Importance and scope of Horticultural Crops

Importance of Horticulture

The horticulture sector plays a pivotal role in agriculture and human nutrition, contributing significantly to the economy, livelihoods, and overall well-being. Here’s an in-depth discussion of its importance:

1. Contribution to the Economy and Employment

Horticulture contributes approximately 30.4% to India’s agriculture GDP and provides employment to around 19% of the labor force. The sector includes the cultivation of fruits, vegetables, and other plants that play a vital role in the agricultural economy. The increasing demand for horticultural produce is driven by urbanization, higher standards of living, growing awareness about nutrition, and health-focused initiatives.

2. Human Nutrition and Health

From a human nutrition perspective, horticultural crops are critical to daily diets. They provide essential nutrients that support various bodily functions. The human body requires vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates, and fats for overall health. Many of these nutrients are supplied by horticultural crops, particularly fruits and vegetables, which are considered protective foods essential for maintaining human health.

Role of Fruits in Nutrition

Fruits are an important source of vitamins, minerals, and other essential nutrients, including carbohydrates and proteins. They play a significant role in alleviating nutritional deficiencies, particularly in developing countries where malnutrition is prevalent. The vitamins and minerals present in fruits help in the prevention of various deficiency-related diseases.

Some key nutrients found in fruits include:

• Vitamin A: Found in fruits like mango, papaya, dates, jackfruit, and walnut. Vitamin A is essential for vision, skin health, and immune function.
• Vitamin B1 (Thiamine): Found in fruits such as oranges, pineapple, jackfruit, cashew nuts, almonds, and bananas. This vitamin plays a crucial role in energy metabolism and nerve function.
• Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): Found in bael, papaya, litchi, banana, and apricot. It supports cellular function, growth, and development.
• Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid): Found in fruits like amla, guava, citrus, strawberry, and pineapple. Vitamin C is essential for immune function, wound healing, and the maintenance of healthy skin.
• Calcium: Found in acid lime, orange, figs, and dried apricots. It is crucial for bone health and the proper functioning of muscles and nerves.
• Iron: Found in fruits such as custard apple, guava, pineapple, and strawberries. Iron is needed for the production of hemoglobin, which helps in transporting oxygen through the body.
• Phosphorus: Present in guava, grapes, jackfruit, passion fruit, and oranges. Phosphorus is vital for healthy bones and teeth, as well as energy production.
• Proteins: Found in fruits like guava and banana, as well as nuts like walnuts, cashew nuts, and almonds. Protein is essential for tissue repair and growth.
• Enzymes: Papaya contains the enzyme papain, and pineapple contains bromelain, both of which have digestive benefits.

These nutrients, provided by fruits and vegetables, are vital for combating malnutrition and improving health outcomes in various populations.

3. Comparison of Horticulture with Other Agricultural Sectors

Horticulture has several advantages over field crops in terms of productivity and returns:

Higher Yield per Unit Area: Horticultural crops typically yield much higher per hectare compared to field crops. For instance, while paddy might yield around 30 quintals per hectare, crops like banana can yield 300-500 quintals per hectare, pineapple can yield 450 quintals per hectare, and grapes can yield 90-150 quintals per hectare.

High Returns per Unit Area: Horticultural crops offer high financial returns. For example, a well-maintained orchard of apple, grapes, or sweet orange can generate up to Rs. 2.5 lakh per hectare as net income, significantly higher than field crops.

Employment Opportunities: Unlike field crops, which often have a limited labor requirement, horticultural crops offer year-round employment opportunities, ensuring steady income for workers throughout the year.

Utilization of Waste Land: Many fruit crops can be grown in areas unsuitable for conventional agriculture, such as hilly, undulating land. Examples include mango and cashew cultivation in the Konkan region.

Food Energy: Some fruits provide significantly higher energy per hectare compared to staple crops like wheat. For example, cultivating 0.03 hectares of banana can provide the same amount of food energy as cultivating 0.44 hectares of wheat.

Raw Materials for Industries: Horticultural crops are the foundation for various industries like canning, fruit juice production, and essential oils, which create additional employment opportunities.

Best Use of Undulating Lands: Fruit crops such as mango and cashew are ideal for cultivation in hilly regions, where conventional agricultural crops cannot be grown efficiently.

