|
|
|
You can get e-magazine links on WhatsApp. Click here
|
|
|
|
|
|
Food processing sector insists on support in cold storage and logistics from Union Budget 2025
|
|
Monday, 20 January, 2025, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
|
|
Nandita Vijayasimha, Bengaluru
|
India's agriculture and food processing sectors have consistently emphasised the need for robust support in cold storage infrastructure and logistics. This demand has been reiterated ahead of the Union Budget 2025, as stakeholders recognise that these areas are crucial for reducing post-harvest losses, ensuring better price realisation for farmers, and maintaining food quality throughout the supply chain.
The sector has noted that with rising per capita incomes and changing consumption patterns, the consumer focus has now shifted towards high nutrition food products such as horticulture, dairy, poultry, fisheries and processed food.
A simultaneous shift in the production pattern is also taking place slowly through focused crop diversification and the development of value-added infrastructure; however, significant additional efforts are still needed, according to Anand Ramanathan, partner and consumer, products and retail sector leader, Deloitte.
"Crop-wise programmes for selected crop clusters with support for the use of specialised machinery, the right package of practices, availability and affordability of inputs, as well as timely crop advisory and extension services for farmers/crop-focused Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs). Nomination of model farmers to ensure effective knowledge transfer for best practices at the block level," added Ramanathan.
According to Amit Srivastava, founder and chief catalyst, Nutrify Today, for India to emerge as a global hub of nutraceuticals and achieve the $100 billion milestone by 2047, it is imperative to introduce PLI and RLI schemes to upgrade industry infrastructure and compete internationally. With the PLI scheme for the nutraceutical sector under evaluation by MoFPI, the upcoming Budget presents a pivotal opportunity to allocate funds and catalyse this transformation.
Gaurav Manchanda - founder & director, The Organic World, said, "As the FMCG industry is projected to grow by 7-9% in FY25, driven by a rural demand revival, my priorities for Budget 2025 centre around sustaining this growth, particularly within the organic sector. I strongly advocate reducing GST on mass-consumption organic products from 18% to 12%. This will not only stimulate consumer demand but also enhance tax revenues through increased consumption, making organic foods more affordable and accessible to a broader audience."
"We also urge for subsidies and incentives to support organic farming, which will help lower production costs and improve accessibility. Investments in cold storage and logistics are crucial to reducing post-harvest losses and ensuring product freshness. Policy and infrastructure support can address these hurdles, building consumer trust and expanding access," he added.
With inflation at 5.48% in FY24, controlling prices through monetary and trade policies is essential for maintaining affordability. "By implementing these measures - favourable tax incentives, infrastructure investments, and rural support - we can foster the growth of the organic sector, paving the way for a healthier, more sustainable, and affordable food ecosystem in India,” concluded Manchanda.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|