Assam Lemon – A Prospective NPD Initiative Aimed at Global Market Positioning

Abstract

Assam has been the home of many citrus fruits. The most common citrus fruit found in the state is the ‘Assam Lemon’ regionally known as ‘Kazi Nemu’. The purpose of this paper is to draw focus to the indigenous Kazi Nemu for providing a better transcend in the global markets and thereby, to bring out the business opportunities in respect of the fruit by identifying various indigenous and low-cost New Product Development prospects of the same.  Subsequently, the next attempt is to study the possibility of globally positioning the products thus produced.

The paper in hand, being one of the virgin efforts in NPD initiatives using Assam Lemon and analyzing global market positioning prospects of the same, is largely based on secondary data regarding the current production, marketing and usage patterns of the fruit as available in various agri-based research publications. Some amount of primary data has been collected, regarding indigenous usages and preservation techniques of the fruit, from local dwellers, agriculturists and agri-researchers, through unstructured verbal interviews and discussions. The paper finds and concludes the fact that Assam Lemon being one of the most commonly found resource in Assam has the potential to grab the world market and contribute a lot towards the economic development of the region.