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TM PDF Editor TM PDF Editor fro m the p ub lisher’s d esk Dear Readers, Welcome to the January-February edition of the Business of Agricult ure! The start of the New Year is the right time to put things in perspective. The world will need to feed 9 billion people by 2050, which means responsible investments will be crucial. The Business of Agricult ure identifies and monitors policies and regulations that impact how markets function in the agricultural sector. It’s unfortunate, depressing and the facts are unsettling; but it’s essential to get them right! Approximately 1.3 billion tonnes, about a third of the food produced in the world every year, gets wasted. The staggering quantity of food wasted is enough to lift nearly one billion hungry people out of malnourishment! O ur Cover Story Cold Chain: Solut ion for Food Wast age highlights the importance of cold chains and gets the message across loud and clear: Good food is a terrible thing to waste! The R&D section underscores the pro fitability and competitiveness of agroenterprises and emphasised on Prime Minister ’s Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ campaign for the Indian agriculture. The Innovation section features two articles on the state of the cold chain industry in India, enlisting challenges and emerging solutions as well as the role played by cold chains to manage farm produce in harsh environments. The Finance section shows the way forward by exploring the investment potential in India’s cold chain segment. The News and Happenings section features the latest from the world of agriculture. There’s plenty more spread over the sixty pages. Enjoy Reading! TMH awke Linda Brady Publisher PDF Editor January-February 2015 Co ntents January-February 2015 Edited, Printed & Published by Linda Brady Hawke Owned by L. B. Associates (Pvt.) Ltd H-108, Sector 63, Noida - 201301 U. P. India Published from L.B. Associates (Pvt) Ltd H-108, Sector 63, Noida - 201301 Gautam Budh Nagar District Noida, UP, Delhi NCR, India Tel: +91 (120) 4727108, 2427419 Fax: +91 (120) 2427108 Email: info@lbassociates.com Websites: www.diplomatist.com www.lbassociates.com 6 News & Happenings COVER STORY 12 Cold Chain: Solution for Food Wastage Good Food is a Terrible Thing to Waste IN N OVATION Managing Editor William Hawke william.hawke@gmail.com Editor-at-Large Alankar Srivastava Desk Editor Aamir H Kaki copydesk@lbassociates.com Director-Business Development Binoy Sahee binoy@lbassociates.com Assistant Manager Marketing Swati Singh Email: swati@lbassociates.com Tel: +91 (120) 4727106 Circulation Rahul rahul@lbassociates.com Tel:+91-8130311653 Layout & Design Atul Kumar Anil Kumar DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this magazine are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the editors or publisher. Although all efforts have been made to ensure the complete accuracy of text, neither the editors nor publisher can accept responsibility for consequences arising from errors or omissions or any opinions or advice given. 18 Cold Chains in India: Challenges and Emerging Solutions 22 Role of Cold Chains to Manage Farm Produce in Harsh Environment 25 “Efficient and Effective Supply Chain can serve the Population with Value-Added Food” TECHN OLOGY 27 Cold Chain in India: Potential of Turning into TM ‘Gold Chain’ 32 “India has all the Required Technology and Machines for Packaging” PDF Editor 4 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 R&D 34 Make in India and that too for Indian Agriculture 39 Pro fitability and Competitiveness of Agro-enterprises: A Key to Growth CASE STUDY 44 Bore Well Video Scanning: A Business O pportunity Still Underexploited FIN AN CE 49 India’s Cold Chain Segment: Potential Investment Avenue IN TERN ATION AL 53 India-Bangladesh Agricultural Trade: Widening Regional Economic Integration 56 International News TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 5 Fiji to boost ties with India in Agriculture Sector Fiji Agriculture Minister Seruiratu called on Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh and discussed about strengthening cooperation between two nations in the farm sector. NEWS & HAPPENINGS HAPPENINGS In the meeting, Fiji proposed to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with India in the areas of rice, horticulture, fisheries and animal husbandry, an official statement said. The MoU on Development Cooperation was signed with Fiji by the Ministry of External Affairs way back in 2006, which included agriculture, fisheries and forests sector. Singh said the delegation that India looks forward to strengthening the bilateral relation to a new height and expressed interest in training of agri-students of Fiji at Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) Institutes. Farm Sector Reforms key to Reducing Fiscal Deficit: Moody’s Improvement in India’s sovereign rating will depend on the government’s ability to pursue farm sector reforms as they have a bearing on inflation and fiscal de ficit, Moody’s said. “We expect (farm sector reforms) ... will improve the efficiency of India’s food supply chain, a credit positive because it will reduce inflationary pressures and the government’s fiscal de ficit, two key constraints on the sovereign’s credit quality,” Moody’s Credit O utlook said. Moody’s assigns a ‘Baa3’ rating on India, with a stable outlook. The Expenditure Management Commission, headed by Bimal Jalan, has recently submitted its interim report to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The Minister is likely to incorporate the suggestions in the Budget to be tabled in the Lok Sabha on February 28. The reforms which seek to reduce the fiscal de ficit to 3.6 percent in 2015-16 would include decentralising grain procurement, a process for disposing of excess food grains, delivering food and fertiliser subsidies via direct cash transfers, Moody’s said. The exact reduction in subsidy costs will depend on the measures that the government eventually adopts, it said, adding that would help narrow the fiscal de ficit. According to Moody’s, annual spending on food subsidies grew by 20 percent on average over the past eight years, compared with 16 per cent overall expenditure growth during the same period. TMThe central government spent about 0.88 percent of GDP on food subsidies in fiscal 2014, which accounted for 18 percent of its fiscal de ficit. The central government recognises that the level and volatility of food prices poses risks to its fiscal target of reducing the fiscal de ficit. PDF Editor “Food subsidy reform is likely to remain part of its fiscal consolidation strategy. And the government, as it has done with other policy reforms in recent months, is likely to administer changes in food policy and process that do not require legislative amendments,” Moody’s said. 6 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 TM PDF Editor Small Onion Price will remain Stable during April-May Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU)has recommended sowing of small onion, forecasting a price of ` 22-24 for good quality during April-May. NEWS & HAPPENINGS HAPPENINGS At present, farm gate price of good quality onion is ruling between ` 15 and ` 20 per kg in the Dindigul Market, according to Agro Marketing Intelligence and Business Promotion Centre of the TNAU. Small onion is mainly cultivated in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh and the area in Tamil Nadu in 2014-15, had increased by 12.7 percent, compared to 2012-13, due to good rainfall and better price prevailed in 2013-14. Currently, small onion from Namakkal, Karur, Tiruchirappalli and Dindigul districts started arriving in the market after Karnataka arrivals stopped last month. Co-5 variety, round in shape, pink in colour and a diameter of 27 mm above, is considered as of an export quality and fetching better price in the state, the Centre said. ‘MP Witnessed 25 percent Agriculture Growth Rate’ Madhya Pradesh Governor Ram Naresh Yadav said that agriculture-friendly policies introduced by his government have enabled the state to register an agriculture growth rate of nearly 25 percent in the current year. “With the hard work of farmers and government’s sustained efforts, the agricuture growth rate has risen to 25 percent which resulted in the state bagging the prestigious ‘Krishi Karman Award’ for three consecutive years,” the Governor said in his address after unfurling the tricolour at main function on the occasion of 66th Republic Day at the Lal Parade Ground. Besides, the state’s contribution in organic farming stands at 40 percent of the total national output, the Governor said. Under ‘Vision-2018’ the state has set a target to raise irrigation potential to 40 lakh hectare from the present 30 lakh hectare, he said. In milk production also, the state has registered a maximum growth rate of 8.6 percent, which is the highest in the country. Focussing on Swachhata Abhiyan, personal toilets were constructed in 37 lakh rural households while over 3,000 villages have become open defecation free in the state, the Governor said. TM The government has launched a campaign to construct toilets in three lakh houses with the help of selfhelp groups and also constructing separate washrooms for boys and girls in schools. So far, toilets have been constructed in 10,000 schools in the state, he said. PDF Editor Referring to industrialisation, the Governor said that the government had recently organised ‘Global Investors Summit’ (GIS) to attract investment in the state and has also launched ‘Make in Madhya Pradesh’ campaign on the lines of ‘Make in India’ drive. 8 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Punjab ready to sell Grains Directly to Kerala Following the recommendations of a high-level panel on revamping the Food Corporation of India (FCI), the Punjab government has offered to sell wheat and rice directly to Kerala, bypassing the state-owned agency responsible for maintaining the nation’s food security. Punjab, which supplies 44 percent of the country’s food grains, can sell rice and wheat to the southern state as per its requirements and keep FCI out of the transaction, Punjab Food Minister Adesh Pratap Singh Kairon said. Kerala Food Minister Anoop Jacob, who met Kairon in Chandigarh, said the state would like grains from Punjab in 40 kg packs. A Punjab government delegation would soon visit Kerala to finalise the details. The panel headed by Himachal Pradesh BJP leader Shanta Kumar recommended that the FCI should withdraw operations from major states such as Punjab, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, which have gained sufficient experience in procurement. The agency should focus on helping states in east and northeast India. The government had tasked the panel with suggesting ways to improve FCI’s operational efficiency and financial management, as well as overall improvement in management of food grains. The eight-member panel submitted its report on January 19. Agriculture GDP Growth has Accelerated to 3.3 percent in 11th Plan Barring soyabean seeds, there is no Agriculture GDP growth has accelerated in the 11th shortage of seeds for other crops for the plan, to an average rate of 3.3 percent, compared 2015 Kharif season to begin with the start of southwest monsoon from June, the government said. “In kharif 2015, approximately 137.27 lakh HAPPENINGS N o Shortage of Seeds for 2015 Kharif Season: Govt to 2.4 percent in the 10th and 2.5 percent in the 9th plan, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University ViceChancellor, K Ramasamy, said. The percentage of the population below the quintals of seed is required against which poverty line declined at the rate of 1.5 percentage 140.69 lakh quintal seed is available. There is no shortage of seeds except soyabean seeds,” the Agriculture Ministry said in a statement. points per year during 2004-05 to 2009-10, twice the rate at which it declined in the previous period 1993-94 to 2004-05 and rural real wages increased TM by 6.8 percent annually in the 11th, Ramasamy said. All states have been requested to take maximum bene fit of central assistance In his address at the Republic Day celebrations at under ‘submission on seed and planting the University, Ramasamy said India’s foodgrain material’ and send the Annual Action Plan production has more than doubled over the for the 2015-16 crop year (June-July) by decades that followed colonial rule to a record 264 mid-March positively, it said. million tonnes in fiscal year 2014. PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 9 Maharashtra waives Purchase Tax on Sugarcane for 2013-14 season The Maharashtra government today waived purchase tax on sugarcane price given to farmers by the state- NEWS & HAPPENINGS HAPPENINGS based cooperative sugar factories for the current fiscal. The purchase tax on sugarcane for 2014-15 was fixed at three percent, while it was five percent in 201314. As a relief to sugar cooperatives, the purchase tax in the crushing season of 2013-14 had been waived. Similarly, sugar cooperatives doing power cogeneration projects were given concession for additional one year. An official in Chief Minister ’s O ffice said in view of the financial difficulties faced by the sugar cooperatives, they are not even able to pay fair and remunerative price (FRP) to farmers although it is legally mandatory. “If sugar cooperatives close down, the standing cane crop cannot be crushed. So in view of the interest of farmers, purchase tax for 2014-15 has been waived,” the official said. He said the proposal was moved by Finance Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar and was approved by the cabinet. In another decision, the state contingency fund has been increased by ` 2,000 crore temporarily to provide compensation to farmers for crop loss due to insufficient rains. Long-Term Agriculture Investment required to meet Food Demand: Arun Jaitley Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said there is a need for long-term investment in agriculture for meeting future food demands of the country. He asked the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to continue addressing the inadequacies in rural finance market and ‘thereby enhance its unique apex development bank status’ for development of agriculture and rural sector. Jaitley was addressing the Board of Directors of NABARD. Emphasising the need to support rural housing, he appreciated NABARD’s efforts in allocating ` 3,000 crore by way of re finance. He advised NABARD to continue to provide “leadership” in areas such as financial inclusion, TMfarm credit to the small and marginal farmers besides those farmers who do not have clear title deeds to the farms they till. The finance minister also noted that NABARD had effectively utilised the initial corpus of ` 5,000 crore of Long-Term Rural Credit Fund allocated in the budget. PDF Editor He also launched two NABARD supported e-commerce portals - ekraftindia and shilpicraft - for marketing of handicrafts and artisan products of Self Help Groups (SHGs). 