Pomegranate Cultivation in Karnataka State, India - A Profitable

Venture
G.K. Vasanth Kumar
Director of Horticulture, Department of Horticulture
Government of Karnataka, Lalbagh, Bangalore - 560 004
Karnataka
India

Keywords: Punica granatum L., arid, semi-arid, success, Ganesh, Mridula (Arakta),
Ruby, Bhagwa (Kesar), Kushtagi, Yelburga, export, diseases

Abstract
Pomegranate is an important fruit crop grown in the dry regions of India. It
is also cultivated to a large extent in the northern dry districts of Karnataka state.
The development of varieties such as Ganesh, Mridula (Arakta), Ruby, Bhagwa
(Kesar) have revolutionized pomegranate cultivation in the state. These varieties
have good export potential. Major breakthroughs in the cultivation of pomegranate
such as resting period and pruning of plants and the use of plant hormones to obtain
better fruit size have contributed in increasing the production of quality
pomegranate fruits to meet the preference of consumers in the domestic and
international markets. Farmers of Bijapur, Bagalkot and Koppal districts have
successfully exported pomegranates through their associations. Government
intervention in providing technology and training has given a boost to the farmers to
take up pomegranate cultivation for export purposes as well. Of late, problems due
to diseases such as bacterial blight and pomegranate wilt have had a deleterious
effect on the crop in the northern districts of the state. Intervention in providing
subsidies to the farmers, creating infrastructure facilities for production, post-
harvest management and marketing and research support will go a long way in
developing pomegranate crops in the dry areas and help the farmers in getting
better returns.

INTRODUCTION
Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) is a crop of the subtropical region. It can be
grown successfully in the tropical region also. It is grown for its fully luscious grains
called ‘arils’. The fruits are very attractive and tasteful. A fully matured fruit contains 75-
85% juicy seeds which inturn consists of 45-60% juice. The fruit contains many of the
important nutrients and minerals. Important constituents are protein, fat, fibre,
carbohydrates, moisture, etc. Its attractive size and soft seeded arils, with good T.S.S.
gives it a premium price.
Pomegranate is an important food crop grown in various continents apart from
India. It is popular both in Eastern as well as Western parts of the World. Though this
crop is grown in India and other countries, the advent of new varieties having high
consumer preference and technical advancement in its cultivation has made this crop
more popular and demand for this fruit is increasing.
There has been a spurt in its cultivation and trading in India from the last two
decades. The country has about 63,000 hectares of area under this crop with a production
of about 5.00 lakh tons per annum. Most of the pomegranate produced is consumed
locally and only one per cent of it is exported. However, it is noteworthy to mention that
Indian pomegranates have penetrated into the European Union. India has a comparative
advantage over other countries in terms of the production of pomegranate almost
throughout the year and supply pomegranates even during off season to the European
countries. This fact has made its cultivation popular in the arid and semi-arid tracts of the
states such as Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, etc. Farmers are cultivating this

Proc. Ist IS on Pomegranate 55

Ed.: A.I. Özgüven
Acta Hort. 818, ISHS 2009
crop by carefully selecting the varieties and adopting advanced technologies so that their
produce is accepted internationally.

Karnataka Scenario
Karnataka state is situated between 11°31’ and 18°48’ North Latitudes and 74°12’
and 78°40’ East Longitudes, and lies in the West-Central part of Peninsular India. Its
length from North to South is 700 km. and from East to West is 400 km. The state is in
the fore-front in respect of agricultural and horticultural production and it has ten different
agro-climatic zones covering the dry, transition, hilly and coastal areas.
Karnataka state, known for its horticultural wealth, is one of the earliest states in
the country to introduce pomegranate in its land. For a long time, pomegranate cultivation
was limited to certain pockets in Bangalore and Tumkur districts. During the last two
decades, pomegranate cultivation has spread to northern dry districts of the state and as of
today, a sizeable area has been brought under pomegranate cultivation. Among the 27
districts in Karnataka, major pomegranate growing districts are situated in North
Karnataka viz., Bijapur (3,592 ha), Bellary (1,942 ha), Bagalkote (1,702 ha), Koppal
(1,483 ha), Belgaum (495 ha), Chitradurga (423 ha), and Tumkur (306 ha), and these
districts constitute 75% of the total area(11,162 ha) under pomegranate in the state. The
total production from these districts accounts to 75% of the overall production of the State
(total production is 116,892 tons ).
BREAKTHROUGHS IN THE CULTIVATION OF POMEGRANATE TO GET
EXPORTABLE QUALITY FRUITS

Selection of Varieties
Many varieties of pomegranate are in cultivation. In recent times, new varieties
have been introduced from research institutes and progressive farmers. Varieties are
distinguished by shape of the fruits, colour, thickness of the rind, taste and hardiness of
the seeds known as arils, colour of the arils, etc. Among the important varieties under
cultivation in India, Ganesh, Mridula (Arakta), Ruby, Bhagwa (Kesar) have gained
popularity and these are to be selected for planting to get exportable commodity.

