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With PM FME, micro food processors in Palghar & Thane can reach new mkts
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Friday, 21 May, 2021, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Kimberley Fernandes, Mumbai
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Micro food processing enterprises in Palghar and Thane districts can now upgrade their local products like Sapota fudge and powder, Kharvadi, Naglipapad, Barnyard Millet (Vari) feni and bhajani and masala mix and aspire to grow bigger by finding newer markets for selling. This has been made possible by the PM FME Scheme, introduced last year. Interestingly, it adopts One District One Product (ODOP) approach.
The PM FME (PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises) Scheme, a Centrally sponsored scheme, was launched by Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI), in partnership with the state/UT Governments, as part of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan. It aims at providing financial, technical and business support for upgradation of existing micro food processing enterprises. An amount of Rs 10,000 crore has been invested in the scheme for a period of five years from 2020 to 2025.
Swati Deodhar Singh, District Resource Person-Maharashtra, PM FME Scheme, told FnB News: “The scheme is not targeted at food companies, it is actually for expanding the scope, strengthening and mobilising rural, semi-urban, and urban household level or micro level food enterprises. This is a scheme that is targeted long term at bringing out Indian companies from small or micro enterprises.”
She added, “The main thing is value addition for existing food processing micro enterprises. For example – There is a specialty product from Palghar which is a salty snack like papad, and can be fried and eaten along with your meal. This type of food forms a type of local cuisine or local processed food which requires consumer awareness. The specially trained officials will train and help these types of micro enterprise owners to have more hygienic practices, systematic production of products, market identification, more customer focus, and be able to put their products up in the market, in order to reach more consumers, thereby, enhancing ‘Make in India’.”
The scheme adopts One District One Product approach to reap benefits of scale in terms of procurement of inputs, availing common services and marketing of products. “ODOP is a function that is designed around specific products. For example – If someone wants these grants from Palghar and Thane, then the focus has to be designed around Chickoo crops, and Barnyard Millet (Vari), respectively. This ensures all major chickoo enterprises and vari enterprises come from Palghar and Thane, and so on for different districts,” said Singh.
The scheme will soon introduce a special provision, which entails each state or two and three states together form a pilot plan/training centre type of setup. If there are cereals or millet processing centres, Government will give the grant aid, and promote the products through various means, that way each farmer and micro enterprise owner can put up his product, and try other products.
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