4. Horticulture is Also Important for 3 reasons 

Economic Importance

Horticulture contributes billions to the Indian economy by:

• Providing jobs in rural and urban areas.
• Producing essential food items like fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
• Enhancing the value of homes and buildings through landscaping, which increases property values.

Aesthetic Importance

Horticulture is also significant for its aesthetic value:

• Improving the Appearance of Homes and Public Spaces: Landscaping with horticultural crops can enhance the visual appeal of homes, streets, parks, and public spaces.
• Creating Green Spaces in Urban Areas: Urban areas can benefit from landscaped spaces that improve the quality of life and make cities more livable.

Environmental Importance

Horticulture plays a key role in the environment by:

• Cleaning the Air: Plants, especially trees, help purify the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen.
• Preventing Soil Erosion: The roots of horticultural plants help prevent soil erosion, especially in hilly regions.
• Providing Shade: Trees and other plants offer shade, reducing the urban heat island effect and providing comfort to urban dwellers.
• Contributing to Nutrition: Fruits and vegetables contribute to a balanced diet, promoting health and well-being in communities.

The Scope of Horticulture

The scope of horticulture is vast and multifaceted, depending on several factors such as incentives for farmers, adaptability of crops, the necessity for nutrition and food security, and the availability of facilities for future growth. Below is a detailed discussion of these aspects:

1. Incentive for the Farmer:

• Economic Returns: The biggest incentive for farmers to engage in horticulture is the potential for high returns per unit area. Compared to traditional agricultural crops like cereals, horticultural crops such as fruits, vegetables, and nuts offer more profit. They also provide opportunities for value addition and export, which further increases their economic value.
• Export Value: Horticultural crops are also valuable in the global market. Exporting crops like mangoes, grapes, onions, and spices can fetch significantly higher foreign exchange per unit compared to staple crops like wheat or rice.
• Job Creation: Horticulture not only benefits farmers but also contributes to job creation in rural areas through activities such as farming, processing, and marketing.

2. Adaptability of Horticultural Crops:

• Diverse Climatic and Soil Conditions: India is uniquely positioned with diverse climatic zones, ranging from tropical, subtropical, temperate to semi-arid and arid conditions. It also boasts a variety of soil types, including loamy, alluvial, black, and sandy soils, which makes it conducive for growing a wide range of horticultural crops. These favorable conditions give horticulture crops a significant advantage in terms of adaptability across different regions.
• Crop Diversity: This diversity in climate and soil allows the cultivation of a broad spectrum of crops like fruits (e.g., mangoes, bananas, and grapes), vegetables (e.g., tomatoes, onions, and potatoes), nuts, spices, and medicinal plants. Therefore, farmers can diversify their crops and reduce dependency on a single crop.

3. Necessity of Horticulture Crops:

• Nutritional Security: With the achievement of self-sufficiency in staple foods, there is a growing focus on ensuring nutritional security, especially for vitamins and minerals. Fruits and vegetables are crucial in providing essential nutrients such as vitamins A, C, and B complex, iron, calcium, and fiber, which are vital for human health.
• Meeting National Dietary Requirements: To meet the nutritional needs of India’s large population, horticultural crops must be cultivated in sufficient quantities. The country’s population is projected to exceed 1.2 billion, and providing at least 85 grams of fruits and 200 grams of vegetables per person per day is essential for maintaining public health.
• Utilizing Waste and Undulating Lands: As agricultural land for food crops faces increasing pressure due to population growth, wasteland and undulating lands can be put to good use for cultivating hardy horticultural crops, such as medicinal plants and fruits like custard apple or litchi. These crops are well-suited to less fertile and challenging land conditions.

4. Export Value and International Trade:

• Global Demand: Horticultural crops like mangoes, grapes, onions, and tea have a strong presence in international markets. European and Gulf countries are major importers of Indian horticultural produce, and the demand for such crops is growing. Exporting these products not only contributes to the national economy but also strengthens the global position of Indian horticulture.
• Potential for Growth in International Trade: Currently, India’s share in the global trade of horticultural commodities is less than 1%, yet these products generate 10-20 times more foreign exchange per unit weight compared to cereals. This provides a significant opportunity to increase horticultural exports, especially with the improved communication and transport systems that facilitate quicker deliveries and reduced wastage.
• Increased Investment in Food Industry: The rise in investment in the food processing industry is further fueling the growth of horticulture, as processed horticultural products such as juices, jams, and canned goods can be exported more effectively, contributing to both domestic and international markets.