Resting Period and Pruning

Resting period and pruning are some of the major breakthroughs in the cultivation
of the pomegranate on commercial basis to obtain uniformity in flowering. Before
pruning, plants are to be subjected to a 45-days resting period and no irrigation is
provided during this period. Pruning is an important operation to get good quality
produce. During the pruning period, water shoots, diseased and dried twigs are to be
pruned and low to medium pruning is to be done during February to get exportable
quality fruits. Before and after pruning, plants are to be sprayed with 1% Bordeaux
mixture. Up to one feet from the ground, plants are to be smeared with paste made with a
combination of the following:
1. Carbaryl - 6 g
2. Copper Oxy-chloride-10 g in 1 l of water
3. Gummy substance – 1 ml
4. Neem Oil – 1 ml

Use of Plant Hormones for Getting Better Fruit Size and Yield Regulation
The following growth regulators are to be used to increase the fruit size:
1. Gibberellic Acid 10 ppm - to be sprayed when the fruit attains lemon size.
2. IBA 10 ppm - 15 days after first spray.
Based on the age and growth of the tree, about 80 to 120 fruits are allowed for a
plant to get better size and quality fruits.

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CONSUMER PREFERENCE
Consumer preference is changing from time to time and from country to country.
Earlier, when India was exporting pomegranates to Gulf countries, Ganesh variety with
big sized fruits was the preferred one. Now, in Europe and other parts of the world, the
varieties such as Bhagwa, Kesar, Mridula are the suitable and accepted ones. Soft seeded,
coloured varieties with high per cent of juice with easy to remove arils are prefered. Fruits
weighing more than 500 g with superior qualities may find immediate and ready
acceptance in the international markets.

Grading of Fruits
Grading and packing are the two important post harvest operations and these fruits
are graded based on their size and colour to get better price.
1. Super size: Fruits of this grade are free from spots and individual fruit weight is
more than 750 grams.
2. King size: Fruits are attractive and individual fruit weight is 500-700 grams.
3. Queen size: Fruits are attractive, red and individual fruit weight is 400-500 grams.
4. Prince size: Fruits are attractive, red and individual fruit weight is 300-400 grams.

The Desirable Fruit Characters of Fresh Pomegranate for Export Purpose

1. Dark rose pink colour of the fruit
2. Fruit weight around 500 g
3. Round shape of the fruit
4. Uniform size and shape of the fruit in a pack or box
5. Dark rose pink arils
6. Softness of the seeds
7. Higher sugars near about 16-17 °Brix
8. Free from scars, russetting, disease spots, insect injury, scratches, etc.
9. Smooth cutting at the stem end.
10. Bracts/calyx without any damage and having freshness
11. Pleasant flavour and aroma.

Marketing and Export Potential

As such, there are no organised marketing systems for pomegranate. This fruit has
a hard rind which prevents loss of moisture from the aril and provides a longer shelf life
to the fruits, thereby it can withstand long transport. Thus, domestic marketing for
pomegranate is fairly balanced as of now. The majority of the farmers normally disposes
their produce to contractors, who take the responsibility of transport to far off markets.
Some progressive farmers who have developed contacts in urban areas dispatch them on
their own and are able to get a reasonable price for their produce.
The advent of Ganesh variety revolutionized pomegranate cultivation in Northern
Karnataka especially in the districts of Bijapur, Bagalkote, Koppal and Raichur. In the
initial years, big sized fruits with TSS 15 °Brix were exported mainly to the Gulf
countries. Since then, there have been a lot of changes in varietal selection and also in
cultivation practices.
Pest and disease incidence, fall in demand and price have had an effect in the
cultivation of pomegranate in the state. However, due to exploring of market
potentialities, the cultivation of pomegranate for export purpose has improved.
Farmers of Bijapur and Bagalkote districts were exporting pomegranate through
their associations to Gulf countries as well as to the European Union in the last five years.
Koppal district is a new entrant to this venture and began exporting only in 2004.
Pomegranate occupies the sixth place in the fruit export market of India, accounting for
5,600 tons and earning a foreign exchange to a tune of Rs.860 lakhs.

