Current Circumstances of Citrus In India

Guest Author: Dr. Kuntal Das, Global R&D Head, Decco Wordwide (UPL Limited)

17 December 2024, New Delhi: India boasts an abundance of fresh fruits due to diverse climates and fertile soils. According to a report of Government of India 2020-21, India exported fresh fruits valued USD $765.62 million. Citrus fruit is enjoyed around the world for its nutritional value, taste, relatively low price and regarded as one of the most important fruit crops grown in more than 100 countries. More than 70% of the world’s total citrus production is from northern hemisphere particularly in China, Brazil, India, USA and Mediterranean countries. As per the FAO 2017 report, global citrus production was 139.80 million metric tonnes and the top citrus producing countries are China (35.47 mt), Brazil (19.07 mt), India (11.14 mt) and USA (8.84 mt). Globally sweet orange accounted for approximately 57% of citrus production, mandarin 25%, lemon and limes 10% and grapefruit, pummelo and others 8%.

Citrus in India

1. Production Scenario: Citrus is grown under varied climatic and geographical zones in India contributing 12.4% of total fruit production and is third most important fruit crop after banana (32.6%) and mango (22.1%). Citrus is grown on 1.04 million ha area with 11.14 million tonnes production and 10.30 tonnes/ha productivity (NHB, 2017) and is globally at number 3 after China and Brazil. Between 1961 and 2017-18, area under citrus in India increased from 90,700 ha to 10.77 lakh ha, registering 11 folds increase. Moreover, for 3 decades (1987-88 to 2017-18) India has experienced quantum jump of more than 5 fold in production due to adoption of new technologies whereas, productivity witnessed less increase from 8.5 tonnes/ ha to 11.50 tonnes/ha. Mandarins, sweet oranges, limes and lemons are major citrus fruits in the country with grapefruits and pummelos in limited cultivation. Indian citrus industry is dominated by mandarins (‘Nagpur’, ‘Kinnow’, ‘Coorg’ and ‘Khasi’ mandarin) followed by sweet oranges and limes

Among mandarins, cultivation of ‘Kinnow’ registered a phenomenal growth after introduction in Punjab in 1956 where the cultivation area leaped from 500 ha in 1970 to 50,360 ha in 2015-16. In North-Western parts of the country, ‘Local’ mandarin and ‘Malta’ orange have been mostly replaced by ‘Kinnow’ mainly because of its response to inputs and consequent higher returns. The ‘Nagpur’ mandarin established well in Central India with major production areas in Vidarbha region of Maharashtra and other states comprising Madhya Pradesh (Agar Malwa, Rajgarh, Shajapur, Chhindwara, Mandsaur) and Rajasthan (Jhalawar, Bhilwara districts). The commercial cultivars being grown in different regions are ‘Nagpur’ mandarin (Santra) in Maharashtra and Central India; ‘Coorg’ mandarin in Karnataka and hills of Tamil Nadu and Kerala; ‘Khasi’ mandarin in north-eastern region; ‘Kinnow’ mandarin in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Western UP, and ‘Darjeeling’ mandarin in Sikkim and West Bengal.

2. Post-Harvest Scenario: Citrus are non-climacteric fruit and have low respiration rates. During storage the percentage of the juice increase up to 16% primarily due to the water stored in the peel. The acid content of fruit also increases up to 24% and the peel colour changes from green to yellow. Citrus are sensitive to cool temperature and avoided to be stored at temperature below 10°C due to chilling injury.

a) Export: The orange export market in India is expected to grow in the coming years, driven by the increasing demand for fresh fruits, government support, and the expansion of processing capacity. Potential future trends depend on diversification on processed products, expansion of export markets, investment in technology especially for post-harvest management. The availability of Nagpur mandarin in April-May presents export opportunity to European market in summer as most of the mandarin exporters such as Spain and Morocco possess almost nil inventories.

