Ape Growini N Nashik Dis;
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APE GROWINI N NASHIK DIS; •1 Tl 51 • \ CHAPTER TWO WINE GRAPE GROWING AND WINEMAKING IN NASHIK DISTRICT 2.1 Viticulture in Nashik District Historically grapevine was first introduced to Indian agriculture way back in 1300 A.D. The rulers from Afghanistan planted a few well-known varieties during the 14th century. However the first plantation of the country was started in Maharashtra near Aurangabad with popular seeded varieties like Gulabi and Anab - e - Shahi. Subsequently the import of reputed seedless varieties like Thompson seedless, Kishmish, and Beauty seedless initiated the commercial production of grapes in India (Bhosale, 2001). Shikhamany (2005) studied the main areas of grape cultivation in India like Nasik, Sangli, Solapur, Satara, Pune, Ahmednagar, Latur and Osmanabad districts in Maharashtra, Bijapur, Bagalkot, Belgaum, Gulbarga, Bangalore and Kolar districts in Karnataka, Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Mahbubnagar and Medak districts in Telangana, Anantapur, and Chittoor districts in Andhra Pradesh and Theni, Coimbatore and Madurai districts in Tamil Nadu. Few pockets of grape production also exist in Bhatinda, Ferozpur, Gurdaspur and Ludhiana districts in Punjab, Hissar and Jind districts in Haryana, Meerut in Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and parts of Himachal Pradesh (Table 2.1). 2.1.1 Agro-climatic Zones of India Shikhamany (2005) identified the three distinct agro-climatic zones in India which support commercial grape cultivation namely sub-tropical, hot tropical and mild tropical climatic regions. • The sub-tropical region lying between 28° N and 32° N latitudes includes Punjab, Haryana, western part of Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. Vines experience dormancy due to severe northern winters; single pruning and a single harvest is the general farming practice in this region. Perlette and Thompson Seedless grape cultivars are mostly dominant in this zone. • The hot tropical region includes the peninsular states of Maharashtra, northern parts of Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh lying between 15° N and 20° N latitudes. Warmer climes of peninsular India hinder vine dormancy and double pruning and a single harvest is the common practice. This region 39 stands as the chief viticulture region of the country accounting for 70% of the area under grapes in India. Viticulture in this region is affected by soil and water salinity and enduring drought conditions. Popular varieties of this zone are Thompson Seedless and its clones (Tas-A-Ganesh, Sonaka), Anab-e- Shahi, Sharad Seedless and Flame Seedless. • The mild tropical region is found betweenlO0 N and 15° N latitudes covering Bangalore and pockets of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Bangalore Blue, Anab - e - Shahi, Gulabi, and Bhokri dominate the viticultural landscape with two crops being harvested in a year. Table 2. 1 Chief grape growing states of India Agro-climatic States Concentrated Pockets zone Nasik. Sangli, Solapur, Satara, Pune, Ahmednagar, Maharashtra Hot Tropical Latur, Osmanabad Bijapur, Bagalkot, Belgaum, Gulbarga Hot Tropical Karnataka Bangalore, Kolar Mild Tropical Tamil Nadu Theni, Coimbatore, Madurai Mild Tropical Andhra Anantapur Hot Tropical Pradesh Chittoor Mild Tropical Telangana Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Mahbubnagar, Medak Hot Tropical Delhi Sub Tropical Haryana Hissar, Jind Sub Tropical Punjab Bhatinda, Ferozpur, Gurdaspur, Ludhiana /ktrtTTro^feak Source: Modified from Shikhamany, 2005 2.1.2 Key Statistics According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the world has 71,04,512 ha of land under grape cultivation with an annual production of 6,71,16,225 tons of grapes. More than 80% of the world produce is used for winemaking while the rest is utilized for table purposes, raisins and grape juice. Approximately 15,62,378 ha of the world is under wine grape cultivation which yields 4,76,52,541 tons of wine grapes. In India, the area under grape cultivation is estimated to be 1,11,000 ha with a total production of 1.23 million tons and productivity of 11.1 tons/ha. Approximately 5,000 ha of land in the country are dedicated to wine grape cultivation which yields 40 around 50,000 tons of wine grapes (Fig 2.1) (Adsule et. al, 2013). In 2011-2012, total grapes exported from India was 1,08,580 tons amounting to Rs 602.88 crores, of which nearly 80% was exported from Maharashtra (APEDA, 2012). It may be noted that Indian viticulture suffered severe grape losses in the period 2009-10 due to heavy unseasonal rainfall. Consequently, grape production and its productivity suffered adversely as dipicted in Fig 2.2. ^ • Total Area Under \\ ine • Grape Production (ha) • • Total Area Under Table V ^F and Raisin Grape ^^ Production (ha) Source: National Horticulture Board, Gol, 2010 Fig 2.1 Area under grape cultivation - India (2010) 41 Source: National Horticulture Board, Gol, 2010 Fig 2.2 Production and productivity of grapes in India, 2001 - 2010 At present grape has emerged as a commercially important fruit crop of India with productivity as high as 11.1 tons/hectare (Shikhamany, 2005). The bulk of the grapes are table varieties consumed as a fresh fruit. Grapes are also being processed into value added products like canned grapes, raisins, juice and wine. However when compared to world utilization of grapes, India shows greater percentages in terms of table grape production and raisin making. It may be pointed out that more than 80% of the world produce is used for winemaking whereas in India a mere 4% is used for processing into wine (Fig 2.3). 