Indian exporters encouraged to trade with Canada

The government of India has been encouraging Indian grape exporters to send their products to Canada. Though there still isn't any export on a large, commercial scale, a couple of containers with grapes have been exported to Canada by way of experiment. In this way, the Indian grape sector hopes to test the waters and get familiar with the Canadian market, while also making itself known in this region of the world.

According to Nitin Agrawal of Euro Fruits, if this pilot project takes off the export volumes to Canada will increase to commercial levels. “Everybody likes new markets. We’re still satisfied with our main market which is Europe, but since we have this opportunity, why not use it?” says Agrawal. His company is still looking for the right partners to set up trade with Canada.



The incentive for grape exports to Canada has been set in motion by a bilateral meeting between Indian and Canadian parties that was organised by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA). A select few of the larger exporters were invited to this meeting, to be introduced to potential partners.

The first batches of grapes will be sent in the next Indian grape season, which should start in January 2017. The main challenge for export to India would be logistics, according to Agrawal. “Of course, the long distance would be a problem. But it wouldn’t be interesting if there were no challenges,” he muses. In the long run, India would benefit from more brand recognition and the expansion of its markets. Also, there is a large minority of Canadian consumers with Asian roots. “Tapping this market audience would be an advantage,” concludes Nitin Agrawal.

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