India exported 17,231.45; 34,524.55 and 47,539.39 metric tonnes of oranges with a valuation of 109.11, 169.38 and 223.37 crore Indian rupees during 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 respectively. Total export of 1,92,564.94 metric tonnes of citrus fruits was recorded during 2014-15 to 2016-17. Four major factors contribute to the growth of Citrus (Orange and Kinnow) exports as below.

1. Climate: India has a favorable climate for orange and kinnow cultivation, with major production centers in states like Punjab and Maharashtra.
2. Government support: The Indian government has promoted orange, kinnow cultivation through subsidies, price supports and marketing initiatives.
3. Global demand: The increasing demand for fresh fruits worldwide has led to a growing demand for citrus, driving the export market.
4. Processing capacity: India has a well-established processing industry for orange, kinnow which can meet the demands of the export market.

Top importing countries for oranges from India

	2020-21		2021-22		2022-23
Country	Qty (MT)	Rs. (Lacs)	Qty (MT)	Rs. (Lacs)	Qty (MT)	Rs. (Lacs)
Bangladesh	141,262.63	40,764.38	103,961.24	37,034.91	63,152.55	13,840.13
Nepal	20,214.26	4,103.90	15,362.91	3,384.39	9,634.51	2,568.14
Bhutan	11.35	11.16	95.34	108.58	209.91	241.81
UAE	442.88	201.13	63.31	37.53	137.59	56.43
Bahrain	34.19	13.1	51.02	18.12	7.99	8.22
Singapore	0.32	0.22	4.16	6.79	6.79	6.05
Maldives	2.96	2.8	0.41	0.38	4.66	4.68
USA	1.92	10.03	4.03	18.62	1	3.95
Oman	108.92	50.39	0.25	2.29	1.58	1.48
Qatar	85.05	44.27	1.93	1.62	2.1	1.32

The main constraints for export are

1. Lack of exportable varieties to be cultivated in India.
2. High post-harvest loss and lack of complementing infrastructure and awareness.
3. High cost of obtaining export certification
4. Irregularities in harvested quality fruit supply and lack of testing labs.
5. Inadequate and inappropriate storage and logistics infrastructure.

b) Post-Harvest Loss: Losses at post-harvest for citrus fruits are 5-10% in most developed countries and 25-30% in developing countries. The losses can be either due to phyto-pathogens or from respiration/transpiration rate, rough handling during harvest or because of inadequate transportation means, physical factors, physiological disorder. The post-harvest losses of oranges are estimated at 8.3-30.7% under Indian conditions which is due to faulty storage techniques condensation of moisture, heat which permits low gaseous exchange leading to spoilage. In a detailed survey conducted at NRC Citrus, the losses in farmhouse packed fruit were 15.6%-20.7% by truck and 19.2%-21.9% by train transport from Nagpur to Delhi.

Losses (%) of Citrus in India from harvest to post harvest (ICAR, CIPHET, 2015)

c) Post-harvest operations to maintain quality fruits:

