Baramulla, Sep 25: Walnut traders and growers in Uri have renewed their demand for a dedicated walnut mandi in the area, saying the absence of an organised local market is leaving producers dependent on outside buyers, vulnerable to middlemen and with limited bargaining power over prices.
A group of walnut traders from Lagama in Uri said growers are often forced to transport their produce to Jammu and other parts of the country, where buyers largely determine the rates.
They said establishing a dedicated walnut mandi in Kashmir, particularly closer to major production areas, could bring outside traders directly to the growers and create a more transparent and competitive marketplace.
“Whenever we send our produce to Jammu or other parts of the country, the traders there decide the rates on their own. As a result, we suffer losses. A walnut mandi here could protect growers from such exploitation,” said Arif Hussain, a walnut trader from Uri.
The traders said the absence of adequate market infrastructure is among the major challenges facing Kashmir’s walnut industry. They identified inadequate processing, packaging, transportation and storage facilities as other key constraints affecting the sector.
Growers are also facing increasing competition from imported walnuts, particularly from the United States, Chile and China.
While Kashmiri walnuts have traditionally enjoyed demand in domestic as well as overseas markets, traders said the growing availability of imported produce has intensified pressure on local growers and processors.
The problem becomes more acute during the harvesting season, when large quantities of walnuts enter the market simultaneously. In the absence of a well-developed local mandi system, producers have limited bargaining power and often have to depend on traders outside the region.
Muhammad Afzal, a walnut grower from Uri, said the lack of dedicated dry-fruit markets in Kashmir is adding to the financial burden on farmers, who have to incur additional expenses to transport and sell their produce outside the region.
He said inadequate infrastructure, including transportation, storage, packaging and processing facilities, further compounds the difficulties faced by growers.
“By the time we pay for labour involved in harvesting and handling the crop, as well as transportation costs, the prices offered by buyers in Jammu or in other parts of the country leave us with very little return,” Afzal said.
Walnut trade stakeholders have also called for greater government support to rejuvenate old orchards, introduce high-yielding varieties and strengthen post-harvest infrastructure.
They said better-quality planting material, modern processing facilities and organised marketing could help Kashmir improve the competitiveness of its walnut industry.
Jammu and Kashmir remains India’s dominant walnut-producing region, accounting for more than 98 per cent of the country’s walnut output, according to government data cited in industry reports.
Growers said a dedicated mandi, supported by modern storage, grading, processing and packaging facilities, could reduce their dependence on markets outside Kashmir and provide them with greater control over the price of their produce.
