ddg horticulture key note address
TRANSCRIPT
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A New Paradigm in Horticulture with
Special Reference to Floriculture
Key Note Address
By
Dr H P SINGH
Deputy Director General (Horticulture)Indian Council of Agricultural Research
Krishi Anusandhan Bhavan-II,
Pusa, New Delhi- 110 012
During
National Workshop
Floral Craft:
The Art and Technique for Value Addition in Flowers
(April, 12, 2012)
At
Navsari Agricultural University, Navsari
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A New Paradigm in Horticulture with special reference
to Floriculture
H P Singh1
Ladies and Gentlemen,
1. It is a matter of great honour and privilege to be here and
deliver key note address address on the occasion ofNational
Workshop- Floral Craft: The Art and Technique for Value
Addition in Flowers. Floriculture has emerged as an importantsub-sector of horticulture in providing the livelihood security to
small and marginal farmers, besides providing ample
opportunities for domestic and export markets.Therefore, this
workshop is organized by ASPEE College of Horticulture and
Forestry, Navsari Agricultural University in association with
Indian Society of Ornamental Horticulture, Directorate of
Floricultural Research, Flower Grower association andHorticulture Society of Gujarat. I consider, the Workshop, timely
to address the emerging issues, take stock of the research in
floriculture and identify the gaps and prepare ourselves to
respond quickly to the changing needs so as to harness the
potential. After attaining the self sufficiency in food production,
the Government of India focused its attention on nutritional and
livelihood security for the ever increasing population. This focus
has brought the horticulture sector to the forefront through the
initiatives taken by the Government. In Gujarat, horticultural
crops especially floriculture has become more popular primarily
due to their capacity to provide better returns per unit area.
2. We feel proud to state that, Indian agriculture has made
rapid strides in achieving self sufficiency in food production
recording 4.5 times increase in production from the base line of
1Deputy Director General (Horticulture) Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Krishi
Anusandhan Bhawan-II, Pusa Campus, New Delhi 110 012, Key note Address forNational Workshop on Flower Craft: The art and technique for value addition in flowersto be held on April, 12-13, 2012 at NAU, Navsari.
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1950-51 through Green revolution. Our efforts have also
resulted in achieving 8 times increase in horticulture, 6 times in
milk and 9 times in fish from the base level of 1950-51. This
has been possible due to technological interventions, which isalso evident from the fact that area has remained static at 142
million hectare for the last 40 years, but production has
increased manifold. Pressure on the cultivable land for
agriculture continues to be high as Indian agriculture that
supports 17% of world population and 11% of livestock only
from 2.4% of global land and 4.5 % of water resources. Looking
into population growth, declining land, water coupled withchallenges of climate change has created much greater
concern to feed the growing population. The challenges before
us are much greater than before, and have to be addressed
with strategic approaches utilizing innovations in science and
technology. Past achievements are testimony for our success
in addressing the challenges, which may need investment and
concerted efforts in integrated manner.
3. In this context, horticulture (which includes fruits, vegetables,
flowers, potato and tuber crops, spices, medicinal and aromatic
plants and plantation crops) has emerged as the best option for
diversification to meet the need for food, nutrition, health care
besides providing better returns on farm land and employment.
Little investment made in horticulture has been rewarding interms of increased production, productivity and export and
emergence of India as largest producer of fruits and
vegetables. This changing scenario is attributed to
technological interventions and efforts for development.
Science and technology-led development has been a driving
force to face the challenges. Therefore, horticulture research
needs much more attention for utilization of waste land,
greening nutritional security, employment opportunity, reversing
the declining profitability, gender equity, health care and above
all for inclusive growth.
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Scenario of Horticulture Research and Development
4. Under the National Agriculture Research System, ICAR has
been playing a pivotal role in providing the required leadershipin the development of technologies, new cultivars and their
dissemination. These initiatives have resulted in increased
production, productivity and also availability of horticultural
produce. One of the significant developments seen during the
last decade is that horticulture has moved from rural confine to
commercial production, and this changing scenario has
encouraged private sector investment in production systemmanagement. The economic importance of horticultural
produce has been increasing over the years due to increasing
domestic and international demand. Area, production,
productivity, availability and export has improved manifold. This
has provided ample opportunity for utilization of waste land,
better employment and effective land use planning. Resultantly,
horticulture is identified for inclusive growth. Among thehorticulture crops, fruit crops recorded a two fold increase in
area and production in the last decade. India is the second
largest producer of fruits (75 million ton) from 6.42 million ha
area and contributes 11 per cent share in global fruit
production. India occupies first place in the production of
mango, banana, papaya, pomegranate, sapota and aonla.The
productivity of grape is the highest in the world. Production andproductivity of banana and sapota is highest in the world.
