costs,” the ministry said.

The implementation of sea protocols is poised to enable a quantum increase in exports of items such as bananas, mangoes, pomegranates, and other fresh fruits and vegetables, further enhancing India's presence in international markets, it added.

APEDA has also taken a number of steps to ensure that more and more of its scheduled products are exported to newer destinations.

It said that the special emphasis is being given to the One District One Product (ODOP) and GI products, and also to source these exports from non-traditional areas.

“As on date, APEDA scheduled products are being exported to more than 203 countries/territories, worldwide,” the ministry said.

The ministry said that to give this a further fillip, more than 27 flag offs of new products were organised in the current financial year.

“Some of the new flagoffs of export shipments include guava and banana from Baramati in Maharashtra, marigold flowers and water chestnuts from Varanasi, potatoes from Purvanchal, Khasi mandarin orange from Meghalaya and Lemon from Assam and Karnataka,” the ministry said.

It said that the destinations to which these products were exported include the Gulf countries, Europe and USA.

“APEDA is also actively involved in capacity building initiatives for FPOs as they are increasingly recognised as essential aggregators of farm produce, pivotal in streamlining the supply chain and ensuring efficient market access for farmers,” the ministry said.

It said that with a focus on enabling direct exports, APEDA has transformed 119 FPOs/FPCs into exporters over a period of five years.

“Through tailored support and guidance, these FPOs have enhanced their capabilities to navigate global markets, amplifying the presence of Indian agricultural products on the international stage,” the ministry said.