• Washing & disinfection: Washing and air-drying improve the appearance/quality of the fruits where the rotten, diseased, insect damaged, discoloured and deformed fruits are sorted out carefully. The water used for washing should be sanitized with appropriate sanitizers and maintained at a pH of 6.5.
  • Gentle handling: Fruits are handled gently to minimize mechanical damage, bruising and breaking of the skin by reduction of number of handlings. The damaged skin stimulates dehydration of the fruits and make secondary microbial attack.
  • Temperature & humidity control: Pre-cooling is necessary to remove field heat and to retard the ripening of the fruit after harvesting, particularly when undertaken in hot weather. For rightly matured harvest, maintaining a temperature between 2°C-3°C, the market period may be extended up to 4 months, whereas for short-term storage and transit, 10°C is adequate. High humidity retards loss of moisture and maintains the crop in better condition, thus been preferred to be stored at optimum relative humidity of 90%-95%.
  • Storage in cold room: Four basic principles are followed: i. Selection of healthy fruits, as refrigeration does not destroy pathogens nor improve the quality, and only slows down their decays and maintains quality. ii. Timely cooling of the produce, which slows the development of micro-organisms and physiological changes. iii. Maintaining optimal conditions for temperature and relative humidity. iv. Uninterrupted refrigeration from the point of harvest to the point of consumption.
  • Waxing: This technology suitable for preservation of fruit. where the shelf life of the fruit can be enhanced by more than two weeks. Wax prevents evaporation of water from the produce and gives shine to the surface. Food grade wax with FSSAI accreditation can be applied manually by rubbing it onto the fruit surface or by spraying it on a bed of rotating horsehair-grade brushes.
  • Controlled atmosphere storage: In CAS, the fruit is placed in the gas-tight refrigerated chamber allowing the natural respiration of the fruits. This decreases the oxygen content and increase the percentage of carbon dioxide in the chamber extending the storage life of the fruit.
  • Shortening marketing & transit time: The losses of the fruits are reduced largely by reducing the marketing channel and transit times.
  • Sanitation: Proper sanitary/aseptic conditions are maintained during handling, storage, cleaning and washing equipment, used for the fruits to minimize the risk of spreading diseases. Insects infesting the fruits may migrate to quality fruits and introduce secondary pathogens.
  • De-greening: Ethylene, a naturally produced plant growth hormone, is used. The treatment also improves the external skin color and export market acceptance. The de-greening process involves exposing green-skinned Mandarin fruit of uniform grade to low levels of ethylene (usually between 1 ppm-10 ppm) at 20°C-25°C and 90% relative humidity. The carbon dioxide level inside the treatment chamber should not rise above 2000 ppm. Ethephon (500 ppm for 1 minutes), can also be applied by dipping the fruit at room temperature.
  • Packaging: Fruits can be packed in wooden boxes for distant markets, or in baskets of split bamboo and mulberry for local marketing. 

d) Mitigation steps for post-harvest loss

India, with its diverse agro-climatic conditions, is one of the world’s leading producers of fresh fruits. However, the nation’s agricultural sector faces significant challenges, particularly in post-harvest management. The importance of understanding and addressing post-harvest losses cannot be overstated, especially in a developing country like India. This translates to losses in potential income for farmers and indicates the economic value that the nation loses each year. Addressing these losses requires a holistic approach that considers the economic, environmental, and social implications.

1. Botanicals, microbial antagonists, low/zero residue chemical actives should be introduced as treatment for management of post-harvest diseases especially for export.
2. Efforts should be made to develop awareness and usage of safe FSSAI approved fruit coatings for extending shelf-life and improving appearance of fruits.
3. Nutritional and organoleptic values to be preserved with innovated near harvest products ensuring quality harvest.
4. New varieties released by ICAR-CCRI should be evaluated for shelf-life storage ability, processing and value addition.
5. Adoption of new technologies and practices.

Conclusions

Climatic conditions to grow fruits almost year-round in India offer very good opportunity to tap overseas markets in global climate change scenario. The unique geographical location of India makes European, Gulf and South-East Asian markets accessible to Indian citrus fruits. The demand of citrus fruits is likely to increase by nearly 1.5 fold with by 2030 due to improved economy and better health awareness among the people. The growth of citrus production in future will have to come from increased productivity rather than area expansion. This demands innovative approaches in technology implementation/transfer coupled with high-tech interventions for increasing productivity and ensure quality harvest. Moreover, Citrus fruits post-harvest management must be done appropriately to maximize quality, reduce post-harvest losses, and increase shelf life. The status of Central Citrus Research Station was upgraded in 1986 to National Research Centre for Citrus (NRCC) which was further upgraded as Central Citrus Research Institute in 2014. The Institute has the mandate to undertake basic and applied research for developing technologies in crop improvement, production, protection and post-harvest management and increased productivity in citrus apart from training of stakeholders, transfer of technologies and developing linkages and collaborations with common interest. In this line public-private partnerships play a vital role in fostering innovation and research in sustainable recommendations to post-harvest management to citrus growers, aggregators, exporters.

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