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The Food Processing Ministry is all set to award 17 mega food parks on March 23.
This is being considered as first big step in the ‘Make in India’ scheme, announced last year to promote domestic industry and job creation.
Financing pattern“We expect around ₹10,000 crore investment by private players and State government bodies,” a senior government official told BusinessLine .
The government will provide ₹850 crore grant for 17 projects.
The food park aims to provide a mechanism to link agricultural production with the market by bringing together farmers, processors and retailers to maximise value addition, minimise wastage, increase farmer income and creating job opportunities, particularly in rural sector, the official said.
The official said 17 new investors will be selected from a total of 72 eligible Expressions of Interest (EoI), without divulging any names.
The government has sanctioned 42 projects, of which 25 are already under implementation.
Project detailsProjects in Haridwar (Uttarakhand), Chittoor (Andhra Pradesh), Tumkur (Karnataka) and in Fazilka (Punjab) are operational, while one project each in Jangipur (West Bengal) and Khargone (Madhya Pradesh) is expected to start soon.
The scheme aims to facilitate the establishment of a strong food processing industry backed by an efficient supply chain that includes Collection Centres, Primary Processing Centres, Central Processing Centre and Cold Chain infrastructure.
“Our plan is to have at least two-three such parks in each of the big States,” the official said.
Employment creationIt is expected that on an average, each project will have around 30-35 food processing units with a collective investment of ₹250 crore that would eventually lead to an annual turnover of ₹450-500 crore and creation of about 30,000 direct and indirect jobs.
The Ministry believes that mega food parks will help curb wastage of perishable items, such as fruits and vegetables. Various studies show wastage in the range of 18-30 per cent, varying from season to season, pushing up retail prices.
The Ministry believes more mega food parks can help lower the retail inflation rate, particular food inflation.
The retail inflation rate for fruits and vegetables in February stood at 8.93 per cent and 13.01 per cent, respectively.
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