Kappec plans cold chain expansion

The Karnataka State Agricultural Produce Processing & Export Corporation Limited (Kappec) is setting up three cold storage units in Hubli, Bidar and Bagalkot for an investment of Rs 31 crore.

The corporation has been sanctioned a financial assistance for its Hubli and Bagalkot plants under the Assistance to States for Developing Export Infrastructure and Allied Activities (ASIDE) scheme of the Union ministry of commerce. The Bidar facility will be set up with assistance from the Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), a top official of Kappec said.

“We have been sanctioned 80 per cent of the funds under the ASIDE scheme, while the balance 20 per cent will be invested from our own funds for the Hubli and Bagalkot facilities. The construction will be taken up by Kappec and the management will be given to the private companies,” K J Devendrappa, managing director, Kappec told Business Standard.

 

Kappec is planning to construct a pack house with grading cooling line, pre-cooling units, commercial cold rooms of 2,000 tonnes and reefer vans apart from ripening chambers, among others at Amargol in Hubli. A similar infrastructure with a capacity for 1,500 tonnes for pomegranate packaging units would be set up at Bagalkot, he said.

Karnataka produces 13.02 million tonnes of horticulture produce, which accounts for 7 per cent of the country’s production. Of this, fruit production accounts for 4.73 million tonnes, vegetables account for 7 million tonnes, 600,000 tonnes of spices, 469,000 tonnes of plantation crops.

“There is an estimated loss of 30-40 per cent of fruits and vegetables due to the non-availability of proper storage facility at the farm level before taking it to the market,” Devendrappa said.

Karnataka exported agriculture and horticulture products worth Rs 4,371 crore in 2008-2009, which includes coffee, cashew, agriculture and processed food, spices, gherkin, Bangalore rose onion, silk products and flowers.

In order to increase exports and to reduce the post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetables in the state Kappec has been improving the cold chain infrastructure like integrated cold storages in Karnataka with the assistance from Central and state governments.

With the assistance from APEDA, Kappec is also setting up an integrated cold storage at Humnabad of Bidar district for increasing exports of fruits from Bidar district. The facility will be set up at an investment of Rs 6.5 crore from APEDA and Rs 1.5 crore from Kappec, Devendrappa said.

Bidar produces 36,941 tonne of fruits and produces 121,028 tonnes of vegetables like tomato, cabbage, onion and cauliflower.

The facility includes components like pack house, washing, grading and waxing line, pre-cooling units, export cold rooms, commercial cold storage and reefer van.

The project could increase exports of grapes and pomegranates by about 500 tonnes. It would create employment to about 100 persons at the factory and more than 1,000 persons at the farm level.

It will also help in bringing contract farming for backward linkages.