Seabuckthorn Cultivation: More Profitable Than Apple in Himalayas

Shimla, Jun 15 (PTI) Himalayan states can repeat Mongolia's success story in seabuckthorn cultivation to improve farmers' livelihoods, enhance environmental conservation and provide a sustainable supply of raw material to Indian companies, an industry official said on Monday while claiming that the fruit's cultivation is more profitable than apple.

Seabuckthorn is a small tree or shrub that grows naturally in high-altitude areas of Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, and it is rich in vitamin C, antioxidants, and omega fatty acids.

"It is presently being used for the production of over 150 juice, food products, cosmetics and oil capsules by Indian companies, and the seabuckthorn fruit pulp rate has also nearly doubled within one year, making it even more profitable than apple," Seabuckthorn Association of India (SAI) President Virendra Singh told PTI.

Presently, about 700-800 tons of seabuckthorn fruit is collected from wild stands in Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. However, with the entry of big companies and the advertisement of this wonder berry's health benefits on social media, the demand for the fruit has shot up to 2,000 tons and is likely to increase to 5,000 tons in the next 3-5 years.


The small fruit size, low fruit yield, occurrence of thorns and lack of harvesting tools mars the low production of seabuckthorn in natural forests, he said and added that CSK Himachal Pradesh Agricultural University, Palampur has standardised seabuckthorn cultivation technologies and also imported 12 mild thorny and high yielding Russian seabuckthorn varieties.

Singh, a former Seabuckthorn Scientist at Palampur University, said he recently returned from Mongolia, which has introduced many Russian seabuckthorn varieties over the past 40 years and planted them in over 7000 ha of land, supplying fruit and leaves to over 20 big industries.

Mongolian universities and institutes have agreed to provide seabuckthorn varieties and training on modern cultivation techniques to Indian scientists, said Singh, adding that he also met Indian Ambassador Atul Malhari Gotsure, who assured him of facilitating the transfer of Russian seabuckthorn varieties and cultivation technologies useful for the drier areas of the cold deserts of the Himalayas, which have similar geographical and climatic conditions to Mongolia's.

Singh will submit the report of his study tour on seabuckthorn in Mongolia to the Government of India and the four Himalayan states and the Union Territory of Ladakh, and he will meet policymakers to speed up seabuckthorn cultivation in their respective states.

It will help improve farmers' livelihoods, environmental conservation, and environmental conservation and sustainable supply of raw material to Indian companies, which are currently compelled to import seabuckthorn fruit pulp from China and other countries due to a lack of adequate raw material and any government cultivation programme, he added.