10 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Modi Govt not N eglecting Farm Sector: Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh The NDA government is according priority to the farm sector by allocating large funds for its growth and is no way promoting only the industry, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said. “Since day one, the government’s prime focus has been agriculture. Had priority not given to this sector, the government would have not sanctioned higher funds for rainfed areas, established more institutions and central varsities,” Singh said when asked whether the current government’s has been more on industries and not on the agriculture sector. Speaking on the topic: ‘Challenges and way out to achieve agriculture growth of 8 percent’ at an ASSO CHAM event, Singh said, “while some states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh have achieved more than eight percent annual agri-growth in the last few years, the Centre is taking measures to ensure other states too achieve such levels.” Higher growth in agriculture is possible if bottlenecks are addressed and ‘more measures would be outlined in the coming Budget’ towards this direction, he added. Amid constraints to expand water and land resources for agriculture in the country, the Minister said the government has approved ` 568.54 crore to issue soil health cards to over 14 crore farmers in the next three years. To ensure ample supply of water to farm land, he said the Centre has finalised the ‘Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PM irrigation scheme)’ and mostly likely would be launched this month. HAPPENINGS The government has also set aside funds for improving agriculture marketing and focus would be on setting up e-marketing at mandi levels and also set up buffer stock of horticulture produce to check price rise, he added. Speaking on the occasion, Minister of State for Agriculture, Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai Kundariya, said that ‘the agriculture is the growth engine of the overall economy’ as more than 50 percent of the population depend on farm and other allied activities. A major push is being given to issue soil health cards to farmers so that they are aware of the quality of soil and use right fertilisers. “This will not only reduce their cost on fertiliser but also enhance crop productivity,” he added. Import Policy Affecting Farmers: Agriculturists Federation Criticising the import policy of the Centre, Federation of Tamil Nadu Agriculturists Association alleged that some of its policies were turning out to be anti-farmer. The federation said the government has allowed the import of potato and onion worth ` 500 crore, which were available and raised aplenty across the country. Since there was no remunerative price for onion and potato, the farmers were suffering heavy loss, S Nallasami, Federation secretary, said in a release. TM Similarly, as against the requirement of 1.9 crore tones of edible oil, the import was to the tune of 1.18 crore tones, which resulted in the fall of the prices of coconut, groundnut, gingelly, castor and mustard, he claimed. Another issue adversely affecting the growers was import of sugar, he said. PDF Editor Since sugar was produced in India more than the demand, allowing import of sugar, has a direct effect on the sugarcane growers and also factories, as the farmers were not getting the right price for their produce, Nallasami claimed. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 11 Cold Chain Solution for Food Wastage COVER STORY Good Food is a Terrible Thing to Waste By Alankar Srivastava TM PDF Editor 12 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 I are unsettling; but it’s essential to get them right! Approximately 1.3 billion tonnes, about a third of the food produced in the world every year, gets lost or wasted. The staggering quantity of food wasted is enough to lift the nearly one billion hungry people out of malnourishment! COVER STORY t’s unfortunate, depressing and the facts Asia and Africa – where food is wasted the most, are home to the maximum number of undernourished people in the world There is a severity of hunger across the world. Asia and Africa – where food is wasted the most, are home to the maximum number of undernourished people in the world. Asia, alone, accounts for almost 28 percent of the total food wasted across the world. Surveys conducted across the world have shown that the industrialised countries waste almost as much food (222 million tonnes) as the entire net food production of sub-Saharan Africa (230 million tonnes). TM According to data from the Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET), 18 percent of India’s fruit and vegetable production – valued at ` 13,300 crore – is wasted PDF Editor annually. The lack of high quality cold chain facilities is primarily responsible for the wastage of India’s fruits, vegetables and grains, worth ` 44,000 crore annually. The fact remains that without significant Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 13 COVER STORY A lack of proper infrastructure and technology are major obstacles in the growth of cold chain industry improvements in the cold chain infrastructure, to less than 15 percent of the total produce. The India will continue to waste the most precious industry is worth ` 10,000 - 15,000 crore, growing commodity of the world. at 20-25 percent and is expected to touch ` 40,000 crore by the end of 2015. Several studies conducted across the globe suggested that the biggest contributors to food India’s largest state, Uttar Pradesh, leads the pack losses are the lack of refrigerated transport and when it comes to the number of cold chains, the lack of high quality cold storage facilities for followed by West Bengal, Maharashtra and Punjab. food manufacturers and food sellers. Home to more than 1.2 billion people, India needs proper Rinac, Walco, Frick India, Carrier are some of management of food resources. There must be an the cold chain players in India, covering various effective system in place to ensure smooth flow of segments of food industry such as dairy, seafood, food from harvest to table. A more effective and fruits and vegetables, meat, poultry and organic vast network of cold storage infrastructure is the food industry. way forward. There must be concerted efforts to establish a network of sustainable cold chains A lack of proper infrastructure and technology to prevent unnecessary food loss, which will help are major obstacles in the growth of cold chain lessen hunger and boost food security. industry. Some of the latest technologies for the cold chain industry include post harvest With the rapid growth of the food processing technologies for pre-cooling, process technologies industry and the expansion of organised retail, the for controlled ripening, high relative humidity cold cold chain industry is emerging as a fast growing stores for fruits and vegetables, blast freezing and business sector in India. A well-integrated network individual quick freezing for fruits and vegetables TM of cold chain, spread across the length and breadth among others. of the country, is crucial for reducing the wastage of food products, thereby leading to a cost efficient The use of modern warehouse management system delivery to the consumer by bringing the wastage of provides organised and systematic storage of agricultural produce down to about five percent. various kinds of goods. Temperature data loggers According to the government estimates, India has monitor the temperature history of the truck, about 5,386 cold storages with a total capacity of warehouse, etc, along with the temperature history 23.66 million tonnes. Unfortunately, they cater of the product being shipped. The palette cold PDF Editor and RFID (Radio-Frequency Identification) tags 14 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 storage facility has different temperature controlled Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh recently segments, enabling the customer to select the right remarked that India needs $2 billion investment to temperature for specific product requirements. set up low-cost and energy efficient cold chains in The optimum usage of cold chain facility is the key. the country. The Indian cold chain market is projected to “India is in need of low-cost/energy efficient and register a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) ecological sustainable cold chain technologies of about 23.88 percent between 2014 and 2019, in requiring an estimated investment of $2 billion,” revenue terms, according to a report by research- Radha Mohan Singh said. based global management consulting firm TechSci Research titled ‘India Ready-to-eat Food Market Forecast and O pportunities, 2019’. There have been several initiatives undertaken by the Indian government to boost cold chain infrastructure in the country. India’s cold chain market has huge potential due to rising food exports, investments, high agricultural and The government-run farm lender National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has set up a ` 1,000-crore corpus for lending to cold chains, which will ensure creation of the necessary infrastructure for the agriculture and allied sectors. According to a report of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSO CHAM), the total market value of Indian cold chain industry is expected to reach ` 64,000 crore by the marine product exports. end of 2017. The cold chain industry also caters to The report, ‘Opport unit ies in Cold Chain- emerging pharmaceutical and chemical industries in Trends and M arket Challenges’ , said though India India. They offer growth opportunities to both produced 147 million tonnes of vegetables in 2011, domestic as well as international players. Potatoes the country has cold chain capacity available for dominate the total cold storage capacity in India, only 9 million tonnes, leading to huge wastage. with multipurpose cold storage facilities being dedicated towards potato storage due to its high Despite being the second largest producer of consumption, especially in north India. vegetables and fruits after China, India’s overall The Indian cold chain market is projected to register a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of about 23.88 percent between 20 14 and 20 19 COVER STORY horticultural produce and rise in share of meat and TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 15 contribution in world trade is quite dismal because India’s small land holdings, getting a sufficiently large of wastage of about 30 to 40 percent of fruits and tract of land to build a cold storage unit becomes vegetables due to the lack of proper cold storage a major additional constraint. The lack of logistical COVER STORY facilities. Several multinational players have now entered the market through direct subsidiaries or through partnerships with domestic companies in the cold chain sector in India In 2011-12, government brought cold chain under the ambit of the infrastructure sector. As of 2012, support further adds to the problems of the cold chain industry. A majority of investment in setting up cold storages in India has been in Uttar Pradesh, India had about 6,300 cold storages with a capacity Maharashtra, Gujarat, Punjab and West Bengal, with of 30.11 million metric tonnes. Today, India’s cold all of them catering to single commodities only. storage industry faces multiple challenges such as high lifecycle costs for a cold storage facility, The Way Forward uneven distribution of cold storage facilities and The government should facilitate entry of private low awareness of best storage practices amongst players in a big way in the Indian cold chain industry. industry players. Several multinational players have now entered the market through direct subsidiaries or through The revenue potential of a cold storage facility is dependent on technology and overall service standards. Railways and airports can play significant partnerships with domestic companies in the cold role in strengthening the cold chain infrastructure. chain sector in India. The government has spent There are certain legal and policy changes that around ` 5.5 billion during 2008-11 on subsidies and are imperative for expansion of the cold chain tax incentives to step up the cold storage capacity. industry. The government must step in and aid in acquisition of land to set up facilities for cold The Indian cold chain industry has a long way to go before it gets globally competitive. There still exists a yawning gap between the cold chain industry in storage, food processing, etc and examine reducing FDI restrictions in retail. India and the West. The operating costs for the cold storage business in India are approximately It all boils down to the flow of investment into Rs 80-90 per cubic ft per year as compared to the cold chain sector. Retail sector is a tempting Rs 40 per cubic ft per year in the West. Energy proposition for the big business houses. More expenses alone make up about 30 percent of the and more sops are needed for the cold chain TM total expenses for the cold storage industry in India industry. Despite several government sops and the compared to 10 percent in the West. ‘infrastructure’ status it enjoys, investment in the cold chain business remains weak and leaves a lot A fully integrated cold storage facility with one million cubic ft of storage space will require an area to be desired. With the opening of FDI in retail, PDF Editor 16 Business of Agriculture | of an acre to build, which could cost between ` 1 the need for cold chain storage facilities is going to crore and ` 1.5 crore, constituting 10-12 percent of increase. The government must get its priorities the project cost. Cooling units are not mobile units, right and focus on real estate development to and so location becomes a key factor, and with encourage investment in the cold chain industry. January-February 2015 TM PDF Editor Cold Chains in India Challenges and Emerging Solutions INNOVATION By Anju Bharti Refrigerated transport or cold chain distribution is still in its nascent stage in India and still to reach a milestone if compared to world standards for cargo movement outside ndia’s integrated cold chain industry – a in India and still to reach a milestone if compared combination of surface storage and to world standards for cargo movement outside. refrigerated transport – has been growing at There are various industries where there is a a CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of requirement of cold chain facilities like agriculture, 20 percent for the last three years. The cold horticulture, floriculture, dairy, confectionery, I chain market in India is anticipated to reach ` 624 billion by 2017. Currently, India has 6300 cold storage facilities with installed capacity of 30.11 million metric tonnes. Refrigerated transport or cold chain distribution is still in its nascent stage pharmaceuticals, chemicals, poultry, etc. Though, India having a high production of food, the demand for food still remains unfulfilled as most of it gets wasted due to inefficient, inadequate and TM PDF Editor 18 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 weak supply chains. Cold stores are the major the last few years, the Indian cold chain market has revenue contributors of the Indian cold chain witnessed various positive changes. industry and most are only suitable for storing potatoes. However, the market is gradually getting India needs a higher number of storage units organised and the focus towards multipurpose as it can only store less than 11 percent of the cold storages is rising. Pharmaceutical, medical country’s total produce. At present, the estimated and food industries are increasingly relying on the size of Indian cold chain industry is projected to cold chains to make sure that products do not get be somewhere between ` 80-100 billion ($2.0-2.5 damaged or compromised throughout the process billion). It forms part of the overall logistics and the of transportation till they reach the consumer. supply chain industry in India that is approximately a ` 600 billion ($15 billion) industry, contributing Cold chains are essential for extending the shelf about 13 percent to India’s GDP (USTDA Report, life, period of marketing, avoiding over capacity, 2007). With an installed capacity of 30.11 million reducing transport bottlenecks during peak metric tonnes, cold storage capacity for all food period of production, and maintaining of quality products in the country should be more than 61 of produce. The development of the cold chain million metric tonnes. In order to reach this target, industry has an important role to play in reducing an investment of more than ` 550 billion will be the wastages of perishable commodities and thus needed by 2015-16 just to keep