
Can Adani do with apples what Mahindra did with grapes?
From Daybreak by The Ken
June 12, 2026 · 14 min · Episode 770
About this episode
The episode discusses Adani's strategy in the apple market and the implications of the India-New Zealand free trade agreement on Indian apple growers.
Adani started buying apples in Himachal Pradesh two decades ago. Not because it wanted to be in the fruit business — but because it wanted to own the cold chain that nobody else was building. Now the India-New Zealand free trade agreement is about to test Indian apple growers like never before. New Zealand yields 50 to 70 tonnes per hectare. Himachal Pradesh averages 7 to 8. Adani just expanded into cherries, plums, and peaches — fruits even more perishable than apples. The bet is the same as it always was: whoever controls refrigeration, controls the market. Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.
Topics covered
- agriculture
- business strategy
- cold chain
- trade agreements
- fruit market
Keywords
- Adani
- Himachal Pradesh
- New Zealand
- apples
- cold chain
- trade agreement
- Mahindra
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: Adani, Mahindra
Products: apples, cherries, plums, peaches
Places: Himachal Pradesh, New Zealand
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