The study aims to evaluate the competitiveness of selected fruits and vegetables in India by using four revealed comparative advantage (RCA) indices from 2001 to 2019 based on International Trade Centre (INTRACEN) database. The results revealed that out of 25 selected fruits and vegetable products, only seven product groups namely onion fresh, cucumber & gherkin, dried vegetables, cooked or uncooked vegetables, cashewnut shelled, guava & mango and tamarind showed comparative advantage in all

the RCA indices. While other fruits and vegetables exhibited comparative disadvantage in a few RCA indices. To measure the consistency across different measures of RCAs, the study used three consistency tests, namely, cardinal, ordinal, and dichotomous tests. The findings indicate that the four indices exhibit greater consistency when measured as an ordinal scale, while showing less consistency when measured as cardinal or dichotomous scales. Moreover, stability of these indices was also revealed in the analysis.

The study also suggested specific strategies to boost fruits and vegetables products’ exports.

Highlights

• A limited number of fruits and vegetable products have a comparative advantage in exports.
• Products like onion fresh, cucumber & gherkin, dried vegetables, cooked or uncooked vegetables, cashewnut shelled, guava & mango and tamarind showed comparative advantage in all the RCA indices in the study period.
• The findings indicate that the four indices exhibit greater consistency under ordinal measure, while showing less consistency under cardinal or dichotomous measures.