CHANDIGARH: With the weather is becoming warmer and production costs increasing at a rapid pace, apple farmers in Himachal are opting for stone fruits besides persimmon and pears. However, apple farmers hope that early snowfall might improve this season’s yield. The Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) predicted another spell of rain and snow in Himachal Thursday onwards. Himachal is the second largest producer of apples in the country, Jammu and Kashmir being the first. However, net profit generated from apple farming has more than halved due to high cost of production and increasingly unstable weather patterns, especially after the Covid pandemic. Leading apple farmer, Rakesh Singha said, “Due to ‘freak’ weather and high cost of production, apple production is going down. Apple growers are now venturing into stone fruits such as almonds, plum, apricot, cherry besides persimmon.”He added, “The cost of production has increased by 30 to 40 per cent; frequent fungal infections and pest attacks on apple crops increase expenses and reduce output.””The weather is now warmer than before and traditional apple varieties require 1400 hours of chilling in the dormant period (winter). Lesser snowfall means drier and warmer winters, deterring apple crop growth. Chilling period usually starts after November and ends in February,” he said. Under the Himachal Pradesh Horticulture Development Project, the state’s horticulture department has been pushing for crop diversification. The department projected 2.91 crore boxes for 2024, but only 2.07 crore boxes had been dispatched by the end of October, falling short by 84 lakh boxes. Apple farmer Sanjay Chauhan said, “Due to climate change, apple production is decreasing as growers are preferring to grow stone fruits besides pears and persimmon. Fungal attacks on apple crops have increased manifold and a minimum of 10 to 12 sprays are needed; pears, on the other hand, require hardly any.’’ Himachal Pradesh has 11 lakh hectares under cultivation, of which two lakh hectares are dedicated to fruit orchards. Apples take up around 1 lakh hectares which is 50 per cent of the state’s fruit-growing area. On average, the state produces about 5.5 lakh metric tonnes of apple every year, contributing over Rs 5,500 crore to the state’s economy. Another leading apple farmer, Harish Chauhan says, “In 2010, the production was 5.50 crore boxes, but it declined year by year due to climate change: in 2023 2.11 crore boxes were produced and only 2.09 crore boxes produced in 2024. This year there is little hope; the early snowfall means the apple plant will get more chilling hours so production might increase.’’
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