However productivity in citrus, mango, apple, guava and
pineapple continue to be lower than world average. Production
of vegetables has increased manifold to the tune of 141 million
tonne. Commercial floriculture has grown many folds in the last
decade to attain a record production of 1031 MT of loose flower
and 6902 million cut flowers from an estimated area of 191000
ha area. Intensive floriculture has contributed considerably for
generation of employment. Medicinal and aromatic plants,
which has immense potential has got due recognition in the last
decade. We continue to be the largest producer, consumer and
exporter of spices and spice products in the world and produce
more than 50 spices. India is the leading producer of plantation
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crops in the world with a contribution of 22.34% in coconut,
25% in cashew nut and 55% in areca nut. Past trend in
development has been satisfying in terms of technological
adoptions, production, availability and export of horticulturalproduce, and this trend has been marked as "Golden
Revolution".
Research Support for Horticulture
5. The horticultural research in the country is being carried out
at 10 ICAR institutes (with 24 regional stations) 6 Directoratesand 7 National Research Centers (on major crops). Area
specific, multi-disciplinary research is also being conducted
under All India Co-ordinated Research Projects each on
Tropical, Sub-Tropical, Arid Fruits, Vegetables, Potato, Tuber
Crops, Mushroom; Floriculture, Medicinal and Aromatic crops,
Betel vine, Palms, Cashew, and Spices at 251 centers located
at various research institutes and State AgriculturalUniversities. In addition, 5 network projects have been
approved in XI plan to address specific issues. Research on
horticulture is also undertaken in multi-disciplinary institutes,
departments of horticulture in 37 Agricultural Universities, two
Deemed Universities and 3 Universities of Horticulture and
Forestry. The Horticulture Division of ICAR is responsible for
national level planning and promotion of major researchprograms in relation to horticultural crops. The main focus of
program is to safeguard the genetic resources, develop
suitable cultivar of different crops, and augment the production
and protection technologies and also technologies for
enhanced shelf-life. Five National Research Centers on
Cashew, Onion and Garlic, Mushroom, Medicinal and Aromatic
Plants and Oil palm have been upgraded to function in
directorate mode having all India program. Realizing the
importance of the floriculture sector, the AICRP on floriculture
has been upgraded to a full-fledged Directorate of Floriculture
to cater the research needs of the sector. Two genomic
network projects are being operated in India at various ICAR
institutes on horticultural crops namely, International
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Solanaceae Genome Network program and International
Network on Improvement of Banana and Plantain.
Floriculture in the changing times
6. Floriculture which includes cut flowers, loose flowers,
bedding plants, potted plants, hedges, value added products
etc. has made appreciable growth in the last two decades as
commercial venture. The use of floricultural produce is no
longer confined to religious purposes alone but floriculture has
become a part of modern lifestyle and is being utilized in floraldecorations, floral craft, interior-scaping and commercial
premises. Today, floriculture represents business and activities
involving production of ornamental plants, cut flowers, turf,
foliage and delivers a range of services for such projects. The
business has transformed to landscape design, contracting and
maintenance services, whole sale and retail sales,
development of parks and leisure places, gardens,greenhouses including various greenhouse inputs besides
providing technical advices. Resultantly, development of
floriculture has provided not only opportunities for floriculture
farming but also for improving livelihood compared to other
crops. The development of floriculture also provides very good
business opportunities in other allied sectors like specialized
transport services and production of supply of allied products,nursery bags, pots, potting media, tools, plant protection and
other equipments etc. This has happened due to the vision of
policy planners who were involved with various stakeholders in
floriculture sector and provided the required direction that has
resulted in appropriate growth in floriculture.
Current Support for Floriculture
7. The Government of India liberalized the economy during late
80s. During the same time, the National Seed Policy was also
liberalized paving the way for the import of planting material of
elite, exotic varieties from different parts of the world. The
liberalized economy also favoured Foreign Direct Investment
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(FDI) in some of floriculture companies and some of the
infrastructure and input supply industries. This has helped in
the advent of state of the art greenhouse cultivation of flower
crops in our country during early 90s. A large number of publicissues were floated to establish 100% EOUs in different parts
of the country particularly in Karnataka, Maharstra, Tamilnadu,
Gujarat etc., The euphoria thus generated could not be
sustained for longer since the infrastructure and logistics
required for handling such volumes was not available at that
juncture. However, the scenario changed in due course of time.
With the proactive role played by the public and private sectororganizations, infrastructure facilities and logistic network was
put in place to support the floriculture sector. Establishment of
cold storage facilities at airports, large fleet of reefer vans for
effective transportation, commissioning of state of the art
international flower auction centers at Bangalore and Noida are
some of the recent developments in this direction.
