HARSIMRAT BADAL MEETS HON’BLE VICE PRESIDENT OF INDIA TO RESOLVE THEIR ISSUES

Minister Food Processing Industries Mrs. Harsimrat Kaur Badal called on Hon’ble Vice President of India Shri Hamid Ansari and also called on Hon’ble Speaker Lok Sabha Smt. Sumitra Mahajan. It is customary for the Ministers of the Council to call on the Hon’ble Chairman Rajya Sabha and Hon’ble Speaker Lok Sabha a practice followed by all new Ministers. Hon’ble Minister also shared with them about the Ministry and plans to boost farmers produce by bringing Food Processing at farm level. Later, the Hon’ble Minister delivered a key-note address at the Interactive Roundtable meeting organized by CII at Hotel Taj Palace in Delhi. The Hon’ble Minister told the industry that Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji’s one of the primary focus areas is “to use ‘agro technology’ to boost ‘agro based industries’. The Hon’ble Minister said that she has asked the Ministry to prepare National Food Map that showcase all our agriculture and livestock produce and food processing potential states and areas so that we could know what our strengths and weaknesses are and then we shall tackle them by suitable interventions. She also said that as a Minister her focus is on:

-Installing Food Processing Growth Engines at village farm level so that agriculture gets a boost and wastage is reduced. 

-Apart from our focus being on reducing our fruits and vegetable wastage and losses, we also need to optimize yield from per acreage of land by inducting better technology simultaneously to give double benefit to farmers 

-We wish to develop entire North East Region into Organic Food Processing Zones, and we seek to develop SPECIAL FOOD PROCESSING ZONES in the country.

-Special focus on small scale food processing units for women to make them financially self-reliant.

-To encourage special food processing units to impart skill development to augment skills and bring up a skilled workforce. 

And to do that “Government shall do what it needs to do tocreate food processing environment in the country and we need to build BRAND INDIA of food processing for exports and STATE SPECIFIC BRANDS for our domestic National markets. Because apart from Brand India we also have a very big domestic market that we should tap. 

Talking to the Industry the Hon’ble Minister assured the industry that she is all set to take up the issues relating to Food Safety Standards Authority of India with the Hon’ble Health Minister and she assured the industry that special attention shall be paid so that delay in product approvals and other regulatory environment does not derail the food processing in the country. 

Hon’ble Minister also emphasized on adopting the best Model Food Processing Policy and adopting ‘best practices’ to be followed as a policy of FPI Ministry. She said that the general perception that processed food is for the elite and not for the common man needs to be shunned. The growth of food processing industry in the country is also linked to this perception which adversely affects the industry which works like discouragement to start processed food ventures. Talking about virtues of processed foods, she said, “the processed food shall prove to be far cheaper and safer than the fresh food and would lead to reduction of both poverty and inflation.” She also welcomed the industry to resolve all issues relating to the food processing industry.