Potato News from India

Potato prices are likely to remain firm this year because of a fall in acreage for the new crop in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, the two top producing states.

Bengaluru-based potato seeds firm Utkal Tubers India plans to ramp up its annual production to 50,000 tons of high-yielding, disease-resistant seed potatoes across Gujarat, Assam, Punjab, UP, Haryana and Karnataka over the next three years.

Farmers' rights activists on Tuesday planted FL-2027 seed potatoes on a plot of farmland in Ahmedabad, Gujarat to protest food and beverages major PepsiCo's reassertion of rights over the variety.

Potato prices in West Bengal have firmed up by nearly 44 per cent over the last two months on the back of steady demand from other States.

Potato prices in West Bengal have firmed up by nearly 9 per cent in the last two months, a development caused by a steady demand from neighbouring states.

Whether fried, baked or sliced, potato gels with nearly every dish. Its bond with Indian consumers would be further strengthened as it would come up in a new avatar and rich in antioxidants with excellent flavour.

Amazon.com Inc is planning a foray into the burgeoning online food delivery business from restaurants in India this year, in a move that could raise competition in an increasingly crowded market.

To protect the interest of the Punjab farmers and uphold the state’s leadership position as the largest potato seed producing state in India, Punjab is planning the certification and traceability of seed potato using blockchain technology as of next year.

Indian Farmers’ movements have decided to put up a fight to ensure that farmers’ seed freedoms are not violated in any way. Many speakers also also felt that PepsiCo India should pay compensation to the Gujarat potato farmers involved.

TOMRA Food has opened a new customer service center in Bengaluru, India as
part of its efforts to improve the organizations’ responsiveness to all its stakeholders.

After discussions with the government, the Pepsico India has agreed to withdraw the cases against the potato farmers. In April Pepsico sued four farmers for cultivating a potato variety - FC5 - grown exclusively for its popular Lay's potato chips.

The legal battle between a number of potato farmers in Gujarat accused of illegally growing a proprietary variety and food and beverage manufacturer PepsiCo India may be headed for an out-of-court settlement.

Leading farmers unions and rights advocacy groups have demanded that the PepsiCo immediately withdraw all legal suits it has slapped on many potato farmers in different districts of Gujarat.

PepsiCo has sued three potato farmers in Gujarat complaining that they have been illegally growing and selling a variety of potato exclusively registered to Pepsico for the use of producing its Lays potato chips.

The Odisha Government has decided to approve a major project with the International Potato Centre (CIP) focused on sustainable intensification of potato cultivation in order to achieve self-sufficiency in production in this Indian State.

Kellogg's, the world's second-largest snack foods company, is exploring options to acquire a stake in India's snack manufacturer Haldiram's. This could be one of the biggest deals involving an Indian consumer brand.

Poor supply of potato in Madhya Pradesh in spot market and higher prices have escalated cost of production of chips manufacturers by over 10 per cent. The rise is likely to make packaged chips more expensive.

James Hutton Limited, has entered into a five-year agreement with Technico Agri Sciences, a subsidiary of Indian company ITC Limited, to provide 16 potato varieties and 600 clones to be trialled and tested in India.