Cold-chain industry crucial to food safety

Team RuralVoice

The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (MoA&FW), along with the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) in association with the National Centre for Cold-Chain Development (NCCD) as a knowledge partner, organized a one-day exhibition and conference as “India Cold Chain Conclave” in New Delhi on Thursday.

The conference was organized with the objective to bring together all the stakeholders on one common platform where they can contribute thoughts and ideas for the growth of the industry in a sustainable manner and to explore ways of reducing post-harvest losses with relevant technologies.

An exhibition was also organized concurrently to demonstrate innovations and excellence in the cold-chain sector by industry leaders.

The Conclave and exhibition was inaugurated by Manoj Ahuja, Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.

He said that the Ministry of Agriculture recognised the importance of the cold-chain industry in ensuring food safety, reducing food waste and increasing the shelf life of perishable products and that the Ministry had set up an extensive outlay of policies and programmes to give strength to this sector.

Technological innovation is crucial for the growth and development of the Indian cold-chain industry.

With the advent of advanced refrigeration and cooling systems, the industry is now able to store and transport goods at much lower temperatures, which helps to extend the shelf life of perishable products. This has led to an increase in the export of perishable goods from India as the products can now reach international markets in better condition.

During the Conclave, approval was accorded to the product-specific horticulture clusters in various parts of the country under the Horticulture Cluster Development Programme of MoA&FW.

On this occasion, Ahuja handed over the letter of acceptance to the five cluster development agencies and implementing agencies for the respective clusters, viz. apple in Shopian (J&K), banana in Ananthapur (Andhra Pradesh), grapes in Nasik (Maharashtra), mango in Mahbubnagar (Telangana) and turmeric in West Jaintia Hills (Meghalaya), out of the 12 selected clusters for the pilot phase.

The respective implementing agencies include FIL Industries Pvt. Ltd, Desai Agrifoods Pvt. Ltd, Sahayadri Farms Post-Harvest Care Ltd, Prasad Seeds Pvt. Ltd and Meghalaya Basin Management Agency through their cluster development agencies, namely JK HPMC, Andhra Pradesh Horticulture Development Agency, Maharashtra State Horticulture and Medicinal Board, Telangana State Horticulture Development Corporation Limited and Meghalaya State Agricultural Marketing Board.

It was also announced that the applications for seven other pilot clusters, namely mango for Kutch and Lucknow, pomegranate for Solapur and Chitradurga, banana for Theni, apple for Kinnaur and pineapple for Sepahijala, are under process.

Dr Abhilaksh Likhi, Additional Secretary (DA&FW), said that the Indian cold-chain industry is expected to experience significant growth in the coming years. The increasing demand for perishable goods such as fruits, vegetables, and meat products as well as the rise in e-commerce and online grocery sales, is driving this growth.

As the demand for these goods continues to grow in India, the government recognizes the need to support the development of the cold-chain industry in order to ensure food security and public health.

Priya Ranjan, Joint Secretary (Horticulture), said that the Agriculture Ministry, under the dynamic leadership of the Agriculture Minister, was working fast in understanding the new needs which were emerging on the cold-chain front. “We are progressing ahead with various programmes initiated to bring new developments in the cold-chain sector.”

During the technical sessions, various issues relating to logistics and cluster development to unlock cold-chain development prospects, cold-chain energy efficiency, refrigeration technology and the importance of the Internet of Things (IoT) in the cold chain, etc. were deliberated in detail by the delegates with the objective of bringing improvement in the development of cold-chain industry in a sustainable manner.

The event was attended by other senior officers from the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, APEDA, Bureau of Energy Efficiency etc. The conclave was also attended by over 250 participants/delegates belonging to various government departments, corporates, technology providers, traders, exporters, researchers and other stakeholders from various parts of the country, according to an official release.