John Deere India, a subsidiary of Deere & Company, USA, recently launched the sugarcane harvester CH 330 specifically designed to excel in Indian farming conditions, at EIMA Agrimach 2013 in New Delhi. The product was unveiled by the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing, Tariq Anwar, who handed over the keys of the harvester to customers from Maharashtra.

Nadiger, Managing Director, John Deere India, said, ?Deere? success around the world has been earned because of our focus on the customer and on meeting the needs of many different markets. In India, this has been our strategy and we shall continue to invest and bring products and programmes that help farmers move from subsistence levels to become business entrepreneurs.? Satish further added, ?Our recent investments include a harvester factory in Sirhind in Punjab and our newest tractor factory at Dewas, Madhya Pradesh, which we inaugurated on 22 October 2013.?

?There is a growing demand from Indian customers for this sugarcane harvester,? said Ravi Menon, Director - Sales and Marketing, John Deere India. ?Were endeavouring to facilitate automation of the sugarcane industry and with this in mind, John Deere has been building innovative products; the CH330 is a result of that. It reiterates our commitment to the Indian market. We are promoting a concept of a complete package of practices that include modernisation across the sugarcane sector?s value chain. We find this more sustainable; it helps stakeholders become more productive,? he added.

?John Deere began designing the CH330 sugarcane harvester as an answer to customer demands and expectations regarding harvesting solutions?, said Jeffery Freyou, Global Product Marketing Manager. ?The need was very clear in terms of capability to harvest heavy crops, maneuverability in smaller plots, cleaner cane, and enhanced performance. We listened and responded with a harvesting solution that meets these requests while providing state-of-the-art efficiency, the best cost per tonne, less than three years to pay back, and John Deere quality,? he added.

?Indian agriculture practices with a supportive environment are rapidly modernising and we see enhanced industry and government collaboration. This is helping the industry to continue to innovate and bring superior technology faster to the Indian market, ?said Mukul Varshney, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, John Deere India

?We see very positive trends and developments in India. The agricultural workforce is declining and thus farmers need modern mechanised tools to remain in agriculture. This harvester will help them become even more productive which will be essential as the world population and incomes grow, and the need for food increases significantly,? said Dr JB Penn, Chief Economist, Deere and Company.

John Deere has a long 60 years association with the Indian agricultural market, including sales of equipment in India. The company created a joint venture in 1997 in India and fully acquired it in 2005.