Scenario of Floriculture
Global trade in floriculture
8. The term Horticulture/Floriculture which is gaining popularity
in recent times is also known globally as the Green Industry
or Environmental Horticulture Industry. International
Floriculture trade is around US $ 17 billion, which is increasingphenomenally at 10.3 percent annually and is expected to
reach US$ 25 billion by 2025. Flowers and foliage account for
around 49 percent (US$ 8.41billion), and live plants, bulbs and
cuttings account for 51 percent (US$ 8.58 billion) of total
floriculture products exported. Developed countries in Europe,
America and Asia account for more than 90 percent of the total
world trade in floriculture products. In recent years a paradigm
change in the flora industry has been observed and has lead to
the development of new production centers in Asia and Africa
which were earlier concentrated in USA and Europe. In Asia,
India, China and Thailand are moving progressively in this
direction and emerging as leading countries. The international
trade in floriculture, to a large extent is organized along
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regional lines. Asia-Pacific countries are the main suppliers to
Japan and Hong Kong. African and other European countries
are the principal suppliers to Europes main markets, and the
supplies to the United States are mainly catered by Colombiaand Ecuador. In spite, of these, there is a vacuum in flower
markets during peaks of festive seasons in winter, as per the
reports of world floriculture marketing. Commercialization of
floriculture had started in mid of 19th century in our country but
the commercial flora-industry has developed only in the recent
years and emerged in the form of lucrative flora industry, an
economical viable option in Agri-business. Floriculture producefrom India has now been recognized for its quality at global
level even though its share still remains less than 1%. The
demand for dried ornamentals, dried floral arrangements &
floral craft items has increased manifolds during the last two
decades. The world import of dried flowers and plants has
increased from 14.88 million US$ in 1996 to 230.73 million US$
in 2008 and decreased to 167.34 million US$ in 2009 (Source:UNCOMTRADE). The United Kingdom is the biggest market for
dried flowers. The leading dried ornamentals products
exporting countries during 2009 in the world were India (18%)
followed by the Netherlands (17%), USA (14%), Italy (10%) and
Germany (6%). The leading dried ornamentals products
importing countries during 2009 in the world were USA (18%)
followed by Germany (17%), the Netherlands (11%), Belgium(11%) and France (7%). The dried ornamentals market is most
profitable in terms of total sales and unit value among all the
floricultural products. The top ten dried flower genera as ever-
lasting cultivated are Helichrysum, Helipterum, Limonium,
Nigella, Gypsophila, Delphinium, Amaranthus, Papaver,
Carthamus and Rosa.
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2007 2008 2009
0
50
100
150
200
250
Million US$
1 2 3
Year
Total export of dried ornamentals in the world w.e.f. 2007 to 2009
Leading exporters of dried ornamentals in the world during 2009
58.34
9.52
16.55
23.39
28.07
30.47
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
India Netherlands USA Italy Germany Others
Leading expoters
MillionUS$
Indian Status
Traditional Flowers
9. Growing traditional loose flowers for worship and decorations
is the main stay of Indian Floriculture, which occupies about
1,91,000 ha area during 2010-11 with a production of 1031 MT.
The flowers are grown in the open field and are marketedthrough highly unorganized marketing channels. The domestic
consumption of loose flowers especially of marigold, China
aster, jasmine, crossandra, barleria, etc. has increased
tremendously (>90% of total flower crops area) in recent years.
This sector, despite having huge potential, is still unorganized
and often does not get proper importance. Concerted efforts
need to be made to develop high yielding varieties for the year
182.57 m US$ 230.73 m US$ 167.34 m US$
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round production, particularly of chrysanthemum, China aster
and marigold and to promote flower crops such as annual
chrysanthemum, desi rose, etc. and to develop organized
marketing for flowers, flower-based products and seeds. Thearea under floricultural crops is hardly 0.01% of the total area
available for horticulture with a share of 0.44% in the overall
production of horticultural crops.
Cut flowers under protected conditions
10. India produced about 43417 lakh cut flowers per annum(2007-08) for domestic and export markets. Which, rose to
69020 lakh flowers during 2010-11. The cut flower production
centers are located primarily in the southern and western part
of India owing to the favourable climatic conditions. States like
Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Tamil
Nadu, Gujarat, Rajasthan, West Bengal have emerged as
major flower producing states. North Eastern states and otherHimalayan states in the recent times have become major hubs
for growing quality cut flowers. The Anthuriums from Mizoram,
the carnations from Himachal Pradesh, Orchids from Sikkim,
gerbera from Uttarakhand and Gujarat made a significant
impact in recent times.
