INI Farms, Munger Farms team up to grow blueberries in India

Indian horticultural company INI Farms and US-based blueberry grower Munger Farms have entered into a partnership to develop a global-value-chain for blueberries in India.

The partnership has an objective to promote blueberries cultivation in India, improve the consumption of the fruit and also boosting the country’s export basket of fresh fruits.

With this partnership, the two companies propose to make blueberries available at an affordable price and increased quality.

INI Farms and Munger Farms will establish production facilities of berries across India, starting with Maharashtra. The facilities will also be used for research and development and for training farmers.

The joint venture will focus on developing supply chains, demonstration plots, and farm-level expansions.

In addition to production in India, the joint venture plans to get the blueberry products from across the world based on the season, quality and prices to cater to consumers across the Middle East, India, and Southeast Asia. The products will include dried berries, juices and concentrates to streamline the processing grade production from farms to serve the institutional and retail requirements.

INI Farms, Munger Farms team up to grow blueberries in India. Image courtesy of zole4 at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Pankaj Khandelwal – Chairman, and Managing Director of INI Farms said: “There is an increased uptake of blueberries in India and the Middle East primarily due to health benefits. With this partnership, we are aiming to further expand the market potential of this fruit, make it readily available and easily accessible to the Indian consumers as well as contribute to India’s export of fresh fruits.

“We will contribute in a meaningful manner to the twin objectives of doubling farmer income and high growth of India’s horticulture products as envisaged in the agri-export policy.”

Munger Farms will help INI Farms to distribute Indian pomegranate, arils and pomegranate juice in the US. The joint venture will also partner with farmers in India to cultivate the products as per market requirements in the US.

David Munger – Owner and Director of Munger Farms said: “The Indian market holds great potential for blueberries consumption due to increased consumer awareness. We are proud to partner with a leading player like INI Farms to foster this growing industry.

“The INI-Munger Joint venture is a win-win partnership for both the farmers and the consumers, which will provide high quality super-healthy fruits by developing a global value chain in India.”