India’s strawberry industry is concentrated in the mountainous west, where Mahabaleshwar produces most of the country’s crop and growers still depend on imported varieties from the US and Europe. The region’s cool climate and light soil have made strawberries profitable, but farmers say the business remains highly labour-intensive and exposed to weather shocks.
Around 85% of India’s strawberry cultivation happens in Mahabaleshwar. At more than 1,000m (3,280ft) above sea level, the area offers a long cool growing season from November to March, and its well-drained soil is well suited to the fruit. Even so, farmers say sudden rain can wipe out a season’s income and that every crop must be replanted each year with young plants bought from suppliers.
Why is strawberry farming such a gamble?
Strawberry farming is risky because the crop is vulnerable to weather and requires new plants every season. Sheetal Danavle, who grows strawberries with her husband on half of their three-acre farm, says a sudden downpour can destroy an entire field.
If you have a field full of strawberries and sudden heavy rains hit, the entire crop is ruined and we have to bear massive losses,
She says the annual cost of buying young plants is about $2,500 (£1,900) for her small farm. The plants are not grown from seed, and if the season goes well, she says, growers can earn double their investment. But, she adds, the climate makes it a huge gamble.
If the season goes well, you can earn double your investment. But the climate makes it a huge gamble,
If you have a field full of strawberries and sudden heavy rains hit, the entire crop is ruined and we have to bear massive losses,
The risks have not stopped thousands of farmers across Mahabaleshwar from growing strawberries, making the fruit one of the most profitable horticultural crops in western India.
Farming strawberries can be a
