Project report for Dates Cultivation

The biggest producer of date palm in the world is Iraq. Date palm cultivation is widely done in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Sudan, Tunisia, Morocco, Pakistan, Spain, and USA. Date palm in India occurs in the western border, especially in the Kutch district of Gujarat with about 18286 ha. With a production of 171522 MT of fresh fruits. Among Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala and other states Gujarat is the top producer. It mostly suits the harsh climatic Condition providing excellent yield where most other crops are hard to cultivate Date palm is known for its valuable dietary food due to the presence of anti-inflammatory nutrients, crude fibres and cholesterol-free nutrients in it. Apart from this, date palm is quite a multipurpose tree providing food, shelter and timber products. The date fruit owned its value of being a good source of food by providing fibre, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins besides having anti-mutagenic and anti-carcinogenic properties. The date palm is also one of the most important income-generating crops, providing a major source of export earnings and livelihoods for millions of rural smallholders. Furthermore, it provides food and nutrition security for millions of users especially as part of school feeding for children and recently as a snack even in some developed countries. Traditional production and distribution systems dominate value chains for dates, and while very good examples exist of companies and countries that are modernizing sustainable systems and expanding exports, there is still scope for significant advances.

The Date Market is around 9.6 million metric ton is anticipated to witness a CAGR of 4.6% during the forecast period (2021-2026), with the increased consumption of dates across the world, with the rising awareness about health benefits and rising demand for dates from the processing industries, is expected to drive the market growth over the study period. Fresh dates offer a variety of health benefits. They are a good source of vitamins and minerals such as calcium, iron, phosphorus, sodium, potassium, magnesium, and zinc. They also contribute fibre to the diet and have been shown to help prevent abdominal cancer. Hence, the increased awareness over the health benefits of date consumption has boosted their imports worldwide. However, some factors such as stringent regulations, risk of pests and diseases, and political uncertainties in the Middle Eastern region are expected to restrain the market growth during the forecast period. Dates have an excellent nutritional profile with rich sources of vitamins and minerals, antioxidants, primarily carotenoids, and phenols. There is a rising demand for dates in the processing industry to make date-based syrups and purees. Manufacturers now use dates as an ingredient for their healthy snacks, desserts, and confectionery to enhance the product's nutritional content. Furthermore, increasing fitness trends also drive the growth of the market.