LITCHI
1.
INTRODUCTION
Litchi (Litchi chinensis) is
a delicious juicy fruit of excellent quality. Botanically it belongs to
Sapindaceae family. The translucent, flavoured aril or edible flesh of the
litchi is popular as a table fruit in India, while in China and Japan it is
preferred in dried or canned state.
2. OBJECTIVE
The main objective of this report is to present a bankable model for high quality commercial cultivation of the crop. 3. BACKGROUND
3.1 Origin
The origin of litchi is from
southern China, particularly the provinces of Kwangtung and Fukien. The spread
of litchi to other parts of the world was rather slow probably due to its soil,
climatic requirements and short life span of its seed. Litchi reached India
through Myanmar and North East region during the 18th Century.
3.2
Area & Production
India is the second largest producer
of litchi in the World after China. Other major producing countries are
Thailand, Australia, South Africa, Madagascar and Florida in US.
Among fruit crops, litchi ranks seventh
in area and ninth in production but is sixth in terms of value in India. The
national average productivity of litchi is 6.1 t/ha, which is much lower than
the realizable yield of the crop under well managed condition. The average
productivity of litchi in Bihar is 8.0 tonnes/ha. and in West Bengal it is 10.5
tonnes/ha. In other states the productivity is much lower, the lowest of 1.0 t
/ ha in Uttaranchal.
State-wise estimates of area,
production and productivity of litchi during 2001-02 are given in table 1.
Table 1 : State-wise Area, Production & Productivity of
Litchi during 2001-02
|
State |
Area (‘000 Ha.) |
Production (‘000 MT) |
Productivity (MT/Ha.) |
|
Bihar |
27.7 |
221.7 |
8.0 |
|
West Bengal |
5.9 |
61.4 |
10.5 |
|
Assam |
4.1 |
18.7 |
4.6 |
|
Punjab |
1.2 |
11.6 |
10.0 |
|
Orissa |
3.5 |
10.2 |
2.9 |
|
Tripura |
1.7 |
9.0 |
5.1 |
|
Jharkhand |
1.5 |
7.5 |
5.0 |
|
Uttaranchal |
7.8 |
7.5 |
1.0 |
|
Nagaland |
0.8 |
4.0 |
5.1 |
|
Others |
4.0 |
4.5 |
- |
|
TOTAL |
58.2 |
356.2 |
6.1 |
Source : Database of National Horticulture Board, Ministry of
Agriculture ,
Govt. of India.
Production of litchi has declined
from 4.55 lakh tonnes in 1997-98 to 3.56 lakh tones in 2001-02 although
remained constant at 58 thousand ha. during these two years (vide Graphs 1&
2 below).
3.3 Economic Importance
The food value of litchi mainly lies
in its sugar content which varies from variety to variety. The fruit is also
rich in Vitamin B1, Riboflavin & Vitamin C apart from proteins (0.7%),
fats (0.3%), carbohydrates (9.4%), minerals (0.7%), fibrous matter (2.25%),
calcium (0.21%), phosphorus (0.31%), iron (0.03%) and carotene. Litchi makes an
excellent canned fruit. A highly flavoured squash is also prepared from the
litchi fruits, which is used during summers. Various other products such as
pickles, preserves and wine are also made from litchi in China. Dried litchi
commonly called litchi-nut is very popular among the Chinese.
4. MARKET ANALYSIS AND STRATEGY
4.1 Demand and Supply patterns
Due to very short production season
of around two months in a year, market gluts leading to distress sale.
The short span of fruit availability
coupled with poor shelf life limits the duration of availability of litchi
fruits in the domestic as well as international market. Shelf life of litchi
fruits varies from 2 to 3 days under ambient conditions. With proper post
harvest treatment (pre-cooling, sulphuring, acidification and storage at low
temperature), the shelf life can be extended upto 2-3 weeks. Diverting a part
of the produce towards processing is a safe solution to the problem and has
been successfully adopted in other fruits like grape. Growers need to be
educated on these possibilities in order to get better price for their produce
and to minimize market risk.
