In a major boost to India’s exports of Geographical Indications (GI) certified agricultural produce, a consignment of ‘Jalgaon banana’ has been exported to Dubai, the Commerce Ministry informed on Wed.

The twenty-two metric tonnes of the GI certified banana were sourced from progressive farmers of Tandalwadi village in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district, a banana cluster identified under the Centre’s Agri Export Policy.

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In 2016, Jalgaon Banana got GI certification which was registered with Nisargraja Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) Jalgaon. India’s banana export has been rising sharply because of adoption of farm practices as per the global standards.

India’s banana exports grew both in terms of volume as well as value from 1.34 lakh metric tonne valued at Rs 413 crore in 2018-19 to 1.95 lakh metric tonne valued at Rs 660 crore in 2019-20. During 2020-21 (April-February), India has exported banana worth of 1.91 lakh tonne valued at Rs 619 crore.

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India has emerged as the world's leading producer of bananas with a share of around 25% in total output. Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh contribute more than 70% of the country's banana production.

APEDA, an agency of the commerce ministry, promotes exports of agricultural and processed food products plays a key role by providing assistance to exporters under various schemes such as Infrastructure Development, Quality Development and Market Development. In addition, APEDA also conducts international Buyer Seller Meets, Virtual trade fairs with importing countries to promote agricultural and processed food products.