India's banana exports to the Middle East come to a complete halt due to the ongoing war, with 350 containers returning to Mumbai's Nhava Sheva port, says Abhijeet Patil of Trimurti Fruit Company, a banana grower and exporter based in Solapur, Maharashtra. "Sea shipments have stopped indefinitely, with around 1000 containers heading back to port, 350 of these are bananas, and the rest grapes."
Prices have crashed significantly as shipping companies refuse to load amid fears of attacks, Abhijeet mentions. "Rates have gone down from USD 0.26 to 0.17 per kg in just one day. If the conflict drags on for a week, prices could plunge further to USD 0.08 to 0.11 per kg, leaving farmers with few options beyond low-value processing at USD 0.03 per kg."
© Trimurti Fruit Company
This season's exports won't match last year's 40,000 containers and 4,000 crores in revenue, says Abhijeet. "It won't be much bigger this year because availability is scarce after crop failures. Some farmers drove tractors over their ruined fields to dig up and destroy the damaged plants, with shortages hitting all of India, including Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh. With a 10-month replanting cycle, recovery waits until next year, even with festival peaks from Shravan through Diwali," he explains.
Banana growers like Abhijeet continue to express a lack of government backing to improve the crop's quality standards and export competitiveness. "Stronger government engagement in disease management, weather resilience, trade promotion, and post-harvest infrastructure will be crucial for sustaining export growth in the coming years."
"For now, we will continue to bear the losses ourselves amid unclear war timelines in the Middle East. As stocks are piling up in cold storage, we are hopeful that the conflict clears or new markets open before cold storages burst," Abhijeet concludes.
For more information:
Abhijeet Patil
Trimurti Fruit Company
Tel: +91 86 05 059 298
Email: [email protected]
