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Karnataka govt to evolve new food processing policy to support farmers
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Thursday, 03 September, 2015, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Nandita Vijay, Bengaluru
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fiogf49gjkf0d Karnataka government is expected to evolve a new food processing policy to give the food and beverage industry a head start. The state is also expected to organise the Global Investors Meet later this year to attract promising investments in the state. In fact, the earlier government had announced an Integrated Agri-business Development Policy for the development of this sector which could generate more jobs.
In the wake of a spate of farmers suicides ensuing from poor harvest and erratic rainfall patterns, which have impacted the sowing too, Karnataka’s industries minister R V Deshpande opined that only if small- and medium-sized food processing units were promoted, it would give the agriculturists the much-needed relief in income generation.
Deshpande called on his officials from the department of industry to explore avenues to set up such units based on the agricultural inputs from the region.
The government is now working to position Karnataka on a sustained growth path in the agriculture and allied sectors through global technologies and innovative tools by creating a policy framework and state-of-the-art infrastructure facilities to enable generating higher incomes for the farmers.
There is a need to create a conducive atmosphere to attract investments in all parts of the state, Deshpande said, while explaining about the adverse impact of setting up industries only in Bengaluru.
Food processing has the potential to dramatically improve the rural livelihoods by raising farm incomes through value addition in their agricultural produce. The big attraction in Karnataka is the diverse six agro-climatic conditions, which enable cultivation of a wide range of fruits and vegetables suitable for food processing industries. The state is self-sufficient in fruit, flowers, spices, vegetables, medicinal plants and aromatic crops. The scope, potential and opportunities are huge for food processing, he noted.
“Incidents of farmer suicides can be drastically brought down by forging coordination with the departments of agriculture, textile, horticulture, irrigation and industries,” he said.
Referring to reports of encroachment of land reserved for setting up of food parks across the state, he directed the officials to take measures to prevent this.
State agriculture minister Krishna Byregowda spoke on the measures taken by the department to make farmer-friendly food parks in the state.
According to the food industry in Karnataka, which includes ITC Foods, MTR and Maiyas, there is need for creation of infrastructure near the farm, transportation, logistics and centralised processing centres.
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