In a bid to achieve the vision of the proposed National Food Processing Policy which is to position India as a World Food Factory, the government will soon launch a revamped National Mission on Food Processing, according to Minister of Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal.
The revamped mission will be called SAMPADA -- or the Scheme for Agro-Marine Produce Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters. It will complete the on-going Mega Food Parks and take up more cold chain projects. The mission will also involve launch of three new schemes – Creation/Expansion of Food Processing and Preservation Capacities, New Agro-Processing Clusters and Backward and Forward Linkages. The 'SAMPADA' mission will have an outlay of Rs 6,000 crore, and it will integrate current and new schemes. It will be implemented by 2019-20 fiscal.
Ms. Badal on Tuesday, in an interaction with promoters of newly-allotted Integrated Cold Chain Projects, emphasized the need to set up these Projects on a war footing for the development of the country.
The proposed National Policy is based on the principle of inclusive growth in partnership with the States with the overarching goal of providing remunerative return to farmers. The model Policy focuses on development of clusters based on production strength of different regions to enable a targeted and coordinated approach for developing the food processing industry and bringing down wastages. As a step in this direction, the Ministry has proposed to undertake mapping of areas of fruits &vegetables and other perishable production in different States with the target to set up agro processing clusters.
Given the challenge of post-harvest losses which currently are Rs.92,000 crores annually, the facilities set up by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries like 42 Mega Food Parks and 234 Cold Chain Projects have created preserving and processing capacity of 139 lakh Metric Tonnes of Agro Produce with a value of Rs.35,000 crores, the Ministry statement said. Apart from reducing wastage, the projects will generate employment for 3.5 lakh persons and benefit 15 lakh farmers, it said.
