SRINAGAR: Apples have emerged as the headline agricultural gain in the newly concluded India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement, with New Zealand becoming the first country to secure preferential access for apple exports into the Indian market. Under the agreement, India will cut the import duty on New Zealand apples from 50 per cent to 25 per cent for a quota-bound volume, a move described by industry bodies as a “world-first” in India’s trade policy for apples.
According to the New Zealand Apples and Pears (NZAPI), the reduced tariff will apply to a quota of 32,500 tonnes in the first year, rising gradually to 45,000 tonnes by the sixth year and thereafter. The concession will be available during a fixed window from April 1 to August 31, a period that is counter-seasonal to India’s domestic apple harvest, with a minimum landed price of US$1.25 per kg. Exports beyond the quota or outside the specified window will continue to attract the full 50 per cent duty.
“Christmas has come early for our growers with this announcement,” Danielle Adsett, acting general manager of NZAPI, was quoted as having told the media, noting that India is now the world’s fifth-largest economy and represents significant long-term potential for New Zealand’s pipfruit sector. She said the agreement would be central to NZAPI’s ambition of turning apples and pears into a NZ$2 billion export sector by 2035.
An important moment for India-New Zealand relations, with a strong push to bilateral trade and investment!
My friend PM Christopher Luxon and I had a very good conversation a short while ago following the conclusion of the landmark India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement.…
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) December 22, 2025
The apple concession is part of a broader Free Trade Agreement whose conclusion was announced on Monday following a conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. In a post on X, Modi described the pact as a “historic milestone” concluded in just nine months, promising enhanced market access, deeper investment flows and new opportunities for farmers, MSMEs and young entrepreneurs.
The New Zealand government said the FTA would reduce or eliminate tariffs on 95 per cent of its exports to India, with more than half becoming duty-free from day one. Prime Minister Luxon said the agreement could lift New Zealand’s exports to India by between $1.1 billion and $1.3 billion annually over the next 20 years, while strengthening ties with a fast-growing market of 1.4 billion people.
Officials in Delhi emphasised that the apple concessions are tightly calibrated. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said India had used tariff-rate quotas, minimum import prices and seasonal safeguards to protect domestic growers. “This agreement is built around complementarity,” Petal Dhillon, Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce and India’s chief negotiator for the FTA, was quoted as having said. “We have designed market access carefully, using tariff-rate quotas along with minimum import prices and seasonal restrictions.”
In return for the preferential access, New Zealand has committed to agricultural technology cooperation with India. NZAPI said technical experts from New Zealand would continue long-standing collaboration with Indian apple growers, focusing on orchard management, productivity improvements and supply-chain efficiency. Government data underline the gap such cooperation seeks to address: New Zealand’s apple yields average 53.6 tonnes per hectare, compared with India’s 9.2 tonnes.
Alongside apples, the FTA also delivers gains for New Zealand kiwifruit, which will enjoy duty-free access within a quota, and for pears, which will see a phased tariff reduction over ten years. However, apples remain the most politically sensitive and symbolically significant outcome, particularly as the agreement makes New Zealand the only country to receive preferential apple access under any Indian FTA so far.
Trade analysts noted that the deal could reshape competition in India’s imported apple market, where consumption of imported fruit and nuts has risen sharply in recent years. With New Zealand apples already priced lower than US varieties in Indian retail markets, the tariff cut is expected to widen that gap further.
India–New Zealand bilateral trade stood at about $2.1 billion in FY2025, and both sides have set a target of more than doubling that figure within five years. The agreement is expected to be signed formally in the first half of 2026, after which the new apple import regime will begin to take effect.
Beyond apples, the FTA delivers a significant breakthrough for New Zealand kiwifruit, another high-value horticultural export. India will allow duty-free imports of New Zealand kiwifruit within a quota, starting at 6,250 tonnes and expanding to about 15,000 tonnes over six years, according to commerce ministry officials. Imports within this quota will be subject to a minimum import price, while volumes beyond it will attract a reduced duty of 16.5 per cent, down from the existing 33 per cent. Zespri, New Zealand’s kiwifruit marketing body, said Indian tariffs had previously “heavily constrained” sales, costing growers around NZ$9 million on exports of NZ$27 million last year.
Had a very warm telephonic conversation with my friend & counterpart, NZ Minister Todd McClay.
We congratulated each other on the successful conclusion of the #IndiaNZFTA under the leadership and guidance of PM @NarendraModi ji and NZ PM @ChrisLuxonMP.
He spoke about the… pic.twitter.com/wSym6vd4Sb
— Piyush Goyal (@PiyushGoyal) December 22, 2025
In return for the preferential access, New Zealand will launch a Kiwifruit Action Plan as a flagship deliverable under the FTA. Zespri has said the New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science and the kiwifruit industry would work with Indian growers to improve planting techniques, orchard management, productivity and supply-chain performance. Zespri chief executive Jason Te Brake has said the agreement unlocked one of the world’s largest consumer markets for New Zealand growers, noting India’s growing focus on health and nutrition.
Pears and several other horticultural products are also covered. New Zealand pears will receive a 50 per cent tariff reduction phased in over ten years, bringing duties down to 16.5 per cent without any quota or seasonal restrictions, according to NZAPI. Cherries, avocados, blueberries and persimmons will see tariffs phased out over the next decade, expanding New Zealand’s access across multiple fruit categories.
Government sources, however, said that sensitive sectors, particularly dairy, remain protected. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has said New Zealand had only sought an assurance that it would be consulted if India ever chose to open its dairy sector to a comparable economy. Current barriers on milk, cream, whey, yoghurt and cheese will remain in place, reflecting domestic political sensitivities.
I’ve just spoken with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi following the conclusion of the NZ-India Free Trade Agreement.
The FTA reduces or removes tariffs on 95% of our exports to India. It’s forecast that NZ exports to India could increase $1.1B to $1.3B per year over the… pic.twitter.com/FEat7BQWOI
— Christopher Luxon (@chrisluxonmp) December 22, 2025
The FTA also includes commitments beyond agriculture. New Zealand will provide zero-duty access to Indian exports across all tariff lines, while India will reduce or eliminate duties on 95 per cent of New Zealand’s exports over time. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the agreement would strengthen New Zealand’s economy, create jobs and improve wages, while giving businesses access to India’s fast-growing market. New Zealand has also pledged to invest around $20 billion in India over the next 15 years, with benefits expected in labour-intensive sectors, engineering, automobiles and agriculture.
Official sources in Delhi told the media that the agreement retains strong safeguard clauses, allowing India to withdraw concessions if quota conditions or minimum price requirements are breached. Bilateral trade, currently valued at about $2.1 billion, is now targeted to more than double within five years.
Negotiations for the India-New Zealand FTA began on 21 March and concluded after nine months of talks, which both sides described as unusually swift. While the agreement still requires formal signing and ratification, expected in the first half of 2026, officials and industry bodies on both sides said the Apple-led market access package symbolised a new phase of pragmatic, quota-based trade liberalisation tied closely to technology transfer and productivity gains rather than unrestricted imports.
