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Market and Export Potential 

Market and Export Potential 

There is a ready market for fresh ginger in Sikkim. Before bringing the ginger to the market or selling at the site, farmers clean the ginger after harvest by removing adhering soil particles. In this process 8-10% produce is discarded. About 30% produce is sold in the village itself to the local merchants or commission agents. The remaining produce is taken to the market for sale to commission agents/wholesalers. The main marketing centre's are Gangtok Pakyong, Singtam and Rangpo in the East dstrict, Gyalshing, Reshi, Legship and Nayabazer in the West district Namchi, Jorethang and Melli in South district and Mangan and Dikchu in the North district of Sikkim.

The quantum of ginger going out of the state ranges from 18,422 tonnes to 22,600 tonnes about 40-50% of the produce is retained as seed. The important markets dealing with ginger in the state are Naya Bazar-Reshi (30%),Singtam(25%),Jorethang-Namchi(20%), Melli (15%), Pakyong (3%)Rangpo (3%) and other (4%). 

Delhi market is the major consumer of Sikkim ginger (70%) followed by Punjab(10%),Uttar Pradesh(10%), West Bengal (5%) and other (5%). Most of the ginger coming to Delhi is further traded with other markets in other states. 

Processing: Ginger is extremely versatile, it can be processed to medicinal and sweet and savory food products. Ginger is processed to give ginger oil, oleoresins, candy, preserves, vitaminised effervescent ginger powder, starch from sport ginger, ginger brandy, wine, beer, medicinal beverages and dehydrated. Some of the ginger products are drained ginger, syrup, dusted ginger, crystallized ginger, brined ginger, pickled ginger, dried ginger etc. Ginger can be used in a myriad of food products ranging from bakery items to confectionary, beverages, marinades and sources, candies, ice creams and desserts, jams and spreads, prepared foods, health foils and pharmaceuticals. 

Production Constrains: In Sikkim, the land-holding sizes of most of the farmers are small and marginal which restricts the choice and crops and adoption of improved technology. The steep slope and difficult terrain causes problem in field preparation, transportation of inputs and carrying of harvest to the house and markets. During winter, moisture availability becomes too low which reduces the yield level, where as in the rainy season excess rainfall provide favorable condition to the luxuriant growth of many weed flora which not only compete with main crop but act as an alternate and collateral host for many insect-pest and diseases. Poor infrastructural facilities forces farmers to sale their produce at lower rates in local markets. 

Sikkim is characterized by high annual rainfall (2800 mm), high humidity (65) and rather a mild and favorable range of temperature (13-23c), most of the time cloudy, less duration of bright sun shine, great variation in altitude, a wide variety of flora and fauna give an opportunity for the survival, perpetuation and building up of many plant pathogens. Due to above reasons, this crop suffers with a number of insect pests and diseases in the field as well as in storage causing heavy yield loss every year. Lack of knowledge, use of poor quality seed, no crop rotation, extraction of mother rhizomes, poor storage condition are some other production constraints.