How this farmer makes a profit of Rs10 lakh per acre from avocado farming in drought-prone Beed

In 2018, when Parmeshwar Thorat felt disillusioned with the low prices of pomegranates he received in the market, he decided to plant some exotic fruits that could survive in the drought-prone Beed region of Maharashtra and bring high profits.

Exotic fruits like mangosteen, passion fruit, dragon fruit, figs, and others are rapidly gaining popularity in India and fetch at least three to four times more rates than traditional Indian fruits like grapes, oranges and papaya. Many farmers are shifting to their cultivation depending on the local climatic conditions.

The search for exotic fruits took Parmeshwar to avocado, a tropical fruit that sells upwards of Rs150 per piece in India. 

In 2023, India imported 39 lakh kg of avocados, mostly from Tanzania, New Zealand, Peru, Chile, and Australia, according to World Bank trade data. 

The imports have been fuelled by a fast-rising demand for avocados as it is rich in antioxidants and monounsaturated fats.

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Growing thirsty avocados in drought-prone Beed

But avocado is a thirsty plant that requires much water while Beed is prone to frequent droughts. Parmeshwar, however, did his research well. “I learnt about a high-yielding avocado variety developed by the ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR) Bengaluru," he says.

"This avocado variety is called Arka Supreme and flourishes well in regions with high temperatures of 40 degrees Celsius and low rainfall,” Parmeshwar tells 30Stades.

He then visited farmers in Karnataka already growing Arka Supreme. Its fully-grown tree yields about 175-200 kg per plant annually, with an average fruit weight of 350 to 400 gm. “Seeing the results, I was certain that this avocado variety could survive and flourish well in my village,” says Parmeshwar, who completed his diploma in agriculture after graduation.

Also Read: Farmer in drought-prone Beed gets 60 tonnes papaya per acre through organic farming

Since he was among the first farmers in Maharashtra to go for avocados, he purchased only 50 saplings on a trial basis from IIHR, Bengaluru. “I dug pits of 2 ft X 2ft over 0.75 acres of land and filled them with cow dung manure before planting the saplings.

“Avocado saplings are planted in June-July when it is rainy season here and continues till September. I planted the saplings in June 2018,” he says.

Parmeshwar also has a pond on the farm that captures rainwater runoff and stores it for use during dry periods. This rainwater harvesting reduces the need to rely on groundwater. “I use this water in March-April because watering is not required in the winter months of December, January and February,” he explains.

Unlike foreign avocado varieties, an Arka Supreme tree requires only about 25 to 30 litres of water every three to four days in summer.

“I use drip irrigation on the farm. It takes water and other nutrients directly to the roots of the tree and minimizes wastage,” Parmeshwar says.

Avocado output, grafting and income

Flowering in avocados starts in February and the harvest is ready in June-July. The second harvest is ready in December-January. Parmeshwar’s 50 plants started flowering in 2021 and were ready for harvest in 2021. Since the harvest is low in the first year, each plant gave four to five avocados. “In 2022, I harvested around 20 kg per tree,” he says.

“In the last season, I harvested 1,000 kg avocados overall, earning Rs 6 lakh from just 50 plants. As the age of the plant increases, their yield goes up. This season, I am expecting higher output,” Parmeshwar says.

He does not have to go to mandis with his produce. “People come to my farm and I sell it at Rs200 per piece in retail. For wholesalers, the rate is Rs600 per kg. I have now tied up with a national retail chain, which will procure it from my farm from June-July 2025 onwards,” he adds.

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He also has a WhatsApp group of affluent customers, who procure directly from him as and when harvesting is done.

The progressive farmer has not restricted himself to just avocado farming. He is now preparing grafted plants and has increased the area under avocado cultivation. “After I began grafting, I planted 250 saplings on my farm in 2022. Now I have 300 avocado plants over 1.75 acres. The new ones will start fruiting next year,” says Parmeshwar, who has won many awards for avocado farming.

Grafting joins the roots of one plant (called rootstock) and the shoot (or sapling) from the scion plant (the variety to be grown).

“I procure the rootstock from Tamil Nadu and the scion is from our plants. It is done manually and the expenses, including rootstock, are around Rs100 per sapling. I sell the saplings at Rs 300 a plant once they are at least four months old,” he says.

Parmeshwar sold 2,200 saplings in 2024, earning Rs 6.6 lakh from his nursery business. After reducing the expenses, his profit was Rs4.4 lakh from the sale of avocado saplings.

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“For the farm, the annual maintenance cost is Rs80,000, and I made a profit of Rs5.2 lakh (Rs6 lakh income minus Rs80,000 expenses) from 50 plants,” Parmeshwar explains.

He keeps costs under check by using drip irrigation and involving his family in harvesting. “I don’t hire any labour for harvesting and don’t have to transport the output to the market,” he adds.

Over 1,000 farmers have visited him so far to learn about avocado farming. “I train them for free,” Parmeshwar says.

(Rashmi Pratap is a Mumbai-based journalist specialising in business, financial, and socio-economic reporting)

Also Read: MBA farmer pioneers vegetable grafting; clocks Rs50 lakh turnover

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