India – International Food & Agri Week focuses on technology

Addressing the inaugural session, Tomar said that Indian food processing sector is 32 per cent of India’s food market

Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Food Processing Industries, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj virtually inaugurated the India – International Food & Agri Week being organised from October 16-22, 2020. 

Addressing the inaugural session, Tomar said that Indian food processing sector is 32 per cent of India’s food market. He said that the focus of this agro and food week is the use of technology in the field of food and agriculture sector to increase the income of farmers.

Tomar added that India’s agriculture and rural economy is very robust. He said that proper marketing and latest technology can lead to greater development of the agriculture sector and significant steps have been taken in this direction. MoFPI has started an awareness campaign named ‘Anna Devo Bhava’ to mark this occasion.

Explaining the initiatives of MOFPI, he shared that under Aatma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, MoFPI has started PM Formalisation of Micro food Enterprises (PMFME) scheme with an outlay of Rs 20,000 crore. This scheme will support two lakh micro food processing units with credit linked subsidy and would focus on supporting the SHGs, FPOs and cottage industry. 

Tomar shared that MoFPI started PM Kisan Sampada Scheme for modern infrastructure with efficient supply chain management from farm gate to retail outlets. MFP scheme is an important element of PMKSY whose objective is to link agricultural production to the market by bringing together the farmers, processors and retailers. As of now 37 MFPs have been approved out of which 20 have begun operations. Ministry has expanded the Operation greens scheme from TOP to TOTAL. Under this scheme, Ministry will provide 50 per cent subsidy for transportation of eligible crops from surplus production cluster to consumption centre for six months and /or hiring of appropriate storage facilities for eligible crops (for maximum period of three months).

Tomar added that it is an appropriate platform to showcase the products, services and technology available in the agriculture and related sectors. He said that all stakeholders present at this event would benefit from the latest technologies, solutions and opportunities presented in this event.