The Horticulture sector is a valuable part of Indian Agriculture and constitutes around 33% of the Gross Value Added (GVA). This makes it an important contributor and significantly indicates the government’s effort to provide policy support to boost the productivity and efficiency of the sector leading to gradual growth over the years.

The Ministry of Agriculture & Family Welfare has released the production of horticultural crops to be around a record 351.92 million tonnes for 2022-23 under their second advance estimate for 2021-22. This will record an increase of around 1.4% from 2021-22. It states that the production of horticulture crops ranks higher than food grain contributing about 30.4% of India’s GDP enabling the horticulture sector to emerge as a leader in terms of production and registering financial gain.

It is resulting in higher revenue of farmers, generating additional rural jobs, boosting the level of agricultural occupation besides securing nutritional security. As per the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), India is the second-highest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world and 90% of horticulture production in India accounts for the same. The low-cost horticulture production process is the key reason behind this success complemented by cheap labor and an appropriate climate for supporting such crops.

India achieved new heights with an increase of around 4.74 million tonnes in 2022-23 in comparison to the previous year, hoping to see a steady rise in the production of vegetables, fruits, honey, flowers, and plantation crops. The production of fruits and vegetables in 2022-23 is expected to be around 108.34 million tonnes and 212.91 million tonnes respectively. For plantation crops, the estimate is around 16.05 million tonnes in 2022-23 witnessing an increase of 1.78% from 2021-22.

The horticulture crops estimate a total rise of around 38.5% from 2004-05 to 2021-22 (basis the third advance estimate). In recent times, the horticulture sector has seen a significant rise in production which represents a steady growth pattern to contribute to the overall progress of the Indian economy. The developments are assisted by government-led policies, efficient scientific research, climate conditions, and the rising interest of farmers in horticulture production across the country.