Arunachal Pradesh's mountain-grown kiwi has crossed borders and landed on the shelves of a Dubai hypermarket — and Chief Minister Pema Khandu says it is a victory for every farmer who grew it. The first consignment, flagged off from Itanagar on 26 October 2026, is now on display at LuLu Hypermarket, Al Qusais, Dubai, marking the state's maiden foray into Gulf retail for this crop.

From Itanagar to Al Qusais: how the shipment came together

The consignment is the result of coordinated effort between four institutions: the Department of Trade and Commerce, the Department of Horticulture, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), and the Kiwi Growers Cooperative Society of Arunachal Pradesh. Each played a distinct role — the cooperative aggregated and graded produce from farmers, APEDA handled export facilitation and quality certification, and the state departments provided the policy push and logistical coordination to get the fruit from orchard to aircraft.

Khandu called the initiative 'more than an export milestone — it is a victory for our farmers,' adding that it creates 'new avenues for better incomes, greater market access and sustainable rural livelihoods.'

Arunachal's kiwi belt and why Dubai was the first stop

Arunachal Pradesh grows kiwi primarily in districts such as Ziro and Dirang, where altitude and climate produce fruit with high sugar content and firm texture — qualities that meet the phytosanitary and shelf-life demands of international retailers. The Gulf, and Dubai specifically, is a well-established gateway for Indian agricultural exports: high footfall, a large South Asian diaspora, and retail chains like LuLu Group that actively source premium subcontinental produce.

APEDA has facilitated trial shipments of kiwi and other northeastern fruits in prior years, always in tandem with state horticulture departments. This consignment follows that playbook — but it is the first time Arunachal's kiwi has reached a Gulf retail floor under a coordinated state-level export push.

India's Northeast in the agricultural export frame

The move fits squarely into India's Agricultural Export Policy of 2018, which flagged horticultural products and northeastern states as priority corridors for export promotion and value-chain investment. For years, the Northeast's geographic remoteness and connectivity gaps kept its high-value produce locked out of global markets even as demand grew abroad. Dedicated air-cargo links, cold-chain investments, and cooperative aggregation models have slowly changed that equation.

The Kiwi Growers Cooperative Society is a direct expression of that shift: by pooling produce, farmers achieve the volume and consistency that serious retail buyers require. Individual smallholders cannot meet export-grade standards alone. Together, they can — and now they have.

What growers and officials will watch next

The debut consignment is a proof-of-concept. The real test will be whether subsequent shipments follow with regularity, whether additional retail chains or Gulf markets come on board, and — most concretely — whether farm-gate prices in Ziro and Dirang actually move upward as international demand creates a new pricing anchor. CM Khandu's post signals that state government backing is in place. The farmers have delivered the fruit. Dubai has put it on the shelf. The next chapter is written in repeat orders.