ICAR urges banana farmers to adopt latest technology

Tiruchirapalli, Oct 25 (UNI) The Deputy Director General of Horticulture, Indian Council of Agricultural Research(ICAR), H P Singh has called upon the banana farmers to adopt latest technology of farming and also to improve cultivation practices through skilled manpower, as there was a growing demand for quality banana in both the domestic and export market.

Dr Singh while delivering the key-note address at the inaugural three-day international conference on 'quality production of banana for domestic and export market', organised by the Association for the Improvement in Products and Utilisation of Banana (AIPUB) here yesterday said thanks to quality consciousness among customers, a new style in the form of contract farming in fruit and food and adoption of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) was gathering strength.

He said several corporates had entered into retailing of fresh fruits, including banana and the forward-backward linkages for supply chain were also developing. Pre-harvest quality and efficient post-harvest management, balanced use of nutrients, protection from diseases were some of the factors, which determined the quality, he added.

Dr Singh also underlined the need for sensitising the farmers to adoption of improved cultivation practices for achieving a better quality in banana and expressed his confidence that the technology and research would bring about a sea-change.

UNI RV KVV 1010