Westward ho! That seems to be the new slogan of India's horticulture sector now.
Seeing a good market in the European Union countries, India's horticulture sector is now busy tapping this potential.
Justifying this trend, in India accreditations from EurepGap (Good Agricultural Practice Certification from the Euro-Retailer Produce Working Group) during the last one year has gone up substantially.
It is mandatory to have this certification to export horticulture produce in the European markets. Fruits and vegetable exporters feel this trend is due to the substantial growth in demand from the European countries and an increase in awareness among big farmers.
According to EurepGap, India witnessed a major growth in the number of accreditations. Total accreditations till August 2007 were 1,004, compared with 745 in August 2006.
India now stands just behind New Zealand in the total number of EurepGap accreditations from the Asia Pacific region. New Zealand has 1,840 (517 in August 2006). China comes next with 300 certifications (90 last year). Thailand also had a surge in certifications with a total of 246 (65 during August 2006).
However, Australia's numbers fell to 233 from 256 in August last year. Similarly, South Korea's accreditations also decreased to 1 from the last year's 16. Three new countries from the region - Malaysia (13), Guinea (15) and Sri Lanka (03) - have been added to the list.
Leading fresh fruits and vegetables exporters from India believe that there