Agriculture Ministry okays setting up 100 fodder-centric FPOs in 2022-23

The government has finally designated National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) as the implementing agency for setting up of 100 fodder-centric Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) during this fiscal to address the fodder deficit situation in the country.

The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying in 2020 had proposed the establishment of fodder-centric FPOs and requested the agriculture ministry to allow such FPOs under the central scheme "Formation and Promotion of 10,000 new FPOs".

The proposal was considered seriously and the agriculture ministry finally issued an order on November 4.

"The competent authority in the Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has approved to designate NDDB as implementing agency under the scheme of formation and promotion of 10,000 Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) to form and promote FPOs, primarily fodder centric, and animal husbandry activities as a secondary activity (fodder plus model)," the order said.

NDDB has been assigned to form 100 FPOs during 2022-23 within the contours of the scheme guidelines, it added.

Last month after a review meeting on the fodder crisis, a senior ministry official had said that in a normal year, the country has a fodder deficit of 12-15 per cent, 25-26 per cent and 36 per cent when it comes to green fodder, dry fodder and concentrated fodder, respectively. The deficits are mainly due to seasonal and regional factors.

However, the current inflationary trend in fodder is due to decline in wheat crop and rise in input costs like diesel, the official had said.

The total area under fodder is limited to about 4.6 per cent of cropped area and this has remained static for the last four decades.