John Deere launches Rs 1.4-cr cane harvester

Global farm equipment major John Deere has launched a sugarcane harvester specially designed for Indian conditions, where average landholdings are small and the cane is planted in narrow rows with little spacing.

The harvester CH330, priced at Rs 1.4 crore a unit, is powered by a 198 horse power engine, four-wheel drive and advanced hydraulic technology, and can help cut up to 80 tonnes of cane an hour.

John Deere is betting on this product to expand its share in the cane harvester market that has witnessed good growth in recent years, with both farmers and sugar millers using more of these machines to cut cane.

The availability of labour for cane-cutting has become a challenge as rural wages have increased, leading to higher cultivation costs.

“There is a growing demand for cane harvesters from Indian consumers as labour shortage is becoming a challenge,” said Ravi Menon, Director, Sales and Marketing, John Deere India.

The company plans to initially target States such as Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.

John Deere India Pvt Ltd Managing Director Satish Nadiger expects the company to sell about 18-20 harvesters this year.

Two units have been booked by an entrepreneur in Maharashtra and a sugar factory in Gujarat on Thursday, officials said, adding that the company planned to provide financial options to buyers.

Farmers can expect a payback in about three years, as the cost incurred for mechanised harvesting is almost same or marginally lower than that of manual harvesting, Nadiger said.

Cutting or harvesting account for almost 35 per cent of cultivation cost.

While farmers in Maharashtra spend about Rs 300-350 a tonne, their counterparts in Tamil Nadu incur a cost of Rs 450-750 a tonne, with the costs being at the higher end during summer due to lack of labour.

John Deere’s global rival, New Holland, dominates the cane harvester market in India with a 98.9 per cent market share. It has already sold about 400 units.

“Harvesting is mechanised in only about half a per cent of the 5 million hectares of cane area in India,” said Gaurav Sood, Head of Crop Solutions at New Holland Fiat (India) Pvt Ltd, pointing to the huge potential that exists in the country.

India is the second largest producer of sugar after Brazil, where mechanised harvesting is pegged at 16 per cent of the total acreage.

New Holland, which sold 130 units in 2012-13, has seen a sluggish start this season as cane area was affected by drought in parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka.

“We have sold about 40 units this year and expect to close the year with about 80-90 units,” Sood said, predicting a big jump next season.

With reservoirs levels brimming to their capacities across key cane growing regions, farmers are likely to plant more acreage for the 2014-15 season.

To cater to the rising demand of cane harvesters in India, New Holland is expanding its assembly capacity at Chakan near Pune, where it has taken up 70 acres to set up a new unit.

Maharasthra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Karnataka are the leading in terms of adoption of mechanised harvesters, while the concept is yet to take off in Uttar Pradesh, where recovery is lower than other key producing States.

Analysts said mechanised harvesting is set to catch up with the Government promoting the concept custom hiring, where equipment purchased by entrepreneurs are offered on lease basis.

Besides, various subsidies offered by both the Centre and States are expected to aid the farm mechanisation process.

vishwanath.kulkarni@thehindu.co.in