NEWS: The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) à Successfully facilitated the first ever international export consignment of GI-tagged Tezpur Litchi from Assam to Dubai.

The GI-Tagged Tezpur Litchi

• Globally sought-after horticultural crop protected under India’s Geographical Indication (GI) registry.
• Widely celebrated as one of the finest variations of the Litchi chinensis species, commanding high value due to its exceptional fruit quality metrics, dense pulp profile, and rich nutritional value.
• Grown natively in and around Tezpur within the Sonitpur district of Assam, India.

Key Features and Cultivation Conditions:

• The crop includes several notable locally adapted cultivars, including Bombaya, Bilati, Elaichi, Piyaji, and Sahi.
• Each possesses slight variations in ripening timelines and rind thickness, but all share the signature regional flavor profile.
• Features an extraordinarily vibrant, bright-red appearance with a rough, textured rind.
• The interior flesh is translucent, soft, and exceptionally sweet, characterized by a pleasant, distinctive aroma and an excellent pulp-to-seed ratio.
• Soil Typeà Deep, well-drained, fertile alluvial or loamy soils enriched by systemic organic deposits from the Brahmaputra River basin.

Significance

• Export market access enabled farmers to earn about 10% higher prices than domestic markets, improving income stability and encouraging quality production.
• The Dubai shipment demonstrates that North East India’s agricultural products can meet international quality standards, opening new opportunities in global markets.