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Mumbai : Subodh Kant Sahai, minister for food processing industries, has urged the local entrepreneurs to come forward in a big way to adopt contract farming as a means to promote food processing activity which, blessed with so many incentives from the Centre, holds out a big promise particularly in West Bengal. The state, according to him, is not only a major producer of potato but also a complete horticulture state. Sahai was addressing the members of the Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Kolkata on Aug 27.
"West Bengal, dominated by small and marginal farmers, can give a lead in the entire eastern region, more so because Pepsi's contract farming in potato in the state has proved to be a big success despite political reservation about it in certain quarters," he said, adding, I do not want to bring the government into it.
The minister felt even existing industries could promote contract farming and, in fact, they should do it. "I have requested the Steel Authority of India Ltd and Coal India Ltd to adopt three to four districts each and go for contract farming" he said. To promote food processing, he felt, Central or state level planning would not be enough as more important would be to have district level, even block level, planning.
The call for a second Green Revolution given by the UPA government would remain a distant dream unless a linkage was established between farming and industry, he observed. The food processing industry, Sahai pointed out, posted huge growth in 2009-10 when several other sectors were languishing due to the downturn. The colossal wastage of fruits and vegetables, estimated at Rs 58,000 crore annually, caused by the absence of proper storage, particularly cold chain facilities, could be prevented provided adequate investments were made. The investments, in his opinion, should not be lagging because this particular sector was totally tax-free.
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