11. With the declaration of floriculture as an extreme focusarea by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government
of India, floriculture sector has acquired a special status. India
produces a wide variety of floricultural products, which inter alia
include flowers and foliage, both fresh flowers and dried, like
roses, carnations, chrysanthemums and orchids. The
International Flora and Landscape Expo-2006 reviewed the
growth of floriculture industry and showcased Indias floriculture
wealth and exposed the stakeholders to new technologies and
scientific advancements, a platform for Indian exporters to
interact with international buyers of cut flowers. With worlds
fastest growing retail market, second largest consumer base
and unlimited opportunities for growth, Indian Floriculture can
become a force to reckon with in the years to come to make
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recognize India as a Flower Power. This is part of a new
National Vision for Floriculture, the brainchild of former
President APJ Abdul Kalam. Floriculture industry is targeting
an annual turnover of $ 1 billion in export of floriculturalproducts.
12. Currently, flower trade has attracted the largest demand
from an estimated 300 million middle-class flower-loving people
with consumption in the cities and major towns at 40% per
annum. Flower retail shops have mushroomed all over the
place from major metros to market shops and flower boutiques.Further, super market/hypermarket retail chains have fueled
the growth in the consumption. Cashing in on this trend, the
Minister of State for Commerce also feels that floriculture is all
about creating new employment opportunities in far flung areas
rather than talking about Dollars, the focus should be on its
capacity to generate a million jobs. Six Agri Export Zones on
floriculture have been set up in Sikkim, Tamil Nadu,Uttarakhand, Karnataka and Maharashtra. The APEDA has
also taken a number of measures to facilitate floriculture
exports. Some key Indian airports like New Delhi, Mumbai,
Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram and
Cochin now have cold storage and cargo handling facilities.
More airports will have these facilities in the future. Among
other things, flower auction centres have come up inBangalore, Mumbai, Noida (near Delhi), and Kolkata. These
are readymade market facilities for trading and price discovery
for a variety of flowers, both for export and domestic markets.
India has to achieve the ambitious export target of Rs.1,000
crore per annum over the next 5 years, a paradigm shift is
required. The key issues that need to be addressed in the
Indian context are; economics of scale, product range/latest
varieties, year round exports, quality control and certification,
cold chain management. The APEDA has been addressing
these issues through various forums on a concerted basis
given its mandate to promote floricultural exports from India.
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Trade Opportunity in Floriculture
13. The increasing demand projected for both cut flowers and
potted plants in Western countries will result in the productionoutside and traditional area, due to the pressure of escalating
cost and environmental regulation. Asian countries would gain
from the situation and expand further by increasing the
production of existing products as well as expanding the
produce range. However, post-harvest management and
meeting the import standard would pose a challenge as
consuming countries would make the strict regulations tosafeguard the interests of local growers. In the context of
development, growers would be interested to know the types of
cut flowers or potted plants to meet the demand for different
occasions. The latest data available from the Aalsmeer Flower
Auction Centre indicates that rose, tulip and chrysanthemum
rank top three positions among cut flowers. Similarly,
kalanchoe, hedera and ficus rank high among pot plants.Germany, France and UK remain top consumers of floricultural
products in the world. Among species, colour of flowers is
important. Since varieties in demand today may not be
important tomorrow, it would require necessary change in
cultivars as per the needs.
Export Potential of Floricultural Products
14. India is endowed with proximity to market in Japan, Russia,
South-East Asia and Middle-East countries. The Government
allows subsidy on air freight for export of cut flowers and
tissue-cultured plants. Freight rates are subsidized for export
to Europe and West Asia, South East Asia. Import duties have
been reduced on cut flowers, flower seeds and tissue-cultured
plants. Floricultural exports from India comprise fresh cut
flowers (to Europe, Japan, Australia, Middle East and USA),
loose flowers (for expatriate Indian in the Gulf), cut foliage (to
Europe), dry flowers (to USA, Europe, Japan, Australia, far
East and Russia) and potted plants (limited to very few
countries). Out of thee components, dry flowers contribute a
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major share to the total export. The country made significant
strides in the production of cut flowers which were either
exported or consumed in the domestic markets. The
floricultural exports registered a phenomenal growth during thelast decade
15. In view of exports, an exponential growth of floriculture
products was being observed in 2006-7 when the exports
reached to 649.6 crores. But since then, a decrease to 340.14
crores (2007-8), 368.81 crores (2008-9) and 294.46 crores
(2009-10) and 286.42) crores (2010-11) has been witnessedowing to the downfall of the world economy. The dry flower
industry contributes to 60-70% in the exports. India is the fifth
largest exporter of dried flowers, and second largest exporter of
dried foliage in the world accounting for around 7 percent of
world exports in dry flowers and foliage. Gujarat State has
strong cooperative credit & marketing structure, 350
greenhouse units, along with 265 cold storages having 12.50lakh metric tons storage capacity. About 42 fruit & vegetable
co-operative marketing societies and 197 Agriculture Produce
Market Committees (APMCs) dealing with selling & buying of
horticulture produce in the State. As far as area under
floriculture is concerned, about 14500 ha area is covered under
flower crops in the state.