In India the availability of fresh
fruits coincides with the lean period for other fruits i.e. May and June. Arrival
commences during the first week of May in Tripura and by the third week of May in
Bihar continuing upto the first week of June. In Uttar Pradesh and Punjab the
crop is ready for harvest during the second and third week of June while in
Himachal Pradesh it comes to harvest by the last week of June, thereby
extending the total season of its availability to around two months in a year.
4.2
Import/Export trends
South Africa (28 %), Thailand (25 %)
followed by China (20 %) hold a major share in the litchi trade while India’s
share is hardly 1 %. In International markets the fruit remain available in
plenty during November to March from countries like Australia (November –
March), Mauritius (February – March), South Africa and Madagascar (November –
January).
At present litchi fruits are
exported by India mainly to the Netherlands, U.A.E., Saudi Arabia and Canada.
APEDA and NAFED are the major export promoters of litchi. The demand from Arab
countries, Europe and USA is increasing day by day. However, very little effort
has been made by India to capture some part of the world market from China, the
main player.
Country-wise quantities and value of
exports from India during the two years 1999-2000 to 2000-01 are presented in Table 2.
Table-2 : Country-wise export of litchi from India
during 1999-2000 to 2000-01
Quantity(Tonnes), Value (Rs. lakhs)
|
Country |
1999-2000 |
2000-2001 |
||
|
Quantity |
Value |
Quantity |
Value |
|
|
Bahrain |
29.59 |
13.00 |
0.70 |
0.50 |
|
Belgium |
87.20 |
27.19 |
155.00 |
147.22 |
|
Canada |
0.60 |
0.12 |
- |
- |
|
France |
48.00 |
9.31 |
- |
- |
|
Korea
Republic |
14.00 |
1.71 |
- |
- |
|
Kuwait |
1.90 |
0.37 |
6.96 |
2.04 |
|
Norway |
- |
- |
0.75 |
0.28 |
|
Oman |
- |
- |
2.05 |
0.48 |
|
Philippines |
28.00 |
4.82 |
- |
- |
|
Qatar |
2.45 |
0.60 |
- |
- |
|
Saudi Arabia |
26.79 |
5.86 |
0.90 |
0.69 |
|
Spain |
24.00 |
3.70 |
- |
- |
|
Sri Lanka |
14.00 |
2.17 |
- |
- |
|
U.K. |
1.00 |
0.23 |
- |
- |
|
UAE |
7.86 |
2.46 |
0.75 |
0.62 |
|
USA |
13.76 |
2.27 |
- |
- |
|
Total |
299.15 |
73.81 |
167.11 |
151.83 |
Source : APEDA, New Delhi
4.3
Analysis and Future Strategy
Litchi has a vast untapped potential
in the domestic as well as the global market. However, inappropriate production
practices, lack of regular maintenance, absence of infra-structure facilities
(for cold storage, processing and canning) and of institutional support are
some of the critical factors impeding the exploitation of the untapped
potential.
The following measures need to be
considered in order to boost production and marketing of litchi.
§
A
three-tier system involving growers, processors and exporters may be formed
along with export processing zones and marketing boards.
§
Storage,
pre-cooling and transport facilities to help the growers realize better prices.
§
Processing
units close to production centres, with financial and technical support from
various Govt./non-Govt. agencies.
5.
PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGY
5.1
Agro-climatic requirements
Litchi is a sub-tropical fruit and
thrives best under moist sub-tropical climate. It usually prefers low elevation
and can be grown up to an altitude of 800 m. (m.s.l.). Deep, well drained loamy
soil, rich in organic matter and having pH in the range of 5.0 to 7.0 is ideal
for the crop.
Frost during winter and dry heat in
summer are limiting factors for its successful cultivation. The young trees
require protection against frost and hot winds for several years till they are
firmly established, even though some variation in temperature is necessary for
proper fruiting of trees. The temperature should not go beyond 40.5 0C
in summer and below freezing point in winter. Prolonged rain may be harmful especially
at the time of flowering, when it interferes with pollination.
