Having an impressive crop this season, the California’s walnut farmers are expecting a significant growth in exports of the nuts to India considering greater awareness in the country about its health benefits.
In the last one year, a whopping nine million in-shell pounds of walnuts worth $20 million were exported to India and California Walnuts Commission, an umbrella body of the farmers, was confident of at least 20-30 per cent growth in the volume of supplies to the fast growing economy.
California walnuts account for 99 per cent of the commercial US supply and 71 per cent of world trade, according to California Walnut Commission (CWC) figures.
“We see the Indian market growing nearly double each year. We hope to see a significant growth of the market in the next fives years,” Jennifer Williams, a top executive at the CWC, said.
She said Indian market has “extreme potential” with more and more middle class and upper middle class Indians becoming health conscious.