Tamarind monograph.pdf - Crops for the Future

the tree is famous for its fine cultivars and is cultivated extensively.
Production in India is mainly concentrated in the drier southern states, and
the produce is collected by villagers and sold in the open market. Tamarind
is not grown on a plantation scale but trees in patches are common in the
villages in many states. In some parts of India, it naturally regenerates on
wastelands and forestlands. India has traditionally exported processed
tamarind pulp to Western countries, mainly the European and Arab countries
and more recently to the United States of America. The annual export to the
US exceeds 10,000 tons earning about Indian Rs 100 million (US$
2,165,000).
More recently, Thailand has become a major producer of tamarind, with
sweet and sour cultivars in production. The total planted area of tamarind in
Thailand is 105,785 ha (661,158 rai) with the area in production being
60,451 ha (377,816 rai) and the non production area being 45,335 ha
(283,342 rai) (Department of Agricultural Extension, 1998). Thailand is
particularly prominent due to the availability of the sweet tamarind types
grown there. In the south and northeast of the country small sweet tamarind
orchards have been established by smallholders to produce fresh fruits.
Research programmes have been started to improve the cultivars, cultural
practices, processing and storage, as the potential for both local consumption
and export has been recognised. Thailand has an expanding horticultural
industry and tamarind is considered important; similar in importance to
guava and citrus. Product development has also taken place and toffees and
many other sweet preparations are sold in the market.
Mexico also produces tamarind commercially, with over 4400 hectares
producing over 37,000 tons of pulp. It exports a small amount of processed
pulp to Central and South American countries and to the United States of
America. Information on production and yield in different states is not
available although the potential for expansion is reported to be high but
remains unexploited (Hernandez-Unzon and Lakshiminarayana, 1982).
Costa Rica is also showing high potential for expansion of tamarind
production. In recent years its production has increased consistently. In
1995, 1996 and 1997, production was 192, 205 and 221 tons respectively
(Anon, 1999).
Africa, on the whole does not produce tamarind on a large commercial scale,
though it is used widely by the local people.
Many other countries have minor production areas of tamarind and depend
on naturalised wild stands. In most of these countries, production data are
not available because the tree is unimportant for both domestic use and
commerce. A major problem is that the species has not been considered for
improvement either by the forestry or the horticultural sectors. Information
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