Kathmandu, 14 Oct: Apples worth approximately Rs 330.75 million have been sold from Jumla district to other districts this year. Farmers in the district have produced varieties such as Gala, King Red, and Fuji apples.
About 4,725 metric tons of apples have been sent from Jumla to other districts for sale. According to the Agriculture Development Office, Jumla, this quantity of apples was exported from the district between mid-July and mid-October of the current fiscal year 2082/83 (2025/26). The process of sending Fuji and apples from rural areas to other districts is still ongoing. The exact quantity of apples produced and exported will be known by the second week of Mangsir (late November), according to Ram Bhakta Adhikari, head of the Agriculture Development Office. He also noted that apple production this year is expected to be slightly lower than last year, with apples worth around Rs 330.75 million already sent to markets outside the district.
In recent years, interest in apple farming among local farmers has been increasing. Out of 24,838 households across all eight local levels of Jumla, 19,258 households (70.5%) are engaged in apple cultivation. Each family earns between Rs 45,000 and Rs 100,000 per season from apple sales. According to Rawat, an apple trader from Tila Rural Municipality–1, Rara, apples have been sold directly from orchards at over Rs 75 per kilogram this year.
As per the Agriculture Development Office, Jumla is expected to produce around 13,000 metric tons of apples this year — the lowest production in the past two years. Of the total produced, 7,000 metric tons have already been sold. Jumla has 39,435 hectares of cultivable land, of which 4,325 hectares were used for apple cultivation in fiscal year 2081/82, increasing to 4,445 hectares this year. However, apples have actually fruited on only 2,125 hectares.
The main apple varieties produced in the district include Red Delicious, Royal Delicious, Golden Delicious, Richared, and Janadhan, while improved varieties such as Fuji Gala and Italian apples are also being grown. Apples from Jumla are regarded as a major cash crop of Karnali Province, and every year they are supplied to cities such as Surkhet, Nepalgunj, Dang, and Kathmandu.
