Bola Rahul Kamath, Vice President of Nuts and Dry Fruits Council (India) sheds light on ₹350 crore push signals shift: Nuts & dry fruits move to centre stage of India’s farm strategy.
India’s agricultural story may be on the cusp of a quiet but decisive shift. With a ₹350 crore allocation for nuts and dry fruits in the Union Budget 2026, the Centre has signalled a clear pivot towards high-value farming and income-led growth. The move brings crops such as almonds, walnuts and cashews into sharper focus, positioning them at the core of India’s long-term farm strategy. At its heart lies a dual objective – reducing import dependence while unlocking new income opportunities for farmers.
For years, India has remained one of the world’s largest consumers of nuts and dry fruits, particularly almonds, walnuts and cashews. However, a substantial share of this demand has traditionally been met through imports. That imbalance is now under scrutiny. With this renewed policy thrust, the government is seeking to gradually bridge the gap by strengthening domestic production and building a more self-reliant ecosystem.
The rationale behind the move is both simple and strategic. Compared to many conventional crops, nuts and dry fruits offer significantly higher returns per acre. While these crops require greater initial investment and a longer gestation period, they promise more stable and sustained income over time. In a sector often exposed to price fluctuations and uncertainty, this shift has the potential to provide farmers with a more predictable and resilient earning model. To support this transition, efforts are also being directed towards incentivising farmers across regions to adopt nut and dry fruit cultivation, making the shift viable at the grassroots level.
A critical enabler of this transition is a stronger focus on research and development. Enhancing productivity, developing region-specific crop varieties and improving resilience to climate variability are emerging as key priorities. Strengthening R&D capabilities will be essential not only to improve yields and consistency, but also to ensure that cultivation practices are aligned with India’s diverse agro-climatic conditions.
This scientific approach is closely linked to the geographical potential that India already possesses. The country’s varied climatic zones naturally support these crops — walnuts and almonds thrive in the Northern and the North Eastern hill states region, while cashews are well established along the southern and western coasts. The immediate challenge now is scaling up production in these suitable regions.
Policymakers are increasingly focusing on developing crop clusters, improving planting material and strengthening the value chain from farm to market. A key component of this effort includes the development of specialised nut nurseries to ensure access to high-quality planting material, which is critical for improving both yields and consistency.
At the centre of this transformation are Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), which are expected to enable small and marginal farmers to aggregate, access better inputs and secure stronger market linkages. Complementing this is a renewed push towards investments in storage, grading and processing infrastructure to ensure that value is retained beyond the farm gate.
Beyond economics, this shift also reflects a deeper alignment with India’s evolving nutrition priorities. Industry stakeholders emphasise that nuts and dry fruits are not just high-value crops, but essential components of a balanced and nutrient-rich diet. This perspective is increasingly shaping how the sector is being positioned – not merely as a trade category, but as part of a broader public health and food systems conversation.
At the heart of this thinking is a simple but powerful idea – that nuts build strength, that nutrition builds people and that a well-nourished population builds a stronger nation. This philosophy, consistently advocated by the Nuts and Dry Fruits Council (India), has helped shape the sector’s evolving direction, bringing together production, accessibility and awareness into a more cohesive and purpose-driven framework.
In that context, the growing focus on domestic cultivation, reinforced through the Council’s “Grow in India” initiative, is not just about reducing import dependence, but about strengthening India’s nutritional security while creating sustainable income opportunities for farmers. As India advances towards its Viksit Bharat 2047 vision, this alignment between agricultural policy, industry action and national priorities reflects a broader shift – where agriculture is being reimagined not merely as a source of livelihood, but as a driver of value creation, economic resilience and a more self-reliant future.
Industry voices see this development as more than a routine budgetary measure. “This is a structural shift. It recognises that India cannot remain a consumption-heavy market forever. With the right ecosystem, we have the potential to become a serious producer of nuts and dry fruits,” said Gunjan Jain, President, Nuts and Dry Fruits Council (India).
Encouragingly, there is growing alignment across stakeholders. Platforms such as MEWA India ’26 have brought together policymakers, researchers and industry leaders to shape a long-term roadmap – one that goes beyond production to focus on competitiveness, quality and global positioning.
This policy direction firmly establishes a turning point. The humble orchard, long seen as a niche segment, may well emerge as a powerful symbol of India’s evolving farm economy – where patient investment, scientific planning, rising demand and a focus on nutrition converge to redefine the future of agriculture.
Website: https://ndfci.org/