5.2 Growing and Potential Belts
In India, the commercial cultivation
was traditionally restricted to the north in the foot hills of Himalayas from
Tripura to Jammu & Kashmir and plains of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
However, with growing demand and
viability of the crop, commercial cultivation has spread to several other
states viz. Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh etc.
5.3
Varieties Cultivated
State-wise commercially grown
varieties are given below .
|
State |
Varieties |
|
Bihar & Jharkhand |
China, Deshi, , Purbi, Early &
Late Bedana, Mclean, Muzzaffarpur, Rose Scented, Shahi, Kasba |
|
Orissa |
Muzaffarpur, Bombai, China |
|
Punjab & Haryana |
Saharanpur, Dehradun, Calcuttia,
Muzaffarpur, Seedless (Late) & Rose Scented |
|
Uttaranchal |
Rose Scented, Calcuttia, Early
& Late Seedless |
|
Uttar Pradesh |
Seedless Early, Seedless Late,
Early Large Red, Late Large Red, Calcutta, Rose Scented, Dehradun |
|
West Bengal |
Muzaffarpur, China, Deshi, Purbi,
Elachi Early, Elachi Late, Bombai, Goothi, Bedana, Potee, Kalyani Selection |
5.4
Land Preparation
The land is cleared of all
vegetation and leveled thoroughly. After this, the land is ploughed with disc
plough and then with a harrow. Hot and desiccating winds in summer and cold
winds in winter adversely affect the growth of litchi plants. Therefore, for
proper establishment of a litchi plantation, a suitable wind break should be
planted at the orchard boundary and it should be at right angle to the direction
of prevailing winds. Tall growing trees such as mango, jamun, eucalyptus, arjun
etc. are suitable for this purpose.
5.5
Planting
Air layering is the most common method
of propagation. It is usually done in the beginning of monsoon and the air
layers can be detached from the mother plant after 60-70 days.
The details of planting operations
are given below :
|
Details |
Usual Practice |
|
Planting Time |
|
|
Planting Distance |
|
|
Size of pits |
|
|
Filling of pits |
|
|
Planting |
|
5.5
Training & Pruning
After planting, a certain amount of
pruning is often necessary to give proper shape to the litchi plant. Once the
desired shape is achieved, no pruning is usually necessary, except the removal
of dead or diseased branches and damaged shoots or crossed limbs. At the time
of harvesting, the part of the shoot bearing the fruit is removed to promote
new growth. If the vegetative growth is too much then both root and shoot
pruning needs to be done. But heavy pruning causes profuse vegetative growth,
which takes place at the expense of flowering and fruiting. When the trees
become too old and produce fruits of small size, heavy pruning is suggested.
5.6
Nutrition
The following table gives detail of
the fertilizers / manures recommended for application :
Table-3 :
Manure/Fertilizer application for Litchi in north India.
|
Age of the plant (in years) |
Manure/Fertilizer applied (per
plant/year in kg) |
|||
|
FYM |
CAN (Calcium ammonium nitrate) |
Super phosphate |
Muriate of potash |
|
|
1-3 |
10 - 20 |
0.3-1.00 |
0.2-0.6 |
0.05-0.15 |
|
4-6 |
25 - 40 |
1.0-2.0 |
0.75-1.25 |
0.20-0.30 |
|
7-10 |
40 – 50 |
2.0-3.0 |
1.50-2.0 |
0.35-0.45 |
|
Above 10 |
60 |
3.5 |
2.25 |
0.60 |
5.7
Irrigation
Two irrigations at an interval of 45
– 60 days during winter months is required for bearing litchi trees. Irrigation
at fortnightly intervals after fruit setting in March till the end of June is
required especially during the hot summer months. Basin or ring system of
irrigation is recommended. Use of drip irrigation has proved to be good for plant
growth besides being economical.
5.8
Intercultural Operations
Litchi orchard should be kept clean
of unwanted weeds especially during the initial years of growth. Orchards
should be ploughed with soil turning plough and harrowed once after the rainy
season in October and the second after the harvesting of fruits in June or
July.