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A SUCCESS STORY IN THE CULTIVATION OF POMEGRANATE
The success story of growing pomegranates in the Koppal district is quite an
interesting event. Kustagi and Yelburga taluks of Koppal districts are in remote areas and
they are one of the most backward areas of the State. They are riddled with poor rainfall,
frequent droughts, high temperature, soils are also either calcareous or sodic. Low
precipitation levels and irregular distribution of rainfall have added to the crop failures.
Crop with heavy water use never sustain in these areas in the long run.
The predominant crops grown in these areas include agricultural crops and onion
and chillies to some extent. Horticultural crops such as grapes, pomegranates, ber,
banana, mango and sweet orange have been grown since the last two decades. As regards
the cultivation of pomegranate, the farmers of these areas have been pro-active in
adopting new technology for cultivation and post-harvest handling of pomegranate and
have benefitted from the efforts of the State Department of Horticulture in training the
farmers in export oriented production.
The training programmes have been conducted in the farmers fields in six steps in
collaboration with Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development
Authority (APEDA). The farmers were given suitable guidance regarding the cultivation
and care of the crop, in regulating the number of fruits, irrigation with fertigation, plant
protection schedule and care in harvesting.
In this case, out of the 50 farmers trained, nearly 30 farmers were successful and
20 farmers exported the produce. The training was organized during 2003 and exports
started during January 2004. Till the end of the season i.e., July-August 2004, about 250
tons of pomegranate were exported from this small area and volume of trade was in the
tune of Rs.8.50 crores. The produce fetched a price of Rs.35,000/- ( 750 $) per ton. On an
average, they have exported 7.5-10 tons of fruits per hectare. The remaining 10-12.5 tons
were sold locally. Thus, the farmers have earned about Rs.4.5 lakhs to 5.75 lakhs per
hectare ($ 9,600-12,300) . They have incurred an expenditure of Rs.75,000/- per hectare
($ 1,600). The net profit ranged from Rs. 3.75 lakhs to Rs.5.00 lakhs per hectare ($ 8,000-
10,700). In some cases, it has crossed Rs.6.25 lakhs per hectare ($ 13,400). The farmers
of the area are convinced regarding the profitability of pomegranate cultivation as there is
considerable demand for the pomegranates grown in the region.
Export of Pomegranate from Koppal District, Karnataka
Year Per cent of produce Quantity of Export Price realized by
exported (tons) farmers per ton
2004 30-40 250 Rs.35,000/- ($ 750)
2005 50-60 675 Rs.45,000/- ($ 960)
2006 60-70 1450 Rs.55,000/- ($ 1,180)
Now, the farmers of this area prefer to have separate packing units, cold chain
links which will further boost the production. A small but significant intervention by the
Government has helped the farmers to boost the production and quality of the fruits and
gave them higher returns. Similar efforts have been taken up by the Department of
Horticulture to boost the production of pomegranate in other dry belts of the state.
Of late, problems due to diseases such as bacterial blight and pomegranate wilt
have had a deleterious effect on the crop in the northern districts of the state. The
incidence of these diseases have been considerable and has caused damage to the crop in
Bijapur and Bagalkote areas. Even in the other areas also, it has been spreading through
the planting materials and tools used for pruning. Hence, utmost care has to be taken to
contain this. In this background, it is essential that farmers need to be specially trained in
maintaining utmost hygienic conditions in the field.
India’s contribution to the export is less than 5%, though it is in the first position
in production of Pomegranate. There is a good demand for this crop in the international
market and the demand is increasing. There has been a diversified use of pomegranate
and hence value added products can be promoted. One should keep a close tab on change

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in the consumer preference, colour, TSS and demand for crop. Constant efforts are to be
made to know about the demand for this crop in other countries. Time of export, choice of
variety, quality maintenance and regulation of fruit size are important aspects in the
production of pomegranate for export purpose.

CONCLUSION
Interventions in providing subsidies and low interest rate loans, creation of
infrastructure, cold chain links, better roads, transport facilities, and technology transfer
are required. Research is needed to develop new varieties suitable to consumer
preference, disease resistant varieties, eco-friendly package practices, plant protection
schedules, technology to produce pomegranate by organic farming, etc. In view of the
scope for value addition in pomegranate for alternative use, such as medicinal use, better
shelf life, and the export potential, its cultivation in the semi-arid areas under protected
irrigation needs to be encouraged. This will go a long way in developing pomegranate
crop in the dry areas and help the farmers in getting better returns.

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