16. Indian exports mostly target the major floriculturally
important events like Christmas day (December) New Year
Eve, Valentine day, and Mothers day (May). The major factors
are the unfavourable weather conditions during winter in major
production centres in the Northern Hemisphere that limit the
production. Therefore, markets are open to produce that
comes from more favourable climates from the Southern
Hemisphere. India, therefore, finds itself competing with other
equally favourable countries like Kenya, Ecuador, Morocco etc.
during such events.
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Components of Floriculture
Flower Seed Production
17. Seed production of seasonal flower crops is a lucrative
business and is practiced in considerable area in Punjab and
Haryana. This offers higher returns from unit area. Of late,
demand is increasing in domestic market also. Research work
is required to develop high-yielding varieties include F1 hybrids,
agro-techniques for producing uniform seed with higher
certification standards. Production of seeds of open pollinatedvarieties of annual flowers gained momentum in recent times to
produce seeds worth Rs. 6 crores from nearly 600 hectares
area (mainly in Punjab and Karnataka. Realizing the potential
of the seed production in ornamental crops the ICAR initiated a
Net Work project on F1 Hybrids in floricultural crops at IIHR,
Bangalore as the coordinated center with three sub-centers at
Dr.Y.S.P.U H&F, Solan, PAU, Ludhiana and MPKV, Pune.Promising pure lines in marigold, antirrhinum, pansy, petunia
were developed from a large collection of exotic and Indian
germplasm. Promising male sterile lines are identified in
marigold. The technology generated forms the base for the
large scale development of new varieties/hybrids in annual
flower crops.
Availability of quality planting material
18. With the growth of the production and trade of planting
material for ornamental crops, need for quality assurance was
also realized. It was noted that nursery production facilities
expanded in the country in view of the good profitability of the
most organizations in their quest for generating higher profits,
focused more on the quantities/volumes and in the bargain,
attention to quality was neglected. However, soon the
appreciation for the value of quality seed and planting material
was realized and quality assurance of the material started
receiving attention. Diagnostic tools for disease identification
and management have been developed and are in use.
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Disease free virus indexed planting materials are available in
most crops. In tulips, bulbs are used for propagation but many
viruses (TRV) affect the quality flower production.
19. Ornamental crops have been produced and used in the
country for ages. Besides the aesthetic value, their commercial
importance is being appreciated now. A large number of
varieties, particularly in rose, gladiolus, chrysanthemum,
marigold, aster, hibiscus, marigold, tuberose, jasmine etc. have
been evolved and their region specific package of practices
standardized. These varieties have contributed to broadeningthe genetic base of the material available for use in gardens
and parks, as well as, commercial production farms. Protocols
for the multiplication of the planting material for all these crops
have been developed, enabling expansion of their production
base of particular significance is the wide scale generation of
planting material through micro-propagation in both public and
private sector facilities. Licensed propagation and distributionrights awarded by several leading names in global floriculture
industry, particularly for rose, carnation, gerbera, anthurium,
orchids, lilium, gladiolus, calla lily etc. has added to the
varieties in commercial production in the country. Quality
planting material is constantly provided by the ICAR research
institutes for the mandated crops. IIHR, Bangalore supplies
china aster, marigold, tuberose, gladiolus, chrysanthemum,heliconia, red ginger, crossandra etc., Similarly IARI, New Delhi
provides planting material of rose, chrysanthemum, marigold,
tuberose, gladiolus etc.,
Nursery Industry
20. Lack of quality planting material is the major hindrance for
not realizing the full potential of floriculture in India. Plant
material of various kinds (seedlings, budded plants, rooted
cuttings, bulbs, tubers, corms, annual seed, etc.) is required for
commercial flower production, pot plant production (and their
rentals) for adding to home garden and for landscaping
(corporate landscaping, bioaesthetic planting, etc.).
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Hi-tech floriculture
21. The cut flowers, which are being exported from India, arefrom these hi-tech floricultural units. Protected cultivation,
although is in limited area (5% of total flower crop area), its
contribution to total floricultural exports is significant. At
present, there are about 110 export-oriented floricultural units
(EOUs) in operation, covering an area of 500 ha. These units
are growing mostly roses, but can be diversified into orchids,
Anthurium, gladiolus and tuberose as the demand for tropicalflowers is increasing worldwide. India has several advantages
and great potential to increase the acreage under intensive
production and ultimately to increase the floricultural exports
provided the units should be opened in ideal locations with
sound technological back-up. Indigenous technology for
greenhouse, irrigation, fertigation and crop management
including pest management is available for most of the flowercrops presently grown in the country from ICAR/CSIR and SAU
research establishments.