up with growing providing remunerative prices to the growers. fruit and vegetables production levels. Cold chain, now, has become an integral part of the supply chain management for storage and India is the largest producer of fruits and second transportation of temperature sensitive goods. In largest producer of vegetables in the world. The in the country is about 130 million tonnes. This accounts for 18 percent of our agricultural output. But, by the time it reaches the consumer, quality of produce deteriorates because of its perishable nature which requires cold chain arrangement to maintain the quality and extend the shelf life. In the absence of a cold storage and related cold chain facilities, the farmers are being forced to sell their produce immediately after harvest which results in glut situations and low price realisation. As the global food web is undergoing rapid changes, INNOVATION estimated annual production of fruits and vegetables India is the largest producer of fruits and second largest producer of vegetables in the world. The estimated annual production of fruits and vegetables in the country is about 130 million tonnes significant opportunities and challenges are being seen. Consumer tastes are changing fast and there is a growing consumer consciousness towards nutrition. Food companies, the world over, are continuously looking for low cost sourcing options. There is a huge opportunity for India, with its easy availability of raw materials and low cost of TM production, to capitalise on this market. With global food prices on the rise, India with its low cost structure is well poised to exploit the world’s demand for cheaper sourcing. PDF Editor Challenges India can become a leading global food supplier if only it has the right marketing strategies and of course an agile, adaptive, adequate and efficient Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 19 INNOVATION Developing countries acutely require institutions, infrastructure and human capital in place to improve efficiency in cold chains and also to exploit the competitive advantage supply chain. But there are a few challenges which to grow by around 40 percent over 2007. The need to be taken into considerations: following are key factors which are expected to • • • • • • drive this growth: Rising real estate cost; Location for cold storage; Lack of proper infrastructure; High energy cost; Uneven distribution of capacity; Most of the cold storages present in India only cater to single commodities. The huge wastage of perishable food occurs due to following factors like: • • • • Lack of pre-cooling and storage facilities; Dearth of refrigerated carriers; Fragmented supply chains; Scarcity of applications of latest tools and technologies; • Poor product knowledge; • Lack of professionals. There is also a need to bring in efficiency in existing cold chain networks. It can be made efficient by development of basic infrastructure. These initiatives will also lead to the improvement of roads, railways, ports, airports and power. Developing countries acutely require institutions, infrastructure and human capital in place to improve efficiency in cold chains and also to exploit • The country’s wealth of native knowledge and growing domestic demand of processed food has contributed to the growth of the food industry which will bring immense bene fits to the economy in the form of enhanced agricultural yields, improved productivity, employment generation, and high standard of living of large number of people throughout the country; • Socio-economic changes across India, in terms of increase in the households in the high-income category, rising youth population and migration of people from rural to urban areas has led the industry to be focussed on providing them with products and services to suit their changing lifestyles; • Changing attitudes of women towards the cooking tasks: There is increased usage of electronic appliances; preference towards non-traditional foods; easy to prepare snack/ TM mixes entering the menu; increasing health consciousness; etc. • Consumers today want more for their money, and now actively seek quality; the attitude of compromise is a thing of the past. While disposable income is on the rise, the consumption pattern has undergone a rapid change due to urbanisation and changing lifestyles. PDF Editor the competitive advantage. Opportunities By 2015, the Indian food industry is estimated 20 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Current Scenario of Cold Supply Chain: • Currently, the Indian cold chain market is worth $3 billion; • The market is expected to grow to $12.4 billion by the end of 2015; • Cumulative capacity of India is nearly 25 million tonnes, resulting in loss of about 40 percent of the agri-produce post-harvest; • Uttar Pradesh has the maximum 1,579 cold chains followed by West Bengal at the second place with 531 cold storages, Maharashtra 460 and Punjab 420; • The current market demand is 10 times more than what we have today. Role of Government Though the Government of India is one of the driving forces in developing the cold chain industry and supports private participation through various subsidy schemes and grants but still specific requirements and conditions; • Adopting to Indian backdrop i.e. to move from mass storage to direct access storage; • Anticipate ahead of a developing market. needs motivation and participation from people. Conclusion under the automatic route for 100 percent FDI There has been a tremendous growth in the participation. The National Centre for Cold-chain organised retail sector and so there is a need Development (NCCD) – an autonomous body of cold storages to prevent the perishable food of the Government of India – was established products from perishing. Due to change in with an agenda to positively impact and promote consumption patterns, the frozen food market the development of the cold chain sector in the is one of the largest and most dynamic sectors country. NCCD is tasked with objectives: of the food industry. In spite of considerable • To serve as a think tank to the government on the subject of cold chain; • To provide an enabling environment for the cold chain sector and facilitate private investment for cold chain infrastructure; • Direction setting to narrow the gap in the supply and value chain including storage, specialised transport and operational or business processes; • To address the concerns on standards and protocols related to cold chain testing, verification, certification and accreditation and creating demand for training establishments; • To assist in developing and promoting new and energy efficient technologies and their adoption in India; • Capacity building and training activities to reduce the gap in skilled human resources required for cold chain sector; • Recommend guidelines to minimise environment impact and promote sustainability in the cold chain; • Awareness programmes on best practices for perishable product handling, indigenised for competition between the frozen food industry and other sectors, extensive quantities of frozen Investment in cold chain in India was also opened under the automatic route for 10 0 percent FDI participation foods are being consumed all over the world. The food supply chain needs the attention of the INNOVATION Investment in cold chain in India was also opened academicians, the industry and the Government for its enhancement. References: Kohli Pavanexh,(2010).Fut ure direct ion-cold chains in India,Slideshare,20t h Dec,cross t ree,t echno-visors. ht t p://www.emerson.com/en-IN /newsroom/news-releases/ Pages/India-Food-Wast e-and-Cold-Infrast ruct ure-Report .aspx ht t p://www.assocham.org/event s/recent /event _822/M rKaran-Chechi.ppt x ht t p://www.nccd.gov.in/PDF/N OCCD.pdf ht t p://www.onicra.com/images/pdf/publicat ions/ coldchainindust ryreport june2014.pdf ht t p://agrit ech.t nau.ac.in/agricult ural_market ing/agrimark_ cold% 20st orage.ht ml TM PDF Editor Anju Bhart i is Assist ant Professor at M aharaja Agrasen Inst it ut e of M anagement St udies, N ew Delhi. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 21 Role of Cold Chains to Manage Farm Produce in Harsh Environment By Ramesh Kumar Sharma ndian food processing industry’s potential other hand, in western countries, its limitations are for uplifting agricultural economy is well- reviewed and focus is on organic farming to face known. The industry is estimated to be the harsh environment (climate change, droughts, I worth around $67 billion, employing about floods, desertification or decline in soil fertility) 13 million people directly and about 35 so that the qualitative nourishing crops could be INNOVATION million people indirectly. But it suffers from poor Nowadays, strengths of cold-chain storage and transportation to control post-harvest losses are much discussed in India produced in farms. market linkages, inconsistent quality of raw material packaging and cold-chain logistics. This situation The Harsh Environment: Data and Correlations leads to food wastage. According to Harsimrat At the commencement of 21st century, it was Kaur Badal, Minister for Food Processing Industries, estimated that about 2 billion hectares of soil, food wastage in India takes place much more equivalent to 15 percent of the Earth’s land area, during harvest and transportation while in western have been degraded by human activities like countries it is more on the plat; therefore to reduce deforestation and intensive farming (UN Global the wastage of food we need a food map – which Environment Out look ). And over the last 40 years, can tell us exactly in which part of country what is approximately 30 percent of world’s cropland being grown and where it is in surplus – and proper has become unproductive (‘Soil as an Endangered or farm produce, and non-availability of proper transportation facility of food articles with proper Ecosyst em’, David Piment el, Bioscience, N ov 2000 ). cold chain logistics. Nowadays, strengths of cold The two human activities – deforestation and chain storage and transportation to control post- intensive farming (excessive application of synthetic harvest losses are much discussed in India. O n the fertilisers in soil and of synthetic insecticides- TM PDF Editor 22 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 pesticides on crops) – are considered to be the major desertification is not the natural but a man- causes for soil degradation. However, most of the soil made phenomenon. In this context, both the in other countries such as Canada and North-eastern strengths and limitations of cold chain logistics Asia is considered to be stable due to little human to manage farm produce in harsh environment activity, a result of low population density. As far as are self evident. In fact, the strength of cold India is concerned, a small fraction of northern and chain logistics to manage farm produce grown north-eastern zones and Eastern Ghats is termed as on conserved soil is many times that on eroded ‘stable’ whereas the remaining large area of Indian soil soil. However, cold-chain facilities effectively (western, middle and southern zones) is considered enable perishable food products to survive as ‘very degraded’ soil (Source: UN EP 1992 and GRID longer even in harsh environments if they can run Arendal 2001; GEO Global Environment Out look 3, into immediate sales cycles. That is why ‘dense Ext ent and severit y of land degradat ion). forestation’ and ‘organic farming’ are considered as basic requirements for not only qualitative Initially, in the 1960s, public movements against farm production but also for successful cold excessive inapposite farm applications of insecticides, chain storage and transportation operations to in the favour of biodiversity, were worldwide save perishables. In addition to soil conservancy considered as anti-development activity by (or soil fertility), another important factor for technocrats. Such prominent movements, in the successful cold-chain logistics to save perishables West, were led by Sir Albert Howard, Lady Eve is distribution (marketing) perfection. Balfour and Madam Rachel Carson. In India, in the same time period, socio-political thinker Deendayal The strengths and limitations of cold-chain Upadhyay came forward with the theory of Integral logistics are: technical development on the earth, the humans – being the integral part of biosphere – should morally consume the same kind of food, water and air which all the creatures do. Nowadays, the outcomes of deforestation and farm applications of synthetic insecticides are well-known as increasing pollution and diminishing biodiversity. Therefore, the problematic impact of modern farming has been studied as correlations between human activities (deforestation, intensive farming practices etc) and ecosystem degradations. As per M illennium Ecosyst em Assessment 2005 , 60 percent of the ecosystem services – pollution control of pests through natural enemies, water catchments, filtering of rain water and carbon sequestration in soils – are degraded because of intensive food and fibre production. According to Piment el et al 1995 , 30 percent of global fertile soils were eroded between 1950 and 1990. According to a survey conducted by Food and Agriculture O rganization (FAO ), current global soil erosion losses are between 6-10 million hectares per year. In Europe, in the 1980s, special attempts were made to study correlation between deforestation Strengths: • Logistics is the core of efficient food chain governance. Improving supply chain management is of major importance to better link agricultural produces to urban markets; • Increase efficiency all along the food chain, also includes reducing post-harvest losses. Reducing these losses can contribute significantly to improve food security; • Cold-chain logistics can well work with organic agriculture, which is characterised by principles of health, ecology, fairness and care; • In harsh environments like climate change, droughts, floods etc, cold-chain logistics can function to some extent to manage farm produce and save perishables, if landslides (in heavy rains) do not take place; TM • By controlling temperature and RH (relative humidity), it is possible to carry on carbidefree ripening of fruits; PDF Editor and shortening of the monsoon period. It was found that with increasing deforestation, the monsoon period is shortened resulting in droughts, floods and accelerated soil erosion. It was concluded that INNOVATION Humanism. The theory states that at any stage of Cold-chain facilities effectively enable perishable food products to survive longer even in harsh environments if they can run into immediate sales cycles • The unripe fruits fallen from trees in storms and other harsh situations can be qualitatively Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 23 INNOVATION Creation of modern ripening chambers is supported under various Indian government schemes ripened through ripening chambers. Cold-chain transportation (reefer trucks) can facilitate collection of fruits, fallen from trees on land. In India, National Centre for cold-chain Development (NCCD) has set specialised trainings on ripening chamber operations at various places in Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Ripening facilities ensure that the fruit output, typically mangoes, bananas, papayas, chikoos, avocadoes, etc, have undergone a safe and hygienic process and counter the illegal practice of carbide triggered ripening. Creation of modern ripening chambers is supported under various Indian government schemes. Limitations: • Cold chain facilities are not capable of managing farm produce in heavy rains and landslide; • The majority of perishable crops need to be prepared to enter the cold store; without such pre-conditioning, a cold store entry is in all likelihood going to lead to poor quality (desiccation and other problems); • Farmers need not be conditioned with