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Himachal to not release advance estimate of apple boxes this season: Cabinet Minister Negi
The Himachal Pradesh government will not release the advance estimates of apple boxes this year as such projections 'often distort market dynamics and result in financial losses for orchardists,' Cabinet Minister Jagat Singh Negi said Thursday.
The decision came in after Negi, chairing a meeting of the Department of Horticulture, took feedback from orchardists who said that early projections hurt their bargaining power and expose them to exploitation by traders.
'Such projections often distort market dynamics and result in financial losses for orchardists,' Negi said, adding that starting next year, the estimation of apple boxes would be conducted using a scientific methodology to ensure accuracy, safeguarding the interests of horticulturists.
The minister added that the state government would also take up the issue of increasing import duties on foreign apples — particularly those from Turkey—with the Centre, as demanded by local growers.
A senior horticulture officer said that apple is the only fruit for which advance scientific estimation in terms of box count is released by the department. 'However, many orchardists have complained that traders—especially those buying apples within the state and transporting them outside—exploit them by lowering rates based on these early projections. The growers have a valid argument. In 2024, the department released an advance estimate of approximately 4 crore apple boxes, while actual production was only 2.09 crore boxes. As a result, orchardists were forced to sell at lower prices.'
The officer added that although they have decided not to release an advance estimate this year, the process cannot be entirely done away with.
'Apple accounts for nearly 49% of the total area under fruit crops and contributes 85% of the state's fruit economy, valued at Rs 4,000 crore. From next year, we plan to adopt scientific methods to improve the accuracy of advance projections. Until now, estimates were based on parameters such as total land area under apple cultivation and average yield per tree,' he said.
Joint Farmers Forum Convenor Harish Chauhan, who attended the meeting, said, 'Two months ago, there were reports of good flowering on apple plants, suggesting a bumper crop. But subsequent heavy rainfall and storm-like conditions in many high-altitude areas of Shimla district caused significant damage. While advance estimates might help the horticulture department plan logistics, they are not in the best interest of orchardists.'
