Though apple production is estimated to be the lowest in the last 20 years this year, farmers are concerned as the prices of this fruit has dropped by 60 percent this month, which is less than what they had fetched in 2015, 2016 or 2017, when production was more than double the amount.
The import of apples has really led to a crash in prices and the truckers’ strike made matters worse. The farmers and commission agents attributed the crash in apple prices mainly to the import of foreign apples.
Huge quantities of Washington apples are being sold in South India, imported by merchants before the central government increased the import duties on apples to 75 percent. Then came the 10-day truckers’ strike and the floods in Kerala, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, which reduced demand.
Source: tribuneindia.com