hopes about timing markets like commodity traders. Storage of perishable fruits is best applied when directly linked to wider market demand; • The harsh market environment, say zero sum game (gambling, futures and options hoarding) or the half hearted entry at mandis, turns the lifespan of produce shorter within the same cold chain network. For running a successful cold chain the product flow should be pre-decided by the pack-house. • Cold chain technology is helpless if transactions are delayed; However, the efficiency and reliability of • Even within the cold-chain, the produce continues to have a closure date, it stays perishable. Delaying a sale through the medium of cold storage is purely a short-term strategy. A delayed sale is most likely a delayed recurrence. The cold storage is not the complete solution; industry to take advantage of global seasonable temperature controlled cold chain logistics has TM reached a point which allows the food processing variations. PDF Editor 24 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Ramesh Kumar Sharma is a Freelance W rit er. “ Efficient and Effective Supply Chain can serve the Population with Value-Added Food” M ohan Lal Arora is CEO of Fresh and H ealthy Enterprise Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of CON COR – M inist ry of Railways. An ast ut e and result orient ed professional, he has over 30 years of corporat e experience in heading st rat egic business unit operat ions in frozen food and food processing indust ry. In an int erview wit h Aamir H Kaki, Desk Editor, Business of Agriculture, he shares his valuable views on t he cold chain logist ics market in India, challenges faced by t he indust ry, role of government in t he development of indust ry and about FH EL’s fut ure growt h plans. Excerpt s: What is unique about Fresh and H ealthy Enterprise Ltd when it comes to cold chain logistics solutions? Container Corporation of India Limited (CO NCO R), having a country wide reach. H ow do you perceive the existing cold chain logistics market in India? What growth prospects do you see? The existing cold chain logistics market in India is still in a nascent stage and is expected to expand at a fast farmers. A few challenges are: • Lack of an integrated approach and efforts for effective policy formulation; • Viability of cold chain continues to remain a question mark for many reasons; • Existing facilities are outdated and poorly maintained; • Awareness and hence demand for cold chain services continues to be low; • Lack of availability of technically qualified people to support efficient operations. INNOVATION Fresh & Healthy Enterprises (FHEL) is a Cold Chain development initiative of the Logistics Giant that is while simultaneously ensuring remunerative prices to the pace in coming years with the modernisation of retail infrastructure. Presently, almost 90 percent volume of fresh Also, the supply chain to be designed and built as a whole fruits and vegetables is handled by the unorganised sector in an integrated manner with new product development, which is not fully equipped to create and use cold chain procurement and order, and delivery process well-designed infrastructure. Development of cold chain infrastructure and well-supported using IT tools and software. in the country will depend on the growth of share of the organised sector in horticulture produce. With an efficient and effective supply chain, the surplus of cereals, fruits, vegetables, milk, fish, meat and poultry can be What, according to you, are the major challenges processed as value added food products and can be marketed TM that cold chain industry is facing in India? H ow can aggressively, both locally and internationally. Investments in these be addressed? cold chain infrastructure, applied research in post harvest technologies, installation of food processing plants in The biggest challenge is to connect the remote villages various sectors and development of food retailing sector of India with the robust supply chain so that all the are mandatory for achieving gains in this sector. Strategic PDF Editor stakeholders would be bene fited and wastage of food can growth plans for achieving, both national and international, be mitigated to the extent possible. By building an efficient competitiveness of the food industry are essential. However, and effective supply chain, using state-of-the-art techniques, lack of electricity, power supply and other supporting it is possible to serve the population with value-added food infrastructure are a big deterrent in setting up such facilities. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 25 The economic impact of cold chains will be felt in the the recent guidelines issued by RBI, only agricultural villages. Farmers will get better realisation for their produce belonging to small and marginal farmers, produce due to improved quality and shelf life of food limited to ` 25 lakh, can be classified as a priority sector. If agriculture is to flourish, the entire sector and all products. stakeholders including food processing units need to be Where does India stand compared to developed countries with regard to technology in cold chain solutions? Though, as on date, cold chain infrastructure available in the country is based on quite old and obsolete technologies. India is fast catching up with the international standards and the facilities being put up now are of international standards. What measures should be implemented by the government to boost the cold chain sector of India? The following measures can give a boost to the INTERNATIONAL INNOVATION development of cold chain industry: • Customs and excise duties on cold chain equipment need to be pegged at five percent or below to encourage domestic and foreign investments for minimising horticultural wastages and increasing shelf life of products; • Construction of pre-cooling centres and cold stores in the production areas should be given top most priority in all government schemes; • Budget allocation should be increased for supporting pre-harvest activities for farmers, like improving the seed stock, to augment irrigation facilities like bore wells, productivity enhancement activities, subsidies on farm inputs and implements, etc; • Government should promote launching of welldesigned and large-scale projects under the PPP model on a viability-gap funding basis to modernise the country’s cold chain; • Most of the existing cold chain projects are struggling for their survival due to heavy losses which can be attributed to lengthy pay back periods, and partial utilisation due to cyclic nature of horticulture crops. To make the existing and upcoming cold chain projects economically viable, Government should consider a special window for financing such projects at a concessional rate of interest, with a loan repayment period that should stretch to at least 15 -20 years; • Government should consider service tax exemption for all warehousing and associated services. Similarly, all warehouse receipt financing of agriculture produce needs to be classified as ‘priority sector ’ lending. In supported and this narrow de finition of priority sector lending needs to be broadened to cover participants across the value chain; • Existing subsidies for standalone cold stores are inadequate and do not lead to an integrated cold chain across the value chain. There is also an urgent need to support the modernisation of wholesale markets and food processing infrastructure. Terminal Markets and Food Parks need additional funding to make them viable. These will bring the much needed value addition in agriculture and require large infrastructure. The existing budget for such initiatives is tiny, given the scale of the problems, therefore the budget needs to be increased manifold; • Government should grant tax holidays and accord infrastructure status to the cold chain sector as the current incentives are not attractive enough for investments; • Concessional Electricity Tariff may be considered for cold chain projects. Could you share something how ‘Fresh and H ealthy Enterprise’ has grown since 2006 and the future growth plans? FHEL has grown manifold since its inception in 2006 and increased its procurement from 2000 MT in 2006 to 8000 MT in 2014. FHEL is going to put up a stateof-the-art CA Store facility at Kingal, in District Shimla of Himachal Pradesh for apples and other fruits and vegetables. Finally, how is your company contributing to the welfare of farmers or society at large? FHEL has helped farmers in a big way by increasing their realisation, specifically apple growers TMof Himachal Pradesh. In the past few years, FHEL has emerged as a trendsetter of procurement prices offered to apple growers. Bargaining power of growers has increased manifold due to remunerative procurement prices offered by FHEL. PDF Editor 26 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Besides providing ‘market at their doorstep’, FHEL has helped the farmers in a big way in the areas of pre- and post-harvest technology demonstration and training. Cold Chain in India Potential of Turning into ‘Gold Chain’ By Arvind Surange C old Chain is now recognised as a History and Growth of Cold Chain sunrise sector in India. It is true At the time of Indian independence, there were only that in a country which ranks first a few cold stores mainly located in UP, Punjab and in milk production, second in fruits West Bengal. Most of these were bulk cold stores and vegetables in the world, and designed for storage of potatoes. These were mainly has substantial production of marine, meat and based on old technology of construction, thermal poultry products, the country needed a fully- insulation and refrigeration systems with practically developed cold chain sector. The development no automation systems. was rather slow until the year 2000 and it is only in O ne of the oldest multi-chamber cold stores, place in the cold chain sector. The current scenario located in fruit research station at Pune, was reveals that there is tremendous scope for the supposedly installed in 1932 during British rule. development of cold chain facilities in India. This was mainly an experimental station with seven TECHNOLOGY the last decade that fairly good progress has taken cold rooms and worked on a common brine chilling Realising the significance of the cold chain industry, plant. The unit was mainly used for studying the the Government of India has taken initiatives, cold storage parameters for a variety of fruits and through bodies like National Horticulture Board vegetables grown in India. This shows that the (NHB), to establish standards for all the arms of the concept of multi-product cold storage was realised cold chain. The Government is also offering financial even during 1930s. A few cold stores did exist incentives through bodies like NHB, MoFPI, NHM, in Mumbai in the 1950s with a number of small NFDB, APEDA etc. In short, the cold chain industry chambers, mainly used for potatoes, fruits and dry in India is in the eye of a revolution. fruits. TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 27 During 1950s-60s, the development of the cold storage industry was mainly confined to the states Table 1: Growth of Cold Storage Industry in India of UP, Punjab, Delhi, Bihar, West Bengal, MP and Gujarat where cold storages of medium and large Year No of Cold Stores Installed Capacity in ‘000 MT 1955 83 43 1960 359 305 1965 600 682 1970 1218 1638 1975 1615 1994 1979 2266 3348 freezing and storage of frozen foods. 1986 2607 5402 The capacities of multipurpose units generally 2004 4748 19552 2006 5101 21694 2007 5316 23334 2008 6000 INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY sizes were set up, but these were mainly bulk storage units for potatoes. However, major development of the concept of multipurpose cold storage units took place between 1965 and 1970, when a few units were established for storage of a number of products in Bangalore and Pune. MAFCO, a government of Maharashtra undertaking, established around 1970, played a significant role in promoting the concept of multipurpose cold storage, food processing, ranged from 1000 MT to 20,000 MT. The largest multipurpose unit with a capacity of 22,000 MT is located in Turbhe Industrial Area in Navi Mumbai (M/s Savla Foods & Cold Storage Pvt Ltd). Presently, the multipurpose units store a large number of food products such as fruits and vegetables, dry fruits, spices, milk products, 25500 TM 2014 6300 31000 confectionery, all types of frozen food etc. Growth of Cold Storage Industry The growth of the cold storage industry in India up of numbers of cold stores in different regions from the year 1955 to 2008 is shown in Table 1. based on data available for the year 2007. Figure The distribution of cold stores in different regions 1, additionally shows this region-wise distribution. of India has not been uniform as will be evident Table 3 indicates the capacities in MT of cold from Table 2, which shows region-wise break- stores in different regions. Table 4 shows sector- PDF Editor 28 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Figure 1: Region-wise Distribution of Cold Stores in India wise (public, private and the cooperative sectors) distribution of cold stores based on year 2007. Table 5 shows product-wise distribution of the cold storage capacity in 2007. Pre-cooling of Fruits and Vegetables The concept of pre-cooling of grapes was introduced in 1980s, primarily in Maharashtra, which is the leading grape growing state in India. This helped the farmers to export grapes to Europe, Gulf countries, and other parts of world. Later, this technology was adopted for other fruits like mangoes, pomegranates, oranges etc. Controlled Atmosphere Storage With the onset of 21st century, the Table 2: Commodity-wise Distribution of Cold Stores need was realised to set up controlled atmosphere following the trends in Europe, Multipurpose Base Year 2007 2992 # # # in ‘000 MT in ‘000MT in ‘000 MT in ‘000 MT Capacity Capacity Capacity Capacity # Meat & Fish America and other countries. A number of controlled atmosphere stores have been established in the northern part of the country at locations which have proximity to apple growing regions. The capacities 18255 1386 4718 513 186 191 68 generally ranged between 1000 MT and 12000 MT. The project of 12000 MT set up by CO NCO R is the largest in the country so far. A few units of smaller capacities Fig - 2 Commodity-wise Distribution of Cold Storage Capacities in India INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY Potatoes Milk & Milk Products have also been established in western and southern parts. Ripening Units There has been considerable interest in scientific ripening and storage of food like banana, mango etc, in recent years and the units are being established at a number of places. A good development in this direction can be seen in Gujarat, Maharashtra and southern states. TM Distribution Centres With the growth of cold chain industry, food distribution centres have been established in the country, with the first such unit constructed in Navi Mumbai PDF Editor region. A number of smaller centres have been set up by the food retail sector and a further growth is expected in the coming years. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 29 Cold Storage Classification As per the present day practice, the cold stores can TECHNOLOGY be classified as follows: The major concentration of these units is in Maharashtra but the trend is now picking up in other states like Karnataka, Andhra, Gujarat etc • Bulk Cold Stores: Generally for storage of a single commodity, which mostly operate on a seasonal basis e.g. stores for potatoes, chillies, apples etc; • Multipurpose Cold Stores designed for storage of a variety of commodities which operate, practically, around the year. The products stored in these types of cold stores are fruits, vegetables, dry fruits, spices, pulses, milk products etc. These units have been mainly located near the consuming centres; • Small Cold Stores with pre-cooling facilities for fresh fruits and vegetables, mainly, for export oriented items like grapes etc. The major concentration of these units is in Maharashtra but the trend is now picking up in other states like Karnataka, Andhra, Gujarat etc; • Frozen Food Stores with or without processing and freezing facility for fish, meat, poultry, dairy products and processed fruits and vegetables. These units have helped the promotion and the growth of frozen foods sector, both in the domestic and the export markets. However, the percentage of foods so processed is extremely low and a great potential exists for growth in this category; • Mini Units/Walk-in Cold Stores located at hotels, restaurants, malls, supermarkets etc; • Controlled Atmosphere Stores for certain fruits/vegetables like apples, pears, cherries; • Ripening Chambers mainly setup for bananas and mangoes. • Buildings with single floor structure designed for mechanised loading and unloading of products; • Pre-engineered building structures designed with cold chambers constructed from sandwich insulated panels. The recent trend is to have cold chambers in single floor construction with heights, varying from 5-12 metres or higher with mechanised loading/unloading facilities. Some units have racks for stacking the goods. Recent Practices are: Walls & Ceiling: Insulated panel construction; Roof: Sheet metal roo fing on trusses; Internal Structures: Steel structure with steel grille floors for conventional loading, racks for mechanised loading. Trends in Construction Practices Whereas the bulk cold stores have a fewer number The construction practices in India vary depending of large sized chambers the multi-purpose units on the size of the unit, the location and the pattern have a larger number of smaller chambers designed of utilisation. for simultaneous storage of a variety of items to suit the needs of farmers, traders and other customers. TM Conclusion An overview of the cold chain sector in India over The general types of construction followed in Indian the past 50-60 years shows that the cold storage cold storage industry are: industry has undergone significant transformation. • Conventional buildings with RCC frames, brick walls and truss type sheet roofs or RCC slabs with internal floor structure of RCC or steel frame with wooden or steel grating; From the point of view of utilisation also, the cold PDF Editor 30 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 stores today offer much wider scope than in the past. Energy saving and the ‘Green Cold Chain’ concept are also being seriously looked at by the progressive entrepreneurs and designers. However, it must be realised that for a country and efficient technology in tune with the technical which is No 1 in terms of milk production and No standards. 2 in terms of fruits and vegetables production, the The Government has further established the of cold storage available cannot be considered National Center for Cold Chain Development adequate, and there seems to be good potential for for overseeing the overall development of cold the development of modern and energy efficient chain industry in India. New technical guidelines storage units. have been issued under the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) with the NHB took a big step in creating technical standards norms for financial incentives for various cold for cold chain projects. The following five standards chain projects. were developed with the help of experts for the bene fit of the promoters and designers of cold With this scenario, one can hope that a scientifically chain projects for reference: developed cold chain, designed to handle, preserve • Cold storages for storage of fresh horticulture products which do not require pre-cooling; • Multi-commodity cold storages for short-term and long-term storage of fresh horticulture products which require pre-cooling and varying storage requirements; • Controlled Atmosphere storages; • Refrigerated transport; • Ripening chambers. and distribute the precious food products grown in It is worth mentioning that this was the first attempt of any government agency to formulate such standards for cold chain projects in India. Government agencies like NHB, NHM and Ministry the country, would turn into a ‘Gold Chain’ for the country. Arvind Surange is Fellow Ashrae and Chief Consult ant /Propriet or of ACR Project Consult ant s Pvt Lt d. H e has handled various project s including designing, planning and execut ion of various indust rial refrigerat ion and air condit ioning. H e has been associat ed wit h cold chain indust ry for more t han four decades, has pioneered t he concept of ‘Green Cold Chain’ in line wit h t he spirit of green building movement . H e may be reached at acr.consult ant s@ gmail.com. TM PDF Editor of Food Processing have also offered higher financial incentives for the new projects as well as for expansion of existing units. However, these projects have to be, essentially, based on modern TECHNOLOGY overall storage capacity of around 31 million MT The Government has further established the National Center for Cold Chain Development for overseeing the overall development of cold chain industry in India Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 31 “ India has all the Required Technology and Machines for Packaging” Ashok Gourish is Business H ead - Packaging Technology at Bosch Limited, a leading supplier of process and packaging t echnology. Before joining Bosch, he has worked wit h GE, Essel Propak and had a st int in Egypt for t hree years at various senior management levels. A M echanical Engineer from Karnat aka Universit y, he has over 20 years of domest ic and overseas experience in various capacit ies and is a GE Cert ified Six Sigma Black Belt . In an int erview wit h Aamir H Kaki, Desk Editor, Business of Agriculture, he shares his valuable views on t he packaging indust ry in India, role of innovat ions in packaging and about Bosch’s achievement s and fut ure plans. Excerpt s: Please share the history and ownership of TECHNOLOGY Bosch Packaging India. The packaging industry has seen a positive growth in the past and it is expected to grow significantly The year 2015 is very important for Bosch in future too. There is a lot of potential and it will Packaging Technology, as it is the 20th year of grow category-by-category. It is expected that the setting up of the company’s Packaging Technology packaging industry will see a double digit growth, Unit in India. With strong and meaningful around 13-15 percent, in the coming years. development and innovative technology, now we’re the leading packaging technology provider What are the innovations and trends that are in India. With our deep penetration in the being witnessed in the food packaging industry in market, our customers now really think of Bosch India during the last 5 years? when it comes to packaging technology. If you The food and packaging industry has witnessed look at our innovative products, process and lots of trends in the last few years. But I segregate packaging technology, geographical presence, and these into two categories, one from the perspective developments in the field, from the day we have of consumers and the other from the perspective established, you’ll find we have done a significant of industry. progress. In the last 20 years, we have created a milestone every year by bringing out new products, businesses, developments and innovations. What is your take on the current packaging industry in India? At what rate is it growing? If we see the current scenario, a large amount of food stock is still sold in unpacked form in the market. But with the urbanisation and westernisation, the industry is witnessing today, the disposable income and purchasing power of From the perspective of consumers: • Consumers look for packs that can offer ease of use i.e. that can be easily opened and disposed off; • The packs should be such that the quality of products remains intact; • Consumers are looking for innovations, primarily in seal quality, good pack style,TM re-closing and disposability of packs. O n these parameters innovations are going on from the consumers’ perspective. customers have been increasing. With this, the preferences of people are changing and they As far as industry is concerned, it is important are now ready to spend more on packed food that the packaging must be safe, hygienic, and products. Moreover, consumers are now focussing sophisticated. The industry looks for technology more on quality, hygiene and safety of food that leads to higher productivity with minimum cost products. and time. PDF Editor 32 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 We at, Bosch Packaging Technology, focus on and packaging industry to ensure that food will innovations that can meet the requirements of reach safe to the consumers. consumers as well as industry. Presently, our focus is on innovations in packaging technology that are You have been associated with the industry fully automated, safe, leads to very less footprint, for over 20 years, especially in process, machine more eco-friendly and easy to operate. building and packaging. H ow do you see the shift in demand for technology-driven packaging for Where does India stands compared to developed countries with regard to packaging technology? India has all the required technology food? In the last 20 years, the packaging industry has undergone a sea change in terms of safety, hygiene, automation, ease of operation, maintenance, and machines for packaging. However, with speed, etc. Earlier, the machines were mainly job- westernisation gaining momentum and the changing driven, not fully automated, speed was low, but trends, we have to catch up with the pace of the now there has been a considerable shift. Now developments that are happening in the developed the machines are fully automated, servo-driven, countries. with good hygiene standards, incorporated with latest technology, etc. Human Machine Interface Earlier, if someone was looking for hi-tech (HMI) technologies and servo driven machines are packaging machines then they would have to changing the industry scenario as these are very import from European and American countries. user-friendly. a sea change in India with regards to packaging Simply saying, in the last 20 years things have technology. changed a lot and in future, a lot of emphasis would TECHNOLOGY However, in the last few years, we have witnessed be given on the “seal” technology. H ow food packaging plays a role in safety and health standards of food materials? If we look from the consumers’ perspective, packaging plays a crucial role in their choice as they will not go for food material that is not What are your biggest professional achievements, and what priorities have you set for the future? At Bosch Packaging Technology, we work as a packed properly and safely. However, in recent team and have a lot of achievements to our name past, there is a considerable change witnessed as a team. We had started 20 years back when in the packaging industry with regards to safety packaging technology was in its nascent stage in and health standards of packaging food material. India. Now the name Bosch has became synonymous A lot of emphasis is now given on the quality of with packaging technology in India. We, at Bosch packing as it is a fact that a good pack contributes Packaging Technology, have attained high standards to the safety and hygiene of packaged product/ for developing products for local market and are food. Therefore, we can say that safe and hygienic committed to meet the requirements of the market. packaging plays a significant role in the packaging If you look at the type of technology we handle and of food materials. the comprehensive list of customers we serve, they all show an upward trend. Packaging should provide the correct TM environmental conditions for food starting from For the future, we can say that we’re in a rapidly the time food is packed to its consumption. Can growing market and will grow with the pace of the you comment on this assertion? market. We are targeting to bring up new products We all are aware of this fact that food needs to and innovations in the packaging industry. O ur main be reached safely, from farm to consumer. As I am focus will be on safety and hygiene. We, at Bosch from packaging industry, I cannot comment on the Packaging Technology, are committed to meet all farm to consumer perspective, but de finitely from the requirements of consumers as well as industry. processing to consumers perspective. Nowadays, We are proud to be a part of this growing packaging the technology is developing well in the processing industry. PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 33 Make in India and that too for Indian Agriculture By Dr BB Mishra ndia is virtually an agriculture based country is challenging in many facets, starting from higher with around a 1.2 billion population. The education and research at college and university well respected slogan of ‘Make in India’ by levels. Another challenge, for example, rests on its visionary Prime Minister, Sri Narendra projection of challenges as well as opportunities in I Modi, must be the part of every Indian’s heart in respective fields of interest, wherein different sectors of agriculture in order to motivate the students towards education with commitment. R&D agricultural development should reasonably be of No industrial or other development can be meaningful and sustainable in absence or ignorance of agricultural development in India top priority. No industrial or other development Agricultural education in most parts of India can be meaningful and sustainable in absence or drastically suffers from stereotypical course ignorance of agricultural development in India. curriculum, wherein comprehensive learning is So, the concept of ‘Make in India’ must start by more or less far from the truth. The said ‘learning’ structuring and updating the shape of agriculture lacks a systematic approach of knowledge being in such a way that may enable the agricultural imparted to students through practical-based products to compete in global markets, besides conceptual trainings and more often suffers from satisfying the national food demands. This issue completeness. Agricultural education suffers TM PDF Editor 34 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 from vision, mission and goal, but works on a communities. O bviously, one has to link such stereotypic framework prescribed in differing teaching and learning approaches with agri-business modes of isolation. For example, a professor or and entrepreneurship in a big way. Importantly, this vice chancellor specialised in biotechnology in requires opportunities that can be enthusiastically agriculture often tries to introduce biotechnology injected in the mind of a student and that too by as much as in all branches of agriculture, though its the teacher in a true farming environment, where impacts are hardly re flected as real opportunities farmers are the witness. in time that necessitates its relevance. I have seen some agronomists who often claim to be the soil scientists just because they know some tips of soil Challenges and Opportunities testing procedures and so on. O pportunity is an outcome of synthesis for vision, mission and goals of the activities in hand. The Similarly, professionals of one agricultural discipline agricultural sector is the one that alone leads to may often handle other disciplines more efficiently, nourishment and survival of our lives through but they lack the basic knowledge. So, there is need food, water, forage, climate, biodiversity, energy to de fine opportunities for a teaching and learning and ecosystem, leading to healthy livelihood tool in agriculture, and the teachers are solely environment as well as gross happiness. Students responsible to shoulder such accomplishment in can synthesise the system that makes agriculture classrooms, colleges or universities as well as fields. viable in order to de fine an opportunity to work. O ne of the ultimate goals of agricultural education and research may be the reliable attempt to move Can we de fine indicators of healthy food qualities towards corporate sectors in such a framework in agriculture that re flect their quick impact on the that ensure poverty alleviation in the farming human body? quickly on body as a result of consumption of substandard, adulterated or polluted foodstuff. Currently, available reports indicate that the food materials are often genetically altered; pulses are mixed; spices are polluted; milk and ghee are impure; vegetables are toxic; tea and coffee are R&D We lack symptomatic criteria to be observed We lack symptomatic criteria to be observed quickly on body as a result of consumption of substandard, adulterated or polluted foodstuff adulterated; etc. We have to design and compose the clear-cut symptomatic yardsticks on body that will be corresponding to ill-effects of the foodstuff consumed. Similarly, soil and water qualities need to be well understood in line with their vital impacts on agricultural production. Soil borne diseases as well as fluorine and arsenic problems are seriously emerging. Partial factor productivity causing decline in crop yield is virtually a soil based issue, but we hardly recommend for evaluation of whole soil or pedon. The breeding programme for TM crop improvement suffers mostly from a sound and environment-friendly yardstick. Entomology and pathology work mostly in isolation without caring about soil types and underground water quality. Clay mineralogy or clay-organic interactions PDF Editor are least understood. The horizontal shrinkage of land because of non-farming activities through construction of houses, roads etc, is one of the alarming consequences of climate change issues. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 35 roadmap of agriculture in some states often suffers from sound technical knowledge and so it can hardly be reliable. The agriculture graduates in India are by and large discouraged due to employment insecurity, low salary structure, poor social recognition and low coverage in media. This results in poor attraction towards this profession and as such, opportunities in agricultural education are at chronic risk and deserve quick attention. For healthy and sustainable agricultural growth in India, agriculture education must be given well proven priority accepting its standard as a sophisticated full technology. R&D Agripreneurship The horizontal shrinkage of land because of non-farming activities through construction of houses, roads etc, is one of the alarming consequences of climate change issues Exactly as a medical student is prepared to start medical practice after successful completion of medical degree, agricultural graduates must be mentally equipped with a strong mindset to be ready for self employment after completion of their degree. This is the only mant ra towards revolutionary transformation of students’ mindset with their professional satisfaction, where they The earth surface is receiving almost 95 percent would be passionate to accept a profession in incoming solar radiation, but we are practically agriculture for learning and training. unaware of such vital issues contributing to agriculture. Photopedogenesis as a new chapter However, such a simple proposal needs to have in soil science (M ishra BB 1996 ) seems to be a strong support from government. The higher beginning to understand such radiation-related education and research in agriculture will thus issues. Flood with excess water beyond the capacity begin to move in quantized momentum in order of a river is virtually a natural resource particularly to achieve the absolute mission. A Krishi Vigyan for agricultural production and calls for a proven Kendra (KVK) should have a common goal to work management strategy through integrated input set- as a NUCLEUS for reception and adoption of the up and tools. These are some of the issues that may transferred technologies. The nucleus concept of form the opportunities in shaping the agricultural KVK is to be surrounded by a compact environment education and research. of agriculture comprised of teaching, research, extension, training, marketing and entrepreneurship Thus, each chapter in the teaching process must in a three tier linkage viz, student-teacher-farmer. include a well-de fined opportunity that empowers The student with entrepreneurial mindset may students to be enthusiastic in the learning process. add value to his business at every level, making Micro-teaching may help to provide such positive his creativity expanded towards competitiveness, feedback in de fining an opportunity of relevance which may help in the rapid growth TMof his based on prescribed courses. profession/business. A student through education and research after obtaining a degree may look for Agriculture in India is not treated under technical his future in some of the following fields of agri- education, though more technology development business or entrepreneurship skills too: is mandatory in different sectors of agriculture. • Soil evaluation for fixing the potential soil productivity; • Soil suitability for land use choice for the most remunerative return; PDF Editor We have quite a good number of agriculture- based developmental schemes launched by the Government, but they are not much concerned with agricultural education and research. The 36 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 • Soil laboratory for preparing soil health card and water quality; • Soil as direct food, medicine, kaolin, bentonite/ attapulgite clays, raw materials (crockery, brick making), etc; • Tissue culture and biotechnology; • Breeding in crops, vegetables, spices and fruits; • Plant path-lab for plant protection measure chart; • Food processing and packaging; • Preservation of fruits and vegetables; • Seed processing, storing and preservation; • Growing and marketing of vegetable, fruit and flower seedlings/nurseries; • Recycling of crop residues, solid and liquid waste materials, vermicompost; • Conservation agriculture vs. evergreen agriculture; • O rganic farming vs. integrated farming system; and, • Different systems in value addition in agriculture . known ‘electro-culture’ needs sincere attention to work in a big way. Today, human population is suffering from a collapsible situation caused by adulteration, toxication, pollution, quality deterioration of not only the foodstuff, but of both water and air. We are blindly running after medical treatments including yoga, but never feel serious towards well-tested quality food and water. The protective medical treatments start from soil and end with grain, flesh and milk. The entrepreneurial skills must be cohesive to similar vision, mission and goal. Table 1 is merely an example to begin how to advance our skill towards agri-business following the expected challenges/opportunities. Logical perception on comparative linkage of agriculture with medical science and engineering under relevant distinguishing traits (Table 2) clearly discover the most vital issues that need to be addressed at the government policy level, if the country wants to promote agriculture in a monochromatic light and sound can stimulate the true sense. Agriculture in India is least respected growth of plants, associated technologies are yet as a profession and the farmers are known as to be discovered not only to improve the yield resource poor persons in the community. As such, and quality, but also to protect crops from disease, agriculture must be awarded all eternal respect insect pest, frost and to reduce the requirements as the most viable profession by the government for fertilisers and pesticides. Thus, the popularly through recognition in action. Each parcel of land R&D Besides, application of electricity, magnetism, Agriculture must be awarded all eternal respect as the most viable profession by the government through recognition in action TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 37 Table 1: Proposed Solution to Overcome Challenges through Agri-Business Challenges/Opportunities Solution/Agri-business Pulses are mixed/adulterated To maintain the purity of variety O ils are impure/adulterated To maintain quality/purity Rice and wheat are toxic with arsenic To get/grow toxic-free grains Scented rice becoming abandon To establish the scented strain Spices are almost duplicate/adulterated To restore the purity Milk and milk products are adulterated To maintain quality/purity Small millets are disappearing To restore and promote their production Road map of agriculture To begin with soil evaluation/land use suitability Low price vegetables/fruits To add values by processing/preservation Mushroom/honey bee To maintain quality Medicinal plants/soil To standardise for medicinal values Table 2: Comparative Visibility of Agriculture with Medical Science and Engineering R&D Distinguishing Traits Agriculture Medical Science Engineering O rigin/Genesis Close to nature Synthetic and artificial Artificial Importance and use Nourishment and survival of life Maintenance and repairing for life In case of failure Existence of life ends Sick person at risk or dies Alternative It cannot be substituted Medicinal plants and even soil in some cases Comfort/luxury and energy support to life Life style may be hard and uncomfortable Indigenous and traditional means Education Student-teacher-farmer Student-teacher-patient Student-teacher-industry Academic goal Farming practice-entrepreneuremployment Medical practice-private clinicemployment Corporate sector, self industry-employment Bottleneck in profession Lack of confidence in farming practice and entrepreneurship Almost nil due to professional satisfaction O nly in some cases due to shortage of placement Enrichment in professional confidence by teachinglearning Special measure by government and university/institutions Continuous promotion Continuous promotion Current option in admission Where is nation standing in agriculture? Road map of agriculture Virtually no option towards admission that makes agriculture education a burden Well below the potential as rated through soils Almost first option for majority of students Second option in most cases Agriculture virtually lacks appreciation Agriculture covers wide scope and opportunities Q uantitative soil based strategic planning Integration with soil and medicinal plants Mechanisation and processing tools is a prime land in terms of its suitability to specific N ot e: This art icle is in t wo part s. TM The second part will land use. Soil as a natural resource cannot be a be published in M arch-April Edit ion. wasted and subjected to management according to its capability to produce. This may not be difficult, but surely a challenging task. Let’s be sincere to shoulder the ultimate goal through higher education Dr BB M ishra is a Professor-cumChief Scient ist and Chairman at Bihar Agricult ural Universit y, Bhagalpur. H e is t he Chairperson, A Task Group of Universal Soil Classificat ion-W G, Int ernat ional Union of Soil Science. H e may be reached at bbmsoil@ rediffmail. com. PDF Editor and researchable efforts, where language is no restriction. 38 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Profitability and Competitiveness of Agro-enterprises: A Key to Growth By Manoj Singh R&D ndian agriculture sector employs around I is the largest producer, consumer and exporter 54.6 percent of the country’s workforce and of spices and spice products in the world and also contributes around 13.9 percent to the total the largest producer of pulses. Several related GDP of the country (which is declining over sectors of agriculture have played a major role in the years). The agriculture sector has had the development of Indian economy by providing lower production due to a number of factors such employment to a number of people in the canned, as individual-driven farming (unorganised), small and dairy, processed, frozen food to fisheries, meat, uneconomical land holdings, excessive dependence poultry, and food grains based agro industry. In fact, on specific crops, poor productivity, issues of India has improved its position in agricultural and climate change, insufficient finance, inadequate food exports to the 10th position globally. irrigation facilities, inadequate marketing of agro products, etc. Beside these, certain indirect factors Agricultural Growth such as shrinking cultivable land, farmers quitting O ver the past few years, agricultural growth of agriculture, migration from rural areas to urban India is pegged around 3-4 percent only, while areas, youths are moving out of agriculture etc. some states are performing better. States like Over the past few years, agricultural growth of India is pegged TM 3-4 around percent only, while some states are performing better PDF Editor Chhattisgarh (6.8% ), Jharkhand (8.59% ), Madhya Despite all these odds, India is second largest in Pradesh (9.56% ) and even smaller states like volume of output (of rice and wheat). The country Puducherry (9.04% ), Sikkim (7.27% ), and Tripura Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 39 (8.1% ) have performed well above the average The main factors that contribute to agricultural country level in terms of agricultural growth, while growth are: increased use of agricultural inputs; in 17 states and UTs (out of total 32), the growth technological change; and technical efficiency. With rate is less than 3.97 percent when taking average savings being negligible among the small farmers, figure from 2005-06 to 2013-14 (Source: Cent ral St at ist ical Organisat ion, as on 31-10-2014 ). In India, agriculture is a state subject and there are many issues and challenges faced by states in improving agricultural growth performance. Here we discuss some of the key interventions that led some states achieving higher growth in the agricultural sector (See Table 1 ). agricultural credit appears to be an essential input along with modern technology for higher productivity. Improving Farm Profitability The farm sector pro fitability requires interventions at all levels of value chain of crop production i.e. from pre-harvest to post harvest management Table 1: Key Interventions by some States that have led to the Increase in the Agricultural Growth Key Interventions 9.56 Increase in Arable Land: The acreage in agriculture also went from 19.147 million hectare in 2000-01 to 23.232 million hectare in 2012-13 due to intensive agriculture extension programmes, training to farmers on using modern farm techniques. Z ero percent Loan to Farmers: Madhya Pradesh is the only state in the country to extend (short-term) farm loans at zero percent interest rate to farmers. Creation of Additional Irrigation Facilities: O ver a period of six years, irrigation facility has increased from 7 lakh hectares to 26 lakh hectares, which is a record in the country. Timely Availability of Fertilisers to Farmers: There has been 2.7-fold increase in use of fertilisers in the state over a few years time. The scheme for advance storage of fertilisers ensures timely supply of fertilisers to farmers. Agriculture Cabinet: For better coordination between agriculture and allied departments and to facilitate quick decisions regarding agriculture, an agriculture cabinet has been constituted in the state. Organic Farming: The state’s contribution to organic farming stands at 40 percent of the total national output. Focus on Animal Husbandry: In milk production, the state has registered a growth rate of 8.6 percent, which is the highest in the country. Transparency in Disbursement of Subsidies: State Government is making direct transfer of funds to farmers’ bank accounts against subsidy and bonus provided to them under various schemes. This has ensured total transparency in transfer of subsidy amounts to farmers. 