Apple Farming and Livelihoods in the Himalayas: Trends, Concerns and Prospects

Apple cultivation is today widely recognized in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region for the successful diversification of subsistent mountain agriculture into cash crop farming. There are niches in the entire Hindu Kush Himalayan region countries where, due to apple farming, socioeconomic conditions of marginal mountain farmers have significantly improved during the last four decades. The future sustainability of apple farming, however, has become a matter of concern due to changing climate, shifting apple production areas, the fall in productivity due to pollination failure, emerging new pest and disease problems and the challenges of trade liberalization.