High Value Flowers
22. Of late, the cultivation of high value flowers like asiatic lily,
protea, heliconia, bird of paradise, etc. has come into practice.Because of their lucrative prices, the farmers get higher return
per unit area. Hence the farmers with small holdings can grow
these flowers under the favorable climatic conditions to improve
their livelihood through better profitability per unit area and
input used.
Value Addition
23. Indian consumer base and flower market is growing at 7-
10% annually. However, due to lack of infrastructure and
knowledge, least care is taken during their postharvest
handling with regard to maturity indices, hardening-
conditioning, pre-cooling, packaging etc. The transportation of
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flowers from the production centres to the wholesale markets at
present is largely unscientific. Prevailing conditions of high
temperature, lack of ventilation and relative humidity increase
respiration and transpiration rate in flowers and limit theirpostharvest quality life that results into huge postharvest losses
to the tune of 30 to 50%. In addition to this, high fluctuation in
the flower price (price fall up to 80%) is a big drawback of
Indian flower market and is influenced by the gluts due to
disorganization. It is the science of postharvest technology and
technique cum art of floral craft that can address these heavy
losses and improve the economic status of the growers. Valueaddition in flowers in the form of essential oils, flower-drying,
floral arrangements, tinting etc. are potential areas of
exploitation for strengthening the growth of floral industry
sector. Floral craft either in form of fresh or dry flower products
is an exclusive technique of value addition to the flowers
accounting to the tune of 25 to 100%. There is need of
popularizing the use of flowers through this exclusive techniqueof floral craft that includes fresh flower arrangements, table
decorations, loose floral designs, bouquets, corsage, wreaths,
dry floral articles, potpourris, etc.
Floral Craft
24. Floral craft includes floral dcor in western or eastern stylei.e. ikebana, corsage, wreathes, floral ornaments, loose flower
decorative etc. Marketing sector of floral crafts is presently
gaining momentum with the rapidly growing flora industry.
Floral craft has the potential to serve as a linkage between
growers and consumers as it directly emphasizes the utility of
flowers and a necessity for marketing of flowers. The growing
popularity of special day celebrations like Valentines' day,
women's day and mother's day has also contributed to the
growth of this art-cum-industry. The popularity and
commercialization of floral craft is rapidly increasing in our
country as depicted from the magnificent floral decorations
costing from Rs 10,000 to 20 lakhs in wedding and religious
ceremonies. Even the use of loose flowers in floral craft for hair
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ornaments like gajra, veni, broach etc. is also highly popular
especially in South India. Floral bouquet factories flourishing in
Thailand, China, UK, etc., are offering floral decor at high cost
for different occasions ranging from weddings, reception,spring, anniversary celebrations, etc. The growing urbanization
and changing lifestyles have given a boost to the per capita
consumption of flowers in our country and as a result flower
retail shops and boutiques have mushroomed all over the cities
and towns.
Dry Flowers
25. Dry flowers constitute more than two-thirds of total
floricultural exports. For making dry flowers, flowers and plans
parts can be collected from wild sources of some flower crops
like Dahlias, marigold, jute flowers, wood roses, wild lilies,
helichrysum, lotus pods, etc. Some flowers that are air-dried
and used include Dahlias (Dahlia hortensis), poppy seed heads(Papavere somniferum), roses (Rosa), Delphinium, larkspur
(Consolida ambigua), lavender (Lavandula augustifolia),
African marigold (Tagetes erecta) strawflower (Helichrysum
bracteatum), cornflower (Centaurea cyanus), statice (Limonium
sinuatum), globe amaranth (Gomphrena globosa), lotus pods
etc. Dry flowers constitute nearly 15% of the global floriculture
business and form the major share in Indian floricultural exportsas well. At present, the industry is not well-organised and
depends on plant material available in forests and no
systematic growing of specialized flowers exists anywhere in
the country. The demand for dry flowers is increasing at an
impressive rate of 8-10% and therefore there is a great scope
for the Indian entrepreneurs. Available technology for the dry
flower making and processing is available in the country and
can be effectively utilized in Gujarat and few other states.
Pot Pourri
26. Pot pourri is a mixture of dried, sweet-scented plant parts
including flowers, leaves, seeds, stems and roots. The basis of
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a pot pourri is the aromatic oils found within the plant. A
significant component of dry flower export comprises of pot
pourries. In the recent past, floriculture has been considered
as a viable option of diversification in agriculture. But nowwithin floriculture itself, there are a number of options a flower
grower or a floriculturist can take up. ICAR has recently
initiated a Value Chain Management in flower crops through
NAIP at TNAU in PPP mode to develop a complete end to end
package for making value added flowers including dry flowers
and pot pourries.
