Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Feb 27: The Apple Farmers’ Federation of India (AFFI) today opposed the India-US interim bilateral trade agreement, alleging that the decision to reduce import tariffs on Washington apples from 50 per cent to zero would severely impact domestic growers.
Addressing a press conference here, M.Y. Tarigami, convenor of the federation, termed the agreement an “unequal treaty” and accused the Centre of compromising the economic interests of Indian apple farmers.
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He said the move would act as a “death knell” for apples produced within the country.
To register its protest, the federation announced that it would mobilise apple farmers from Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand to stage a demonstration outside Parliament in March.
The AFFI argued that allowing American apples to enter India at minimal tariffs would not merely introduce another competitor into the domestic market but would pit Indian orchardists against heavily subsidised US farmers.
It claimed that the US Federal Government provides substantial financial support to its agriculturists.
Citing projections for 2026, the federation said payouts to US farmers are expected to reach nearly Rs 4 lakh crore, translating into a per capita subsidy of over Rs 21 lakh per farmer.
Quoting agronomist Devendra Sharma, the federation further claimed that American apple growers receive subsidies of nearly Rs 60 lakh each, while the per capita subsidy for Indian farmers stands at around Rs 34,000.
The federation maintained that Indian orchardists, already grappling with rising input costs and what it described as declining state support, were being pushed into unequal competition with well-supported US agribusinesses.
Responding to the Union Agriculture Minister’s remarks that imports are necessary to bridge the gap between domestic demand and supply, the AFFI presented data indicating that apple imports have risen sharply over the past two decades – from 0.2 lakh metric tonnes (MT) to 6 lakh MT – increasing from 1.7 percent to 22.5 percent of domestic production since 2000.
Meanwhile, exports remain low at 21,700 MT, lower than the 23,100 MT exported in 2004-05, the federation noted.
In addition to the United States, the federation said import duties on apples from New Zealand have reportedly been reduced to 25 per cent and those from the European Union to 20 per cent.
While acknowledging a production-consumption gap of a few lakh metric tonnes, the AFFI said the Government should prioritise investment in domestic orchards and productivity enhancement instead of relying on foreign imports.
The federation also referred to the reported halt by the US Supreme Court on sweeping tariffs imposed by former President Donald Trump, urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reconsider and scrap the trade agreement.
“India must use this opportunity to defend the interests of its apple farmers,” the federation said, adding that the country should not agree to what it described as a lopsided trade arrangement favouring large foreign agribusinesses.
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