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India has 30-35 MT storage space & 12,700 reefer vehicles, says Kohli
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Monday, 19 March, 2018, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Harcha Bhaskar, Mumbai
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India has 30-35 million tonne (MT) storage space. However, on the transport side, it has 12,700 reefer trucks. Over 90 per cent of the bulk cold storage available in the country is used for potatoes and chillies. This was stated by Pawanexh Kohli, chief executive officer, National Centre for Cold-chain Development (NCCD), in his opening dialogue at a panel discussion titled Cold chain solutions for tomorrow’s India, which was held in Mumbai recently.
“India is one of the largest and greenest destinations for refrigerated warehouse space,” he added, stating, “In case of cold storage, the country needs a capacity of 35 million tonne. However, just 10 per cent is actually operational.”
Kohli pointed out the importance and development, as well as the positive aspects, of the cold chain industry in India, which has been the driving force for the agriculture sector. It is the key driver to double farmers’ incomes by minimising food losses and preserving the nutritional value.
“Every year, investments worth over Rs 2,000 crore take place in the cold chain sector. There are rules in place for 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI), so the sector is flourishing, but we still have a long way to go,” he added.
“Even the statistics show that India is the largest exporter of beef and grapes and the third largest exporter of fish. This has all become possible only with the proper use of cold chain, which is already in place,” Kohli said, adding, “There are various food segments whose marketing thrives on cold chain. To develop it further, we need to cover time, space and warmth. It is we, the entrepreneurs, who should develop sales.”
However, Kiran Malla, director, Corporate Finance Strategy, EY, opined, “Cold chain is necessity for the producers as well as the consumers to supply and consume the right quality food. To make this possible, high standards should be made for food products, which enable producers to use cold storage. Enforcement teams should be strict with regular inspections. It is an untapped sector from the investment point of view.”
Pointing at cold storage at the retail level, Pankaj Khandelwal, managing director, INI Farms, said, “People at the retail level do not store the products at the right temperature. There are different temperature requirements for different products, which retail store managers have to maintain.”
Ravichandran Purshothaman, president, Danfoss, said, “The food processing and agriculture industries thrive on cold chain. Care should taken right from the pre-harvest level about the yield of quality products and processible varieties. At the post-harvest segment, a business model has to emerge. Farmers should know what to produce, how to produce and how much to produce. Consequently, there should be value creation of the product. Branding and traceability are the most important part for the sale of any product. All this should happen at a low cost. We have to do this from fork to farm, as more value has to give back to the farmer.”
“In the coming year, cold chain will be a sunrise sector, generating more and more jobs. Now India needs to create more back houses and reefer trucks,” he added at the discussion, which was jointly organised by The Free Press Journal and moneycontrol.
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