The humble, but full-of-nutrition, banana is certainly not out of vogue and the mango still remains a favourite summer treat, but Indian consumers are fast seeking out more, and therefore a steep rise in imports of fresh fruit has been witnessed recently.

The country currently imports 350,000 metric tonnes of fruit per annum, worth about Rs30 billion, which is expected to increase to Rs40 billion in two-three years. From a minuscule figure a few years ago, India’s annual import of fresh fruit is steadily growing.

A recent report shows that kiwifruit import has been growing at a magnificent 60 per cent annually, along with citrus fruits at 30 per cent and apples at 20 per cent respectively.

New Zealand is the largest supplier of fresh fruit accounting for imports worth USD $703,890.79 followed by Chile and Vietnam which exported Fresh-Fruit worth USD $248,810.06 and USD $165,005.69, respectively.

(1 Indian Rupee = USD $0.015)

Source: indiainfoline.com