A Taiwanese company has carved out a niche selling seeds and production know-how, capturing 90 percent of the market for certain varieties of premium fruits and vegetables in India.
Kaohsiung-based Known-You Seed Co, which expanded its operations to India in 1999, is a supplier of papaya, watermelon, muskmelon, tomato, sweet pepper, chili, cucumber and cauliflower in the country, company representatives said in a recent media interview.
Wang Chao-chieh (王昭傑), general manager of Known-You’s Indian subsidiary, said the company has promoted premium produce in the country over the years through seed exports and joint collaborations with local farmers.
Photo: CNA
“While we also conduct trials on breeding regular types of vegetables and fruits, we are eyeing the high-end market,” Wang said.
For instance, Know-You’s “Red Lady” papaya commands up to 90 percent of the market, while a variety of muskmelons called “Kundan” holds about 30 percent of the Indian market, Wang said.
The Indian subsidiary, which is based in Pune City, has expanded to 150 employees, Wang said.
The company also has 10 smaller offices in key agricultural regions across India, he said.
The subsidiary has entered into contracts with as many as 800 seed retail stores in India and expanded its operations with new facilities, including laboratories, quality control, and research and development departments, he said.
In addition to boosting on-site production and establishing distribution hubs, Known-You is carrying breeding programs to develop seeds of Indian varieties for customized services, said Wang, who has worked in the country since 2006.
Wang said he hoped that further localization could reduce the communication time between the Indian branch and its parent company in Taiwan, enabling quicker responses to meet the needs of Indian farmers and customers.
An undersea cable to Penghu County has been severed, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said today, with a Chinese-funded ship suspected of being responsible. It comes just a month after a Chinese ship was suspected of severing an undersea cable north of Keelung Harbor. The National Communications and Cyber Security Center received a report at 3:03am today from Chunghwa Telecom that the No. 3 cable from Taiwan to Penghu was severed 14.7km off the coast of Tainan, the Ministry of Digital Affairs said. The Coast Guard Administration (CGA) upon receiving a report from Chunghwa Telecom began to monitor the Togolese-flagged Hong Tai (宏泰)
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Actor Lee Wei (李威) was released on bail on Monday after being named as a suspect in the death of a woman whose body was found in the meeting place of a Buddhist group in Taipei’s Daan District (大安) last year, prosecutors said. Lee, 44, was released on NT$300,000 (US$9,148) bail, while his wife, surnamed Chien (簡), was released on NT$150,000 bail after both were summoned to give statements regarding the woman’s death. The home of Lee, who has retreated from the entertainment business in the past few years, was also searched by prosecutors and police earlier on Monday. Lee was questioned three
RISING TOURISM: A survey showed that tourist visits increased by 35 percent last year, while newly created attractions contributed almost half of the growth Changhua County’s Lukang Old Street (鹿港老街) and its surrounding historical area clinched first place among Taiwan’s most successful tourist attractions last year, while no location in eastern Taiwan achieved a spot in the top 20 list, the Tourism Administration said. The listing was created by the Tourism Administration’s Forward-looking Tourism Policy Research office. Last year, the Lukang Old Street and its surrounding area had 17.3 million visitors, more than the 16 million visitors for the Wenhua Road Night Market (文化路夜市) in Chiayi City and 14.5 million visitors at Tainan’s Anping (安平) historical area, it said. The Taipei 101 skyscraper and its environs —
RSS