UP to up food processing by over 800%

In order to promote the food-processing industry for preventing huge post-harvest wastage, the Uttar Pradesh government has adopted the route of private-public partnership.

"Despite being top in the country in the production of wheat, maize, vegetables, potatoes, and milk, and having a dominant position in horticulture production and livestock, UP stands nowhere in food-processing, as only a paltry 3 per cent of the total produce is processed," Chief Secretary N C Bajpai said.

Bajpai said: "Though there is potential for the food-processing industry, not much has been done in the state and the next wave of development in agriculture/allied sectors would relate to value addition to agri products by processing."

Bajpai said: "Preventing post-harvest wastage needs to be accorded top priority and we are targeting processing 28 per cent of the total produce against the present level of 3 per cent."

"An investment of over Rs 4,000 crore is required in food processing during the Eleventh Plan period to process the targeted 28 per cent of the produce, which, besides preventing wastage, would create fresh avenues of employment and ensure remunerative prices to the farmers," Bajpai said.

Addressing a press conference here today, Bajpai said a two-day seminar would be organised here from July 28, where different stakeholders under the aegis of the UP Development Council would put their heads together for evolving effective strategy for the development of the industry. 25 per cent of the agricultural produce in UP was wasted annually for lack of processing facilities.

In a bid to increase the durability of agricultural produce and help the farming community enhance its remunerations, the state government has set a growth rate target of 12 per cent for the manufacturing sector, including the food-processing industry.

He said a two-day seminar would be organised here from July 28, where different stakeholders under the aegis of the UP Development Council would put their heads together for evolving effective strategy for the development of the industry.

The stakeholders are government agencies, the CII, Ficci, the PHDCCI, CIFTI, associations representing the vegetable-processing industry, meat industry associations, rice mills and flour millers associations, and leading lights of the food-processing industry in India.

Bajpai said adequate attention had not been given to food processing since Independence, resulting in 70 per cent of the agriculture produce being consumed in the state in raw form.

The UP government has recognised food processing as a thrust area in the industrial policy announced in 2003, but things have started rolling only recently, according to a background paper prepared by the government. Food-processing in UP is dominated by grains, pulses and oil milling units. ...''[T]his is characteristic of low value addition and employment generation,'' the paper said.

The government says while 74 per cent of UP's population depend on agriculture, farmers are unable to get remunerative prices for their produce for the lack of food processing units.