Lucknow News: In the Global Trade Research Report, UP has been described as the ‘Food Processing Powerhouse’ of India. Yogi government has set a target of setting up 1,000 new processing units in every district. 2.5 lakh people are getting employment from 65,000 food processing units in the state.
Uttar Pradesh News: Under the leadership of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Uttar Pradesh is now giving an industrial shape to the agriculture-based economy. The state is fast emerging as the food processing hub of India. A recent report by Global Trade Research has highlighted Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh as the major processing centers of the country. According to the report, on the supply side, while modern dehydration plants have been developed in Mehsana and Banaskantha in Gujarat, new state-of-the-art processing plants are being established in Agra and Farrukhabad districts of Uttar Pradesh. These plants have a strong base of contract farming and cold storage network, due to which farmers are getting better prices for their products. This mission of the Yogi government is not only making farmers self-reliant, but is also establishing Uttar Pradesh as an ‘agriculture to industry’ transformation model—where the echo of development is being heard at every level from farm to factory.
Employment to 2.55 lakh youth
At present, more than 65,000 food processing units are operating in the state, which have provided employment to about 2.55 lakh youth. The government aims to set up at least 1,000 new processing units in every district, which will provide opportunities for both value addition and employment to farming. Yogi government has so far developed more than 15 agro and food processing parks, of which Bareilly, Barabanki, Varanasi and Gorakhpur are prominent. BL Agro is proposed to set up an Integrated Agro Processing Hub worth about ₹1,660 crore in Bareilly, which will have modern facilities like rice milling, oil extraction and packaging.
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Uttar Pradesh is creating new dimensions of export and innovation
The special focus of the Uttar Pradesh government is now on fruit-vegetable processing, high-value crops and export-oriented industries, so that the agricultural productivity of the state can be directly linked to the global market. In this direction, a plan has been made to establish the South Asia Regional Center of International Potato Center (CIP) in Agra, where cutting-edge research on potato and other tuber crops will take place. This initiative will prove to be a big opportunity for major potato producing districts like Kanpur, Agra, Lucknow and Farrukhabad, providing farmers with internationally competitive prices and export prospects. Currently, countries like America, Bangladesh, UAE and Vietnam are importing processed food products from India on a large scale, which is giving a new identity to the Indian processing industry. Experts estimate that India’s consumer spending will reach $6 trillion by 2030, which will bring unprecedented opportunities for investment, employment and exports in this sector for states like Uttar Pradesh.
Policy is getting new momentum
Yogi government has created a clear and strong financial and policy environment to give impetus to the food processing industry in Uttar Pradesh. The state’s ‘Food Processing Industry Policy 2023’ is proving to be a milestone in this direction, under which 19 new projects have been approved. Under the policy, entrepreneurs are being given attractive concessions like production-based subsidy, interest subvention, exemption in land use, stamp duty and development charges. Apart from this, special encouragement is being given to solar energy, cold-chain, cluster model and technological upgradation. The main focus of the policy is on “local availability of raw materials” to create a three-tier value chain between farmers, processors and entrepreneurs. Due to characteristics like large market, low cost of production and efficient human resources, Uttar Pradesh is today counted among the most attractive food processing investment centers in the country.
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