42 'Wine & Juice u a-. i Raisin a i Table Grapes — Grape Utilisation Grape Utilisation (World) (India) Source: Adsule et al, 2013 Fig 2.3 Grape utilization - World and India Maharashtra is leading among the states in terms of area, production and export of grapes followed by Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Maharashtra has 92,000 ha under grape cultivation spreading over the districts of Nashik, Sangli, Solapur, Pune, Ahmednagar, Latur, Osmanabad and Satara. The annual production of grapes is around 7,74,000 tons. According to Adsule et. al, (2013), 65% of the total grapes produced in Maharashtra is used for table purposes while the rest is processed for value added products like raisins, grape juice, syrup, jam, jelly and wine. At present wine grape cultivation area in the state is around 3500 - 4000 acres with Nashik District in the forefront where the acreage is significant due to the local demand for wine grapes from its several wineries. 2.1.3 General Cropping Pattern in Nashik District The Maharashtra Agricultural Competitiveness Project (MACP), undertaken by the State's Department of Agriculture with the assistance of World Bank identified five primary crops of the Nashik District namely onion, grapes, tomato, maize and bajra. Maize is the most widely grown crop of the district accounting for 18.2% of the gross cropped area followed by bajra (16.7%), onion (14.1%), paddy (7.3%), soybean (6%), grape (5.6%), cotton (4.9%), wheat (3.5%), groundnut (3.2%), pomegranate (2.1%) and tomato (0.8%). In addition, several other crops are also grown in the 43 district giving rise to a cropping pattern consisting of a mix of cereals, millets, cotton and horticultural crops (MACP, 2014). Among the principal cereal crops maize has registered a steady increase in cultivation over the years while Kharif bajra farming has declined in the last five years by nearly 20% due to a recent shift in the general consumption pattern weighing towards wheat. The major pulses cultivated in the district include red gram, green gram and black gram which are Kharif crops while Bengal gram is grown as a Rabi crop. The district is also a significant producer of oilseeds particularly soybean and groundnut. In addition, cotton is an important cash crop of Nashik District which promises high market returns. The district is particularly known for its fruits and vegetables like onions, tomato, grapes and pomegranate. Among the horticultural crops grapes and pomegranate are very popular. This has also led to specific agribusiness opportunity for the farmers in terms of developing grape export unit and pomegranate grading, sorting, packing and collective marketing unit in the district (MACP, 2014). Grape is a major cash crop extensively grown in Dindori (Khedgaon, Koshimbe, Bhanwad and Kasbewani), Niphad (Kasbe Sukhane, Vinchur, Lasalgaon. Saikheda and Ramachi Pimplas) and around Nashik with the main collection centers at Lasalgaon, Vinchur, Pimplegaon Basawant, Dindori - Vani, Nashik - Devlali. Trimbak and Sinnar - Nandur Singote. Post harvest management of fruits is gaining importance particularly for grapes where farmers are sorting, cleaning and grading the produce prior to marketing as it fetches higher prices. Few grape growers have proper space to sort in structured storage houses and therefore grape sorting is mostly done in the field sites before vehicle loading for delivery. Evening harvest is generally chosen to maintain berry freshness. Efficient logistic facilities are used for stock delivery to local traders or bigger neighbouring markets (MACP, 2014 and Field Survey. 2012). The MACP (2014) report also highlighted that the district has over a hundred cold storage facilities which are also utilized by the grape farmers for around 1.5-2 months for extending the season. Refrigerated vans are only used by the grape exporters for stock transport. Most grape growers prefer direct sale to the traders for a higher price to Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees (APMC). In several cases, the fanners have direct access to the large merchants and exporters in major urban markets like Mumbai and Pune. In this context, it may be pointed out that post harvest management of wine grapes is relatively simpler than table grapes as the former goes 44 to the winery for processing into wine while the latter needs to directly arrive in the market in fresh, crisp and spotless condition (Banerjee, 2012). 2.1.4 Growth of the Nashik Grape Cluster Grape is one of the most important commercial fruit crop in Maharashtra with Nashik District as the main grape growing region.