5.9
Mulching
The farmyard manure, compost or
straw may be used for soil mulching. When straw is used as soil mulch, an
additional dose of 25 – 30 kg. Calcium Ammonium Nitrate (CAN) per ton of dry
straw should be applied to hasten the decomposition. Cutting down of tall
growing weeds in the orchard and spreading them over the soil is another method
of mulching the soil.
5.10
Inter-cropping
Litchi is a long gestation crop
taking about 5-6 years to the fruiting stage. Inter-cropping is feasible in the
first three or four years. Apart from giving good annual income during the
non-bearing period, inter-crops protect the young litchi plant, enrich the
soil, improve the physical condition of the soil and keep the weeds under
control.
Inter-crops, which may be grown
during different seasons, are listed below:
Summer & Kharif Season:
Ř Vegetables – Pumpkin, cucumber,
ridgegourd, bittergourd
Ř Leguminous crops – Moong, cow pea
etc.
Ř Sunnhemp & dhaincha may be grown
as green manure crops.
Winter Season:
Ř Vegetable – Radish, beet, turnip,
cauliflower, peas, beans etc.
Ř Leguminous
crops – Gram etc.
Ř Spices-
Turmeric.
5.11 Plant Protection Measures
5.11.1 Insect Pests
In litchi, mite and shoot borer are the two serious pests that causes immense damage to the crop. The infestation of the latter is more in case of the September-October flush as compared to February-March flush. The intensity of the pest is more on Tikolia and Shahi varieties. Litchi shoot borer can effectively be controlled by spraying Cypermethrin (0.01%) twice at 7 days interval during flushing. Other pests include bark eating caterpillars (Indarbela tetraonis, I.quadrinotata), weevil (Amblyrrhinus poricolis), butterflies (Virachola isocrates) and worm/fruit stone borer (Argyroploce carpophaga). 5.11.2 Diseases
Litchi is almost free from fungal diseases in India. The rot caused by Helmenthosporium hawaiense and rotting of fruits caused by Aspergillus sp. are some of the fungal diseases observed. These can be controlled by spraying with fungicides immediately after the appearance of the symptoms. No fungicides should be applied on the trees or fruits at least 20 days before harvesting.
5.12
Disorders
The two types of physiological
disorders which are commonly observed are fruit cracking and fruit drop. Fruit
cracking is a major problem in litchi resulting in deterioration of fruit
quality. Presence of optimum moisture level in the soil during fruit
development is crucial for reducing fruit cracking and quality litchi
production. Early varieties (e.g. Shahi) are more susceptible to cracking than
late ripening one (e.g. China).
Application of two foliar sprays of 20 ppm. NAA, first at pea stage of
fruit development and second ten days after the first spray and scheduling of
irrigation at 20% DASM (at 3 days interval during May-June) should be given to
control the disorder. Foliar application of boric acid (0.4 %) and 2,4- D (10
ppm.) is also effective in minimizing the disorder.
5.13
Harvesting and Yield
The litchi plant has a long growing
period with four different phenophases. Depending on the tree age there are
four growth phases in litchi plants viz.
, young non-bearing stage (1-3 years), young bearing stage (6-10 years),
junior adult bearing stage (11-20 years) and senior adult bearing stage (21
years and above). During the junior adult bearing phase the tree enters into a
condition when the vegetative growth and reproductive growth remain relatively
balanced. Fruiting begins from 5 – 6 years of age in case of plants propagated
through air layering. After flowering, it takes 70 to 100 days for the fruits
to ripe in most of the commercial varieties of India. On an average, the litchi
tree yields 40-100 kg. fruits annually depending on the variety, locality, season,
nutrition and age.
Harvesting is usually done in May
and June. The maturity of the fruits is judged by the flatness of tubercles and
comparative smoothness of the epicarp. Besides that the fruit colour changes
from green to pink on maturity. The fruits are harvested in bunches along with
a portion of the branch and a few leaves. This helps in improving the keeping
quality of the fruits and at the same time the tree receives a mild pruning.