Essential Oils
27. Essential oils and perfumery from natural sources are
gaining popularity with emerging demand in spas and
aromatherapy. In India, flower crops grown for essential oil
production are limited and include mainly rose, jasmine,
tuberose, etc. India is the second largest exporter of jasmineoil in the world accounting for over 40 percent of total world
exports in jasmine oil. Europe continues to be the largest
destination of Indias floriculture exports. In recent years, Indian
exports of floriculture products have also extended to the
Japanese and Australian markets. According to a report by the
National Research Development Corporation (NRDC), the total
demand for essential oil is roughly split between the fragranceindustry (60%), flavour industry (20%), and pharmaceutical
industry (20%). At present in India about 30 % of the fine
chemical used annually in perfumes and flavours come from
essential oils. Flower crops for essential oil include mainly rose,
jasmine, tuberose, marigold, plumeria etc. Rosa damascene is
exclusively cultivated for extraction of essential oils, rose water,
attar, gulkhand, etc. in certain pockets of Rajasthan and Uttar
Pradesh. Research should be focused on development of
varieties with higher oil content and standardizing distillation
methods for higher oil recovery. Further identification of more
crops and standardization of production technology needs to be
included in the research agenda. Promotion of this sector
encourages ancillary industries like steam distillation and use of
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indigenous technical knowledge (ITK) for making value-added
products.
Natural Dyes
28. Exploitation of plant pigment for natural dyes is also a
potential sector for industrial growth with growing allergy and
health problems associated with the use of synthetic colours in
food industry. Potential crops for natural dyes include marigold,
hibiscus, Bixa orellana, Butea monosperma etc. Marigold
pigments are widely used in the poultry industry to enhance thecolour of the meat and yolk of the eggs and also used in food
and textile industry. So far, isolation of xanthophylls from
marigold has been standardized. The natural dyes can be
further used for colouration of the product in the following
industries viz., Textile industry (colouration of fabrics and yarn),
Food industry (sweets, confectionery and bakery products),
Leather industry (colouration of foot wears/ garments) andCosmetics industry (soap, creams, powders, lipsticks, etc.).
Producers of confectionery, soft drinks, alcoholic beverages,
salad dressings and dairy products are the most significant
users of natural colourants. Anthocyanins are water-soluble
pigments that occur in almost all vascular plants. The
Anthocyanins pigments are responsible for the majority of theorange, red, purple, and blue colors of flowers. Betalains are
water-soluble and imparts red to violet found in beet roots and
portulaca. Carotenoids are also very significant nutraceutical
components of the animal diet serving, for example, as
precursors for Vitamin-A biosynthesis and as antioxidants.
Carotenoids are responsible for most of the yellow to orange
flower colors in ornamentals that include marigold, daffodil,
Freesia, Gerbera, Rosa, Lilium, and Calendula. More crops
can be identified and procedures can be standardized for full
exploitation. Technology development in all the areas
mentioned above not only improves situation of respective
sub-sector of floriculture, but these become important avenues
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for diversification of floriculture, sources of income generation
and means of employment to the youth.
Strategies for Growth
29. Rapid technological agri-business, international economic
integration, saturated markets and free market mechanism
have provided opportunity, but also the challenges. Retailing
on markets will be more complex. Service, quality and
reliability would be an essential factor for securing position in
international market. Producers have to organize theproduction so as to supply the necessary quantities according
to the required quality standards. Any parties in the chain,
which do not contribute to higher added value, will disappear.
The advantages of large-scale market could be found for
efficient purchasing process and also in terms of logistics and
sue of information technologies. Accordingly, our efforts have
to be directed to harness the potential through strategicpromotion of market. Strategies could be for policy support,
infrastructural development, professionalism in market
management, networking of markets and quality assurance.
30. All these developments provide opportunity for production
and marketing. This would need strategic marketing approach
having backward and forward linkages coupled with horizontaland vertical integration. By providing sufficient attention and
support, attaining the goal of reliable production of high-quality
product consistent in quantities could be attained. Resultantly,
Asian flower sector would soon become a major player in the
region as well as in European flower market. Moreover, given
the rapidly increasing rate of spending among Asian
consumers for cut flowers, it is also reasonable to expect that
the Asian flower industry will soon surpass consumption rates
for cut flowers compared to other regions.
31. Cooperation and commitment, in terms of education,
research, funding and communication in Asia would be a
driving force to become a leader of commercial floriculture
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worldwide, in years to come. The strategies have been
chalked out to meet the challenges and to make floriculture a
most viable activity in Asia to ensure employment with
enhanced farm income. The challenges are to captureemerging trend in marketing through innovation and skilled
professional management. Therefore, strategies to promote
effective marketing should include, quality assurance,
transportation, hub development for effective delivery,
institutional support for information and training, specialty
production, reducing cost and widening products, developing
domestic market, promoting indigenous plants and flowers,developing professional skill and knowledge management,
promoting uses of flowers and providing policy support product
and delivery. Therefore, there is a need for quality products
and delivery, and to develop quality certification system, as
developed in Holland, which ensures the quality for the brand.
