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Meghalaya positions itself as emerging organic spice hub
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Wednesday, 04 March, 2026, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, Mumbai
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The first-ever Meghalaya Spice Festival was inaugurated at the Jio World Drive, Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), Mumbai, marking a significant national showcase of the State’s expanding organic spice economy. In a strong statement of intent, a 140-member delegation comprising farmers, entrepreneurs, cooperative leaders and senior officials travelled from Meghalaya to directly engage with buyers from Mumbai and beyond.
The inaugural day witnessed strong footfall, sustained buyer–seller engagement and structured B2G meetings in spices and tourism. A high-level Forum on Opportunities in Meghalaya’s Organic Spice Ecosystem set the tone for policy dialogue, while live processing demonstrations, tasting counters and curated retail displays transformed the venue into an active marketplace. Procurement discussions, export enquiries and partnership explorations continued throughout the day, signalling serious commercial interest.
The Meghalaya Spice Festival aims to amplify the national and global market outreach of Meghalaya’s premium organic spices, and the Inaugural edition itself, has started attracting buyers from Mumbai and beyond. Hosting the festival in Mumbai, India’s commercial capital, reflects Government of Meghalaya’s deliberate push to position its spices in premium domestic and international markets while ensuring that growth translates into higher incomes for farmers. The festival thus has been conceived as a strategic market-linkage platform to directly connect the State’s farmers and spice entrepreneurs with national retailers, institutional buyers and global exporters.
Dr Shakil P. Ahammed, chief secretary, Government of Meghalaya, said, “You come and interact with our entrepreneurs and farmers- you realise what authenticity is, what sincerity is, what quality is.” He further added, “Fundamentally, our farmers respect nature, they want to protect nature; that’s why we have the cleanest of the rivers, cleanest of the villages, and cleanest of the leadership.”
Dr Vijay Kumar D, commissioner & secretary, Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare Department, Government of Meghalaya, said, “The State’s expanding market footprint, Meghalaya’s turmeric, is already reaching domestic markets as well as markets in America, the Middle East and Europe, with ginger exports to Singapore this year. We want to find buyers who believe in sustainable agriculture. We want buyers who take our products to the right markets and give the right price to our farmers. We have the best turmeric in the world. Wherever we go, this is a story we take.”
N. Bhavani Sri, secretary, National Turmeric Board, described the festival as a structured effort to harness the North-East’s agri-ecosystem through farmer collectivisation, standardised branding and improved post-harvest systems. Referring to the buyer–seller meet held in Shillong, following the Board’s inauguration, she noted that several exporters have since begun sourcing Lakadong turmeric from Meghalaya, including firms engaged in high-value curcumin extract and turmeric oil. She emphasised that Meghalaya is well positioned to meet organic standards and tap the growing global wellness market.
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