6. POST HARVEST MANAGEMENT
Litchi is non-climacteric fruit that
possesses poor shelf life and therefore needs specific treatment before packing
and transportation for long distance market.
For local markets, the fruits should
be collected at the ripened stage, while for distant market, the fruits should
be harvested when they have started turning reddish. After harvesting, the
fruits should be kept in cool, dry and properly ventilated rooms to facilitate
the ripening process under high atmospheric temperature. If exposed to sun even
for a few hours the quality deteriorates markedly.
6.1
Grading
Grading is done according to the
size of the fruits. The damaged, sun-burnt and cracked fruits are sorted out
before packing.
6.2
Storage
The fruits cannot be stored at room
temperature for more than a few days. It loses its bright red colour and turns
brown within 2 – 3 days after harvesting. Mature litchi fruits can be stored
for a period of 8 to 12 weeks at the temp. of 1.6 to 1.70C and
relative humidity ranging between 85 to 90%.
6.3
Packing
The fruits are graded and packed in
shallow baskets or crates lined with leaves of litchi, soft dry grass or banana
leaves.
6.4
Transportation
The fruit along with twigs is packed
and transported by truck to the wholesalers and retailers of the nearest towns.
During transit care should be taken to avoid crushing of fruits and damage of
the skin. Litchi being a highly
perishable fruit, its marketing should be done as early as possible.
6.5
Marketing
Farmers
directly sell their produce to the middlemen. The fruit is sold through a post
harvest contractor to the wholesale or commission agent, who undertakes the
harvesting and packing, in addition to transporting the produce to the market.
More than 65 % of the growers prefer sale through post harvest contractor and
about 20 % undertake self marketing.
The main
channels of marketing include the following:
§
Producer – PHC – wholesaler/commission agent
(distant market) – stockists – retailers – consumers.
§
Producer – wholesaler/commission agent (distant
market) – stockists – retailers – consumers (self marketing).
§
Producer – Village level agent – commission agent –
stockists – retailers – consumers.
7.
TECHNOLOGY SOURCES
The major sources for technology, as
well as quality planting material are:
i) Hill Campus, Ranichouri, G.B. Pant
University of Agriculture and Technology, Tehri Garhwal, Uttaranchal.
ii) Department of Horticulture and Food
Processing, Udhyan Bhawan, Chaubatia, Ranikhet, Almora-263651, Uttaranchal.
iii) Department of Horticulture, Birsa
Agricultural University, Kanke, Tel : (0651)-2230691.
8.
ECONOMICS OF A ONE ACRE MODEL
Costs & Returns:
8.1
A
one acre plantation of the crop is a highly viable proposition. The cost components of such a model along
with the basis for costing are exhibited in Annexures I & II. A summary is given in the figure
below. The project cost works out to
Rs.1.50 lakh per acre.
Figure-I: Cost of Project
Project Cost:
(Amount in Rs.)
|
Sl. No. |
Component |
Proposed Expenditure |
|
|
1. |
Cultivation Expenses |
|
|
|
|
(i) |
Cost of planting material |
2400 |
|
|
(ii) |
Manures & fertilizers |
5000 |
|
|
(iii) |
Insecticides & pesticides |
3000 |
|
|
(iv) |
Cost of Labour |
5600 |
|
|
(v) |
Others, if any (Power) |
3600 |
|
|
|
Total |
19600 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
2. |
Irrigation |
|
|
|
|
(i) |
Tube-well/submersible pump |
50000 |
|
|
(ii) |
Cost of Pipeline |
- |
|
|
(iii) |
Others, if any, please specify |
- |
|
|
|
Total |
50000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
3. |
Cost of Drip/Sprinkler |
20000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
4. |
Infrastructure |
|
|
|
|
(i) |
Store & Pump House |
10000 |
|
|
(ii) |
Labour room |
6800 |
|
|
(iii) |
Agriculture Equipments |
10000 |
|
|
(iii) |
Others, if any, (Drying platform) |
- |
|
|
|
Total |
26800 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
5. |
Land Development |
|
|
|
|
(i) |
Soil leveling |
4000 |
|
|
(ii) |
Digging |
- |
|
|
(iii) |
Fencing |
29600 |
|
|
(iv) |
Others, if any, please specify |
- |
|
|
|
Total |
33600 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
6. |
Land, if newly purchased (Please indicate the year)* |
- |
|
|
|
Grand Total |
1,50,000 |
|
*Cost of newly purchased land will be limited
to one-tenth of the total project cost
8.2
The
major components of the model are:
·
Land
Development: (Rs.4.00 thousand): This is the labour cost of shaping and
dressing the land site.
