Huma Food Park starts vegetable contract farming

Huma Coastal Mega Food Park Private Ltd, which got approval from the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) to set up a food park in Ganjam district in October this year, has started contract farming in vegetable products on trial basis.

It has signed guaranteed buying agreement with 100 farmers in Cuttack and Keonjhar districts, who will grow potato, tomato, gherkin (cucumber) and baby corn in about 50 acres land for the firm.

“We are doing it on trial basis and will process these vegetables in West Bengal and Odisha factories. We plan to scale up our operation after assessing the production potential of these vegetables,” said Debashish Mitra, chief executive officer (CEO) of the firm. The firm wants to process potato for making flakes while other vegetables will be grown for export purpose, he said.

 

“To set up a food processing industry we need raw material first, that is the vegetables. Since there is a good export potential of gherkin and baby corn products, we are planning big in these segments,” he said.

The firm was selected by the MoFPI in a tender inviting investors to set up 15 parks across the country. The company will start the infrastructure work for its food park in April 2013 and hopes to get the park ready for other players by June 2014. The firm, set up by five individual promoters, will invest about Rs 125 crore in 100 acre land to develop basic infrastructure in Ganjam district and it expects Rs 200 crore more investments from other food processing units.