Nutrition for All: Making Dry Fruits Affordable & Accessible
Did you know that a handful of almonds or makhana doesn’t just fuel your health, it also fuels rural jobs, empowers women, and strengthens India’s MSMEs?
Dry fruits are not luxuries. They are a daily nutrition, rich in protein, fibre, and immunity-boosting goodness. Almonds, walnuts, raisins, cashews, and dates are important for children, senior citizens, and working families alike.
Building Access, Building Health
With the government steadily enhancing food and nutrition security, NDFC(I) supports these efforts by ensuring dry fruits reach every Indian home at affordable prices. This also aligns with the vision of Swasth Bharat Abhiyaan, where affordable nutrition fuels a healthier India.
A Step Toward Affordability
NDFC(I) has formally recommended reducing GST on nuts and dry fruits from 12% to 5%. This would:
- Make dry fruits more affordable: Families can include them in daily diets without strain.
- Encourage higher consumption, especially for children and senior citizens.
- Strengthen farmer demand: Higher consumption means better income for growers and processors.
- Promote healthier diets nationwide: Supporting long-term public health goals.
The MSME Engine
The nuts and dry fruits sector is powered largely by MSMEs. These small and medium enterprises handle processing, packaging, and local distribution. They create jobs, support rural economies, and keep the value chain firmly “Make in India.”
- Women Empowerment: A large proportion of processing units employ women, especially in sorting, grading, and packaging. For approximately 5,00,000 women, this is their first formal income opportunity – directly linking the industry to women’s empowerment.
- Rural Growth: MSMEs spread across producing states ensure income stays in villages rather than flowing abroad through imports.
- Make in India: Unlike other industries that import finished products, the nuts sector strengthens domestic value addition – from farm to consumer.
How NDFC(I) Is Contributing
- Policy Collaboration: Working with government and stakeholders to simplify GST, Customs, Quality Standards (QS), and phytosanitary requirements – ensuring smoother trade and affordability.
- Awareness Building: Promoting the health and nutrition benefits of nuts and dry fruits to consumers, positioning them as everyday essentials.
- Industry Platforms: Strengthening farm-to-fork linkages by creating global exposures and buyer-seller connections for Indian MSMEs and farmers through initiatives like MEWA India.
- Capacity Building: Supporting farmer training, processing upgrades, and MSME linkages to create stronger, more resilient value chains.
Why It Matters?
Dry fruits are one of the simplest ways to improve nutrition. Making them affordable is not just about diets, it’s about healthier families, empowered women, stronger MSMEs, and a more resilient rural economy.
“Affordable dry fruits mean more than better diets – they mean stronger farmers, empowered women, thriving MSMEs and a truly Swasth Bharat.”