Future-Proofing Apples

Celebrated as the “Apple Bowl of India,” the Valley produces nearly three-quarters of the country’s total apple output, over 20 lakh metric tonnes every year. More than a quarter of the region’s population, nearly 35 lakh people, are directly or indirectly dependent on this industry. Yet, year after year, the trade is held hostage to weather, road closures, and inadequate infrastructure. The recent losses, with truckloads of fruit stranded on the Srinagar-Jammu highway and prices crashing in outside mandis, are a reminder of how fragile this backbone of rural livelihood remains.

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Despite efforts by the administration, such as deploying RTC trucks to check exploitative freight rates, or starting parcel train services to Delhi, growers say the real crisis is not just logistics but demand. Even as 1.37 lakh metric tonnes of fruit moved out of the Valley in ten days, nearly two-thirds of the crop still lies unsold in orchards and godowns. In mandis, oversupply and weak demand are driving prices further down, threatening to push many orchardists deeper into debt. This is not a passing worry but a structural crisis.