Suva, Sep 28 (IANS): The Fiji-India Business Council has sought technical assistance from India to further develop Fiji's agriculture sector, a media report said on Monday.

"India leads in processed food exports and there is a growing market for these products in Australia and New Zealand," the Fiji Times on Monday quoted Fiji-India Business Council president Swani Maharaj as saying on Saturday.

"Processed food or downstream processing of fruit and vegetables is a growth sector and markets for these products exist in many countries. Unfortunately, we do not have the research capacity and we need to get universities involved in this area," Maharaj was quoted as saying.

He said processing fruits into juices and canned products formed another viable market.

"We need to develop farm orchards to produce the best quality of fruit with consistency," he added.

Indian-origin people in Fiji, an archipelago of 332 islands in the heart of Pacific Ocean, constitute more than 35 percent of the country's total population.