·
Fencing
(Rs.29.60 thousand): It is necessary to guard the orchard by
barbed wire fencing to safeguard the valuable produce from animals and prevent
poaching.
·
Irrigation
Infra-structure (Rs.50.00 thousand): For effective working with drip irrigation
system, it is necessary to install a bore well with diesel/electric pumpset and
motor. This is part cost of tubewell.
·
Drip
Irrigation & Fertigation System (Rs.20.00 thousand): This is average cost of one acre drip system
for the crop inclusive of the cost of fertigation equipment. The actual cost will vary depending on
location, plant population and plot geometry.
·
Equipment/Implements
(Rs.10.00 thousand): For investment on
improved manually operated essential implements a provision of another Rs.10
thousand is included.
·
Building
and Storage (Rs.16.80 thousand): A one
acre orchard would require minimally a labour shed and a store-cum
grading/packing room/pump house.
·
Cost
of Cultivation (Rs.19.60 thousand): The cost on planting material, inputs
used and labour in cultivation operations is estimated at Rs.19.60 thousand
during the pre-operative period.
8.3
Labour
cost has been put at an average of Rs.70 per man-day. The actual cost will vary from location to location depending
upon minimum wage levels or prevailing wage levels for skilled and unskilled
labour.
8.4
Recurring Production Cost: Recurring
production costs are exhibited in Annexure III. The main components are planting material (80
plants/per acre at 7x7m spacing), land preparation, inputs application (FYM,
fertilizers, liming material, plant protection chemicals etc.) and labour cost
on application of inputs, inter-cultural and other farm operations.
8.5
Besides,
provision is also included for power charges, labour for harvesting and
packing/transportation charges for the produce to the nearest secondary market.
8.6
Inter-cropping
with vegetables from year 2 to year 5 has been taken into consideration for
economic viability of the project.
8.7
Returns from the Project:
The yield from the plantation is estimated to go up from 2.0 tonnes in
year 5 to 6.0 tonnes in the year 9 at which it levels off. The produce has been valued at Rs.15,000 per
tonne.
Project Financing:
8.8.
Balance Sheet:
The projected balance sheet of the model in the post-operative period, is
given at Annexure IV. There
would be three sources of financing the project as below:
Source Rs.Thousand
Farmer’s share 75.00
Capital
subsidy 30.00
Term loan 45.00
Total 150.00
8.9.
Profit & Loss Account: The cash flow statement may be seen in Annexure V. Annexure VI projects the profit and
loss account of the model in the post operative period. Over a five year cycle the gross profit
works out to Rs.178 thousand.
8.10.
Repayment of Term Loan: The term loan will
be repaid in 11 six monthly installments with a moratorium of 60 months. The rate of interest would have to be
negotiated with the financing bank. It has been put at 12% in the model (vide
Annexures VII & VIIA).
Depreciation calculations are presented in Annexure VIII.
Project Viability:
8.11.
IRR/BCR:
The viability of the project is assessed in Annexure IX over a period
of 15 years. The IRR works out to 28.85
and the BCR to 2.2.
8.12.
The
Debt Service coverage ratio calculations are presented in Annexure X. The average
DSCR works out to 3.51.
8.13
Payback Period:
On the basis of costs and returns of the model, the pay back period is
estimated at 6.12 years (vide Annexure XI).
8.14
Break-even Point:
The break even point will be reached in the 3rd year. At this point fixed cost would work out to 61.3%
of gross sales - vide Annexure XII.