It's all about benchmarking. Indian potato is all set to reach out to 80 countries, mostly in Europe, thanks to Indian farmers getting their produce certified by a global agency. Export prospects of potato are looking up with farmers taking Global GAP Certification for the production of the vegetable.
With the certification, farmers in Gujarat, a leading producer of potatoes in India, will be able to produce quality potatoes which can be exported to as many as 80 nations across the globe that are signatory of the certificate. This will also take the price of the vegetable higher by an estimated 25-30%, with farmers earning good profit.
Banaskantha and Sabarkantha districts have been a leading producer of the vegetable in north Gujarat. With the certification, potatoes produced in Modasa and Dhansura in Sabarkantha will hit markets in Mauritius, Singapore, Malaysia and Gulf countries. In India, potato chips-making companies like Fritolays are also expected to fall back on farmers for quality produce.
As per agriculture estimates, Gujarat produces about 26 metric tonne per hectare of potatoes across 48,000 hectare of agriculture land. State's agriculture department estimates total production of potatoes to be around 12 lakh metric tonne, of which Disa and Modasa in Banaskantha district, Ladol in Mahesana, Vijpur and Voriyavi in Anand are the main producing areas.