Conclusions
32. With increasing flower demand, production centres have
expanded from traditional centres (USA, Japan, the
Netherlands and Columbia) to new ones (Latin America, Africa
and Asia). In Asia, India, China, Vietnam and Sri Lanka are
moving in direction of intensive floriculture. New consumption
centres are also emerging in South-east Asia, Middle-East andEastern Europe. The scenario provides opportunity to capitalize
on the strength and convert weaknesses into opportunity
However, in the consumer-driven market, quality of service and
delivery system will play a significant role. Marketing is no
more a meeting of buyers and sellers, but it is complex, which
is driven by quantity of products and reliability of delivery. New
distribution structure with the aid of IT is likely to be in place,
which would be a virtual market, demanding, branding,
cataloguing and quality assurance emphasizes. Further,
Technology development and dissemination backed by strong
research in the areas of value addition in flowers can improve
existing floriculture sector that is largely facing the problems of
price fluctuation and huge postharvest losses, and is a means
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of income generation and employment to the youth including
women. Value addition through dry flower making, dye making
and essential oil preparation by using the ornamental plants
need to be focused as an ideal venture to flourish as industry.
To sum up, I congratulate the organizers for conducting this
workshop focusing on the aspect of floral art and value
addition. I place my best wishes for the same and hope that the
outcome of the workshop will play a pivotal role in awareness
generation and serve as an inspirational source for
entrepreneurship development among the students and youthincluding women, and will specifically benefit farming
community for higher income generation.
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BBrriieeffBBiioo--ddaattaa
Dr H P Singh, Deputy Director General(Horticulture& Ag. Extn), ICAR, born in 1950 atMahamda (Pusa), Samastipur, Bihar has
outstandingly contributed to horticultural researchand development in his career spanning 40 years,with his distinguished academic record,commitment and vision, leading to GoldenRevolution. Starting his career as a Scientist at theCentral Horticulture Experiment Station, Chethalli(Coorg) in Karnataka in 1972, he held various positions which include Sr.Scientist, Project Coordinator (Fruits), Director, NRC for Banana, HorticultureCommissioner, Govt. of India, Chairman, Coconut Development Board, Dean
(Agriculture), GBPUA&T, Pantnagar, Vice Chancellor, Rajendra AgriculturalUniversity, Pusa and now Deputy Director General (Horticulture & Ag. Extn),ICAR. He was also Chairman of APCC, Jakarta, National Director forinternationally-aided projects, Member Secretary of NCPH, Delhi and MissionDirector. He has been Chairman of various high powered committees both atnational and international level and has contributed as Member Secretary andmember in shaping the horticulture development in the country. Dr Singh hasoutstandingly contributed significantly to horticultural research, managementand development and also human capital formation which earned him 3international awards and 31 National Awards and 6 Fellowships. He is also
Fellow of National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS).Dr. Singh in his career as a scientist has developed and released
several varieties, technologies and products and has contributedoutstandingly in genetic resource management of perennial horticulture,development of cultivars and production system based technologies, nutrientand water management and fruit biotechnology beside hi-tech horticultureand precision farming. He is instrumental in promotion of efficient watermanagement and providing boost to micro-irrigation and fertigation. Hi-techhorticulture and precision farming was conceptualized and executed by himwhich has influenced the development. He has been at centre stage in thepromotion of organic farming for sustainability and has provided newdimension to horticulture development by conceptualizing and executing themission mode approach for horticultural development, a driver for integrateddevelopment of horticulture across the country. His contribution as anacademician, Dean, GBPUA&T, Pantnagar and Vice-Chancellor, RAU, Pusa,Samastipur, Bihar also created an impact on agricultural education. Dr Singhhas provided a strong foundation for horticultural development. He is alsoresponsible for the establishment of many new institutes and centres and hasbrought dynamism in whichever position he held. He has been closely
associated with activities of Asia and Pacific Network ASPNET (INIBAP),APCC, Jakarta, FAO and is President, General Secretaries and member ofseveral professional societies. Dr Singh has been instrumental in organizing18 International, 74 National Conferences, 67 Workshops and trainings. Hehas provided leadership to horticulture and is credited to have authored andedited 54 books and 24 bulletins, besides 300 research papers and populararticles. He is widely traveled in India and abroad and has visited 31countries as leader as well as member of delegation or to deliver talks. As aDDG (Horticulture) he has provided new dimension to horticultural researchand has taken many new initiatives to address the emerging challenges.