New Delhi, April 15 (IANS) India should launch a National Mission on Cocoa, expand polyclonal seed gardens, enhance subsidies, and boost research to cut import dependence, industry leaders said at a roundtable.

Industry leaders at a roundtable on “India’s Cocoa Future: Self Sufficiency and Global Value Chain Integration” recommended a unified policy framework and expansion of polyclonal seed gardens to 250 hectares by 2028, with a focus on tribal and rainfed regions, a Grant Thornton Bharat report said.

Industry leaders also called for the development of high-yielding, climate-resilient varieties, the establishment of a Centre of Excellence for cocoa, the enhancement of subsidies, the introduction of a single-window digital platform, and the strengthening of FPOs.

Key action points discussed were rationalisation of tax and tariff structures to correct inverted duties and incentivise domestic processing and FDI.

Further, promotion of regional value-creation models to position India as a competitive global cocoa processing hub and strengthening of primary processing infrastructure for fermentation, drying, and quality stabilisation were also discussed.

“As a predominantly import-dependent crop, cocoa faces critical challenges across production and post-harvest management in India,” said Additional Commissioner (Horticulture), Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Naveen Kumar Patle.

FICCI Task Force on Horticulture Chairperson & Group Executive Director, FIL, Syed Junaid Altaf, emphasised that cocoa holds immense untapped potential to boost farmer incomes, strengthen agri-industry linkages, and support value-added and export-oriented growth in the years ahead.

The knowledge paper released at the roundtable noted that India currently meets only about 25–30 per cent of its cocoa demand domestically, and imports exceed $866 million annually.

It identified cocoa as a high-potential crop for diversification, offering climate resilience, intercropping benefits, and stable long-term farmer income.

However, structural challenges persist, including limited access to quality planting material, fragmented policy support, and underutilised processing capacity.

–IANS

aar/vd