India International Cooperatives Trade Fair to kick-start from Oct 11

In a first, the government is organising an international co-operatives trade fair between October 11 and 13 in the national capital as part of its effort to boost farm exports and double farmers' income by 2022.

About 150 co-operatives and 35 countries, including the US, Australia and Bangladesh, would participate in the fair, which is being organised by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) along with agencies such as APEDA and Nafed with the support of agriculture and commerce ministries.

"As 94 per cent of our farmers are members of at least one co-operative institution, the co-operative sector has a formidable role in increasing agriculture exports from the current USD 30 billion to USD 60 billion by 2022 as envisaged in the agriculture export policy," Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar told reporters here.

Promotion of key agriculture commodities and products will help in doubling farmers' income and achieving the goals set under the agriculture export policy, he added.

The India International Cooperatives Trade Fair (IICTF) has been conceived for the first time and will be a major platform to promote export of Indian cooperative produce, he added.

"We are experimenting this for the first time, I believe this will provide an opportunity for cooperatives to learn about branding and marketing as per global standards," Tomar said, adding that the IICTF would also provide a platform for self-help groups to showcase their products.

IICTF would offer a huge opportunity for the industry and business houses from India and abroad to build alliances, business net working, product sourcing and interaction with the primary producers of a wide range of products and service providers.