Pune: Alphonso Mango, grapes, pomegranates will get PGI of European countries

Pune: A total of 14 fruit crops in Maharashtra, including Konkan's Alphonso mango, Nashik grapes and Jalgaon banana, will now receive the EU's best protected PGI (protected geographical indication) tag. This mark is very important in the international market, so all these fruit crops will be in good demand and will get a lot of price.

GI (geographical indication) markings are given to specific products in a particular region. After a year and a half of studying the historical background of the product, how many farmers take the product for how many years, what is the scientific similarity (uniqueness) in each product, this rating is obtained from an organization recognized by the Central Government. Products from various countries around the world are similarly labeled PGI by the European Union. The state government is now trying to get it.

There are 417 GI products in the country, including agriculture, industrial and other sectors. Out of these 417 products, 129 products are related to agriculture. The important thing for Maharashtra is that most of them, i.e. 26 products are from the state. Among them, grapes, hapus, pomegranate, orange, banana, strawberry, cashew, citrus, chiku, turmeric, onion, brinjal, rice and some other products are being sought to get PGI international mark.

The state government's agriculture department has taken the initiative. An online workshop of senior officials from the relevant departments of the European Union was also held recently for GI-marked fruit growers in the state. In it, the officials guided the producers on the importance of PGI in the market and how to get it. The markings are also given by the PGI taging organization after studying the historical background of the product, its nutritional value and other factors.

Prices abroad In European countries, fruit is bought mainly by looking at this tag. The state still exports large quantities of fruits to European countries. In addition, the tag is very important for traders in the world market. So if you get this tag, it will increase a lot. Maharashtra is the first state in the country to make efforts for this. Govind Hande- Consultant, State Export Cell