6.8 Disbursement of loans @ 1 % interest: Chhattisgarh became the first state in the country to offer the lowest ever rate of interest to farmers for agriculture loans. Improved Efficiency in the Supply Chain: The state has done computerisation of supply chain and Fair Price Shops (FPS) due to which leakages and issues of corruption have been TM been minimised. The Chhattisgarh model of computerisation of supply chain has already recommended by Hon’ble Supreme Court for replication in other states. Agricultural Labours Insurance: Atal Agro-labourers Insurance Scheme has been started to provide financial security to the families of nearly 17 lakh agro-labourers in the state. PPP in Agricultural Mechanisation: The state has initiated custom hiring centres under PPP mode since 2011-12 under Krishi Yantra Seva Kendra. R&D State Growth Rate (% ) – Avg from 2005-06 to 2013-14 Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh PDF Editor Puducherry 9.04 Promotion of Precision Farming: Through adoption of drip fertigation with all scientific practices. Dryland Development Technologies: For enhancing productivity of rainfed crops. (N ot e - Because of limit ed scope, ot her st at es int ervent ions have not been ment ioned here) 40 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 milk (around 20-30 percent of extra milk taken into account to improve the farm incomes yield is solely due to use of green fodder) as of the farmers in the country. These factors are well as reduction in the expenditure on feed elaborated below: concentrate, can improve the income level of • Diversification from Traditional Crops: There is an urgent need to diversify the farm production from non-remunerative crops to high value crops. O ne of the latest studies indicates that crops like mango, banana, potato and soybean, and poultry are the main farm products which could form the bedrock of rejuvenation in India’s agriculture and allied activities landscape in the next two decades. • Foresight of the Farmers: Anticipating farm production issues like diseases, pest attacks, adequate and timely supply of inputs to the field and keeping remedies in hand will help the farmers to prosper. A clear understanding of market demand, natural resources available and maintaining product quality is important for improving farm pro fitability. • Cultivating Fodder Crops: Dairying is an important secondary source of income and employment for millions of rural families. O ver the last few years, there is an increase in the prices of milk. O ne of the reasons for this is lack of green fodder availability in the country. Growing fodder crops i.e. high yielding perennial fodder crops, increase in the production of farmers. • Precision Farming: In traditional farming, selection of seeds, use of inputs such as water, fertilisers, pesticides, and time of harvest etc, are factors governed by traditional approach rather than need-based approach, whereas precision farming is a need-based, resource efficient form of agriculture that makes agriculture pro fitable. The methodology for precision farming starts with testing of soil to determine the level of nutrients in soil, adoption of drip irrigation rather than flood irrigation for watering and fertigation, and checking crops for diseases and thereby applying pesticides only as per need. The process optimises inputs and increases yield substantially. The 2.5 million farmers – of 125 million in the country – who have adopted precision farming have seen a sharp increase in their output. Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu are the leading states in adoption of precision farming practices. • Integrated Farming System: Merely cultivation of crops cannot improve the farm income level of farmers. There is a need to adopt an Integrated Farming System which comprises adoption of not only farm TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture R&D operations. Various other factors also need to be The 2.5 million farmers – of 125 million in the country – who have adopted precision farming have seen a sharp increase in their output | January-February 2015 41 R&D Farmers can jointly set up such units under Farmer Producer Company/ Cooperative/ Federation models production practices but many other practices Some estimates suggest that in developed like bee keeping, dairy, poultry, fishery, biogas countries, approximately 14 percent of the total production, water harvesting, composting etc. workforce is engaged in agro-processing sector, The system aims at reducing risk by providing directly or indirectly. However, in India, only about sustainable income to farmers round the year. • Adoption of Drip Irrigation Practices: The drip method of irrigation has been found to have a significant impact on resource saving, cost of cultivation, yield of crops and farm pro fitability. Drip irrigation saves 40 to 68 percent of water while ensuring 14 to 98 percent increase in production. • Setting up Post Harvest Infrastructure at the Farm Level: O ne of the key interventions for improving pro fitability of farms requires setting up of post harvest facilities like primary processing units (for sorting, grading, packing) and small capacity cold storages near farm production areas. This will help farmers in getting remunerative prices for their graded produce as well as they can supply their produce to the market as per demand and not to be dependant on traders. Farmers can jointly set up such units under Farmer Producer Company/ Cooperative/Federation models. three percent of the workforce finds employment in this sector, revealing its underdeveloped state and vast untapped potential for employment. The total number of agro-based industries increased from 28,584 in 2006-07 to 30,514 in 2011-12 with only 0.38 percent growth rate, which is very low. These agro-based industries are facing several problems in terms of infrastructure, skills, technological upgradation, support services etc. Farms and Agro Enterprises: Improving Competitiveness Trade liberalisation, agricultural commercialisation and market forces are making a significant impact on the rural livelihood. In this regard, development of Farms and Agro Enterprises as per the needs of global markets is critically important; TM this requires various interventions that can make these enterprises globally competitive and pro fitable. Such interventions are: Good Agricultural Practices: A multiplicity PDF Editor 42 Business of Agriculture | Agro Enterprises of Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) codes, Agro-based industry has a large potential for standards and regulations have been developed in growth and likely socio-economic impact, recent years. Their purpose varies from fulfilment specifically on employment and income generation. of trade and government regulatory requirements January-February 2015 (in particular with regard to food safety and quality), value markets and improving their competitiveness. to more specific requirements of specialty or This also helps them to increase the efficiency of niche markets. Different regions in the world have its internal operation; develop inter-firm linkages their own GAP requirements like European Retail that reduce transaction costs; and upgrade along Parties Good Agricultural Practices (EUREPGAP). the value chain, forging extensive collaborative Adoption of GAP practices can enhances the export ties between the firms facilitate sharing of competitiveness of Indian agricultural produce. knowledge, technologies and inputs; develop greater responsiveness to global demands; Agro/Food based Clusters: An agro-based and, attain greater export levels as a result of cluster (AC) is simply a concentration of producers, collective efficiency, and thereby finally improving agribusinesses and institutions that are engaged competitiveness. in the same agricultural or agro-industrial subsector, and interconnect and build value networks Quality Standards/Certifications/Systems in when addressing common challenges and pursuing Agriculture and Food Sectors: In agriculture, common opportunities. Growers of Maharashtra India has various certifications in place such as the Grape Cluster are closely knit in the form of Traceability System for Exports, NPO P standards Maharashtra State Grape Growers’ Association for O rganic Produce etc, which enhances domestic (MRDBS). Several countries including Canada and as well as export competitiveness. Strategic actions Italy have implemented the concept of food clusters for supporting internationalisation process of and reaped enormous bene fits. The development agro-food firms have to be based on innovation to of Dragon Head Enterprises in the Chinese context improve quality and national (FSSAI compliant agro is noteworthy in agro-based cluster concept. food products) and international certifications (ISO Farmers and small and medium agro-enterprises 22000, BRC, SA8000, ISO 14000). can bene fit from participation in agro-based related agribusiness spurs increased productivity through specialised inputs, access to information, synergies, and access to public goods, and more rapid innovation through cooperative research and competitive striving. It allows them to achieve scale of economies and share costs related to information sharing and technology application. M anoj Singh is an Agricult ural Expert , based in N ew Delhi. H e may be reached at manojsinghchandel@ gmail.com. Value Chain Approach: Adopting a value chain approach provides enormous opportunities for small enterprises through integration into high R&D clusters as a well-developed concentration of India has various certifications in place such as the Traceability System for Exports, NPOP standards for Organic Produce etc, which enhances domestic as well as export competitiveness N o Decision yet on Deregulating Urea Prices: Govt The government has yet to take a call on removing price controls on urea and scrapping an TM import duty of 5 percent, Chemicals and Fertiliser Minister Ananth Kumar said. “We are thinking of farmers when we take policy decisions... We will supply urea, fertiliser at subsidised rates,” Kumar said. PDF Editor Fertiliser subsidy costs quadrupled over the past decade as the previous UPA government kept urea prices below the cost of production, fearing a backlash from the powerful farm lobby. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 43 Bore Well Video Scanning: A Business Opportunity Still Underexploited By TS Badrinarayanan ince groundwater is a good and Groundwater viable resource for irrigation, For many important agricultural production bore wells are being drilled for areas, groundwater is the ultimate source of agricultural needs especially in hard freshwater. Groundwater is generally less prone rock areas, where the water level to pollution than surface water. S is deep underground. To overcome this, new bore wells are drilled or the existing one are further redrilled to tap the deep aquifers. At times, the effort ends in failure resulting in CASE STUDY monetary loss and mental agony. To minimise the failure rate, a technique called ‘Bore Well Video Scanning’ has been innovated. This article discusses the various aspects of the technique and narrates the success story of a Tamil Nadu farmer who has used this innovative technique. Before discussing the technique and the success story, in detail, it would be worthwhile to refresh ourselves with the relevant aspects of groundwater visà-vis the hydrogeological and geoelectrical conditions. TM PDF Editor 44 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 The aquifers that host groundwater are the primary buffers against drought for both human requirements and crop production. A geological formation that can transmit significant quantities of water is the aquifer. The groundwater potential of an area depends on many factors like physiographic, topography, rainfall, geology and hydrogeology. The occurrence and distribution of groundwater depends on hydrogeological conditions. Due to over extraction and exploitation of groundwater, the water level recedes resulting in depletion of quantity. Usually, for tapping groundwater for agricultural purposes, either open wells are dug or bore wells are drilled, depending on the NOTE TO DESIGNER: Put the above pictures side-by-side if space permits hydrogeological conditions. Due to frequent advanced scientific techniques for agriculture at depleted resulting in deep declining of water levels Pukkulam, a village in Udumalpet taluk of Tiruppur and ultimately the aquifer becomes dry. To tide district, Tamil Nadu, about 5 km north-west of over the water crisis, agriculturists either go for Udumalpet town, on Udumalpet-Senjerimalai new bore wells or rejuvenate the existing ones highway. The extent of agricultural land is about 25 by further deepening them. For rejuvenating an acres and lies between 10º 37’ 50.5’’ and 10º 38’ existing bore hole, hydrogeological, electrical well 00.7’’ north latitudes and between 77º 13’ 51.8’’ logging or bore well video scanning techniques are and 77º 14’ 08.0’’ east longitudes. The topography generally employed to study the feasibility for bore of the area is slightly undulating with a maximum blasting or hydrofracturing or further deepening. altitude of 1179’ in the northwest and minimum altitude of 1164’ in the southeast. The main The Case Study plantation in the farm land is coconut with drip J Sukumar, a postgraduate in Chemistry by irrigation. qualification and a businessman-cum-intensive agriculturist by profession, has been adopting Geology and Hydrogeology of the Area Udumalpet taluk is a typical hard rock terrain. The area is underlined by the peninsular gneissic complex of Archean age. The major rock types are biotite gneiss, granite gneiss, charnockites and granites. The rocks are intruded by pegmatites and quartz veins. Both red and black cotton soils cover the areas. Generally, Udumalpet taluk is a highly tectonised belt and hence the structures of the rocks are very complex. Pukkulam area Usually, for tapping groundwater for agricultural purposes, either open wells are dug or bore wells are drilled, depending on the hydrogeological conditions CASE STUDY monsoon failures, the groundwater resources get is tectonically disturbed and highly sheared. The area falls under Parambikulam-Aliyar basin. The TM Amaravathi River flows southeast of Pukkulam. The groundwater occurs mainly under water table conditions in the weathered mantle, joints and fractures and semi-confined conditions in the deep fractures. This area experiences rainfalls both PDF Editor during southwest and northeast monsoons. But the contribution from northeast monsoon is more. The Tiruppur district falls in the rain shadow region with its normal annual rainfall being 700 mm. Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 45 Groundwater Scenario Bore Well Details: Due to periodic monsoon failures, the water table has gone down very deep. In the drought of 2004, the static water level was 140 m below ground • Dia of Bore Hole: 163 mm • Depth Drilled: 207 m • Yield: 4 inches level. The groundwater depleted in almost all the deep bore wells in Pukkulam area drilled in the depth range of 150 to 250 m. The deep bore wells in Sukumar ’s field were drilled prior to 2010 to depths varying from 183 m to 300 m, which were Spring Details: • I Spring - Moisture: at 76 m depth • II Spring - 1’’: at 91 m depth • III Spring - 4’’ (276 LPM): at 201 m depth discharging till 2010 August end, have abruptly stopped discharging water. The situation worsened But again, from April 2014, the yield started in 2012. Then in September 2012, again, detailed decreasing gradually, leading to problems in catering hydrogeological and geoelectrical investigations to the water needs. CASE STUDY were carried out to ascertain a new bore well Then in September 20 12, again, detailed hydrogeological and geoelectrical investigations were carried out to ascertain a new bore well point point. A deep bore well of 163 mm dia, drilled to a At this stage , instead of going for a new bore depth of 204 m, yielded 4’’ [276 litres per minute] well, it was decided to rejuvenate the well by despite encountering granite, pegmatite and pink redrilling and deepening as the hydrogeological granite boulders, of 20 to 40 mm size at a depth of conditions and geoelectrical survey findings were 210 m. Thus, the water scarcity was overcome. encouraging. Scenario in 2012 Generally, for maintenance purposes, a bore well Litho log of the bore well. Bore well samples, inspection camera is used for evaluating the overall boulders at 201 m depth. condition of the well by: SUKUMAR, PUKKULAM, VES-3, LITHOLOG VERY HIGHLY FRACTURED GRANITE, PEGMATITE BOULDERS HIGHLY FRACTURED CHARNOCKITE 0 0.7 3.9 16.4 25 10 19 CHARNOCKITE FRACTURED GRANITE GNEISS & PINK GRANITES FRACTURED CHARNOCKITE 50 21 75 9 MASSIVE BIOTITIE GRANITE GNEISS FRACTURED GRAY COLORED GRANITE GNEISS 12 DEPTH IN M BGL 100 9 8 11 125 21 GRAY COLORED MASSIVE GRANITE GNEISS FRACTURED GREY COLORED GNEISS FRACTURED GNEISS TM HIGHLY FRACTURED GRANITE GNEISS 150 19 BIOTITE GNEISS 175 30 9 8 MASSIVE BIOTITIE GRANITE GNEISS FRACTURED GNEISS PDF Editor 200 HIGHLY WEATHERED GRANITE GNEISS 225 TOP SOIL Litho log of the bore well 46 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Set up of Bore Well Video Camera MONITOR INVERTER Bore well samples, boulders at 201 m depth. • Seeing the slots and casing pipe conditions; • Water level studies; • Ascertaining the presence or absence of foreign VIDEO CAMERA body; • Findings of Bore Well Video Scanning done on April 6, 2014 Ascertaining whether the submersible pump is struck and if so, the possibility of removing the pump; and, • For rejuvenation of the bore by blasting or hydrofracturing, to improve the yield. An attempt was made to study the feasibility of rejuvenating the bore well by using the innovative ‘bore well hole video scanning technique’ in order to study the different geological formations encountered in the well, depth to water level, force of water springs and fracture density i.e. number of horizontal and vertical fractures present. Bore Well Hole Video Scanning Technique: It is similar to an Endoscopic procedure. In this bore well hole video scanning technique, a tiny, waterproof, underwater video camera of 2’’ dia, with 16 LED lights, is lowered into the bore well. The camera is connected to an I-Pod (on the CASE STUDY The technique using this camera is cost effective since it minimises expenditure on drilling new bore wells in addition to saving precious time and energy The Bold Venture ground). The ‘on the spot’ video signals transmitted by the camera on a dynamic basis are viewed on the I-Pod where the signals also get recorded automatically and continually. • Bore Well Depth: 201 m Significant Features of the Camera: Apart • PVC Casing Pipe: 6 m from being more efficient and accurate than the • Seepage O bserved at: 52 m conventional tools, this camera, though tiny, is • Static Water Level: 178 m sturdy and can withstand a hydrostatic pressure of • I Spring at: 61m about 80 bars. With this camera, it is possible to • II Spring (Prominent Intrusion) at: 182.5 m scan up to a depth of 500 meters. The technique • III Spring at: 188 m using this camera is cost effective since it minimises • A Big Cavity at: 190 m expenditure on drilling new bore wells in addition Prominent Number of Deep Horizontal Fractures to saving precious time and energy. O bserved TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 47 CASE STUDY Recommendations Conclusion Based on the findings of bore well hole video It is found that the bore well video scanning scanning, the then existing poor yielding bore technique is an effective method to achieve well, it was recommended that by redrilling success even in worst drought conditions. In and deepening up to a depth of 305 m, the fact, the highly deep aquifer can be tapped bore well will get rejuvenated. Accordingly, successfully to cater to the water needs. the bore well was drilled in May 2014 up to a depth of 305 m. Result Obtained After redrilling, the reported yield of 2’’ (50 LPM) continued till September, 2014. If such integrated – hydrogeological and geoelectrical – investigation is done and is followed by bore well video scanning one can personally see the deep fractures below water table. A prominent fracture density, as However, the yield got depleted revealed by the scan report, is indicative of the and the discharge again became poor due to presence of deeper and concealed fractures continuous and prolonged acute as corroborated by the hydrogeological and drought conditions. The bore was again geoelectrical studies. This gives the much rejuvenated by deepening, up to a depth needed confidence which enables exploitation of 396 m by September end. During the of the positive conditions resulting in process, a big cavity was encountered at a rejuvenation of the bore well. This technique, depth of 335 m below ground level and the being highly cost effective and hassle-free, is a same yield of about 2’’ was struck at a business still underexploited in India. TM depth of 335 m. The final depth of bore well is 396 m (1300 feet) and the present PDF Editor reported yield is 2’’. After the recent northeast monsoon rainfall, the deep aquifers got recharged resulting in very good yield at present. 48 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 TS Badrinarayanan is a Geoscient ist of “ B Square Geo Tech Services” at Kollidam, Tamil N adu, India. H e may be reached at t sbadri56@ gmail.com. India’s Cold Chain Segment Potential Investment Avenue By Sameer Abbas Zaidi T he cold chain industry is seen as expected to grow at a CAGR of 28 per cent over an emerging and fast growing the next three years and reach a market size of business sector in India. According $13 billion in 2017. Thereby, presenting a huge to ValueNotes, a business research opportunity for Indian as well as foreign companies firm, the cold chain industry in India is valued at ` 24,500 crore ($4 billion) in 2012-13 and has been growing at over 18 percent for the past three years. The Indian cold chain industry is to explore and invest more in this sector. India, one of the largest producers of agricultural products, is known to have a fledgling cold chain, FINANCE TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 49 FINANCE Considering the current issue of food shortage and food security in India, cold chain facilities can also play a crucial role in the economy which results in supply chain losses of food and However, a report by UK’s University of other resources. These losses have been stated Birmingham has noted that Indian companies are to be as high as $8-15 billion per annum from set to invest heavily in the sector in the next five the agriculture sector, with over 40 percent of years, and that the Indian refrigerated vehicle fleet the fruits and vegetables produce getting wasted. may need to grow almost 100 fold by 2025 to cater Therefore, a focussed effort is required to promote to the huge demand. the development of cold chain in the country. Considering the current issue of food shortage and food security in India, cold chain facilities can also play a crucial role in the economy. At present, India’s cold chain capacity is miniscule compared to the other developed countries. Around less than four percent of the country’s fresh produce is transported by cold chain, compared to over 90 percent in the UK. What is also raising demand for cold chain services is not only an increase in the movement of perishable horticultural and agri-produce, but also pharmaceutical, dairy, poultry and meat product exports, as well as the fast-growing quick service restaurants. Against an overall market growth of around 10 percent, organised outsourced services are expected to grow at around 20 percent a year. In addition, the industry is offering several opportunities for businesses. TM According to industry estimates, about 104 million Major business opportunities related to cold chain metric tonnes of perishable produce is transported industry are: between cities each year in India. Around 100 • Cold Storages; million metric tonnes moves via non-reefer mode PDF Editor and only four million metric tonnes is transported by reefer mode. It has been observed that majority of the refrigerated vehicles (80 percent) are utilised for milk and milk products transportation. 50 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 • Refrigerated Transport; • Training Institutes for refrigeration technicians, logistics professionals and quality inspectors; • Material Handling Solutions; • Logistics Management software; • Dock Management equipment; • Vehicle Monitoring equipment; • Consulting and commissioning professionals; • 100 per cent FDI through government route; • Since 2011-12 cold chain has been given infrastructure status; • Viability gap funding up to 40 percent of the cost; • Five percent concession on import duty, service tax exemption, excises duty exemption on several items; • Equipment service and maintenance; • Subsidy of over 25 percent to 33.3 percent on the cold storage project cost; • Temperature controlled display cabinets. • O ver 50-70 percent capital grant on projects. Government Intervention Role of Private Players The role of Ministry of Food Processing Industry, Expecting a higher demand for cold chains, private Government of India is instrumental in the ventures need to jump in and tap this sector to development of cold chain infrastructure in India its full potential. Major players are part of larger and is implementing scheme for its promotion. logistics out fits like Gateway Distriparks, TCI, O ther departments such as National Centre for Container Corporation of India (CO NCO R) and Cold-chain Development (NCCD), National Gati, and have been steadily growing in scale. are also taking initiatives for the development of Logistic major Gati Ltd, recently raised ` 150 cold chain industry in India. This will enable industry crore ($24.45 million) from funds managed by to adopt better and more efficient technologies to Mandala Capital Ltd for its cold chain arm Gati prolong the shelf life of food products. This will not Kausar India Ltd. The company is planning to only ensure year-round availability of perishable raise upto ` 120 crore ($19.5 million) through food products and reasonable prices to the issue of securities. Another logistic giant consumers but also equitable distribution to other Snowman Logistics, a subsidiary of Gateway parts of the country. Distriparks Ltd (GDL), is also planning an initial public offer to fund its capacity expansion. It is The Indian government spelt out clear intention, looking to set up six temperature-controlled that cold-chain has to be supported. The warehouses and two ambient warehouses in government is taking steps to improve the cold six cities – Mumbai, Cuttack, Pune, Chennai, chain infrastructure, by recognising the cold chain Vishakapatnam and Surat – entailing an industry as a sub sector of infrastructure and investment of ` 142 crore. FINANCE Horticulture Board (NHB) and State Governments Another logistic giant Snowman Logistics, a subsidiary of Gateway Distriparks Ltd (GDL), is also planning an initial public offer to fund its capacity expansion creating an additional budget to construct new cold storage facilities. In addition, the private With the average capacity utilisation in the sector is being encouraged to develop the cold industry ranging between a dismal 30 percent, chain industry further, by implementing the latest to a pro fitable 75 percent, the unit revenue and most effective refrigeration technology potential of a cold storage facility is governed solutions available. Amongst the major identified largely by its investment in technology and overall development areas are the base infrastructure, service standards. There is a scope of public environmentally friendly technologies, standards private partnerships in the sector as well as and protocols, enabling policies and specialised greater involvement of railways and airports in skills. strengthening the cold chain infrastructure. Salient Features of Government Policies: To Conclude TM PDF Editor With the Indian production and consumption of Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 51 FINANCE food products seeing a sharp rise, robust cold chain a strong infrastructure network and support the is the need of the day to bene fit from this larger growth of cold storage facilities which in turn leads production capacity. The Indian cold chain industry to the overall development of the commodity will grow leaps and bounds in the near future but it market ecosystem. depends upon the quantum of investment flowing into it. Eyes are on big business and corporate houses that are willing to get into retail sector to create a backup for them and willingness of the customers to pay premium on higher quality Sameer Abbas Z aidi is a freelance business journalist . products will ultimately lead to the growth of cold chain industry in India. Thus, it is critical to build Progressive Farmers get eKisaan Tablets To educate, engage and empower the farming community, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah distributed eKisaan tablets loaded with information on agriculture, education and health. The tablets, which have been procured with financial assistance from NRI professionals, are part of the government’s ‘Namma Raitha’ platform. This platform will act as a catalyst to share best practices among farmers and facilitate higher interaction. SR Patil, Minister for Information Technology and Bio-Technology, said the Namma Raitha project TMand basic also aimed at providing educational, e-governance, food processing, rainwater harvesting healthcare information to farmers. In the first phase, 1,500 farmers from Bagalkot and Vijayapura districts would be given the free tablets that have been developed by eKisaan Foundation. Twenty of them were handed over the gadgets symbolically. PDF Editor A dedicated call centre team has been set up to interact continuously with the farming community. The farmers, who will also get free internet from Airtel for the first three months, will also be trained on how to use them, the minister said. 52 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 India-Bangladesh Agricultural Trade: Widening Regional Economic Integration By Aamir H Kaki T he importance of agriculture is sugar and leather, among others. In addition, it is immense for an economy. From the one of the most important markets for industrial ancient times to the present day, goods such as machinery, fertilisers and agro- it has been continuing its pace to chemicals. support the living being across the O ver the last four decades, the growth in livelihood for numerous populations. This sector world food production has been faster than not only provides food for about 7 billion people the population growth. As a result, hunger has around the world, but also raw materials for reduced while per capita agricultural production various industries such as jute, textile, tobacco, has increased. This situation paves the way to INTERNATIONAL globe. It is one of the most important sources of TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 53 INTERNATIONAL improving nutrition, eradicating poverty and strengthen the regional cooperation and help achieving sustainable economic growth. At ensure the effectiveness and efficiency of their present, the agricultural sector plays a pivotal role activities. in international trade, transportation, building industry, sources of household income and South Asia (especially SAARC countries) consists progressing economies, especially in developing of about 15 percent of the world’s arable land and countries. has about 23 percent of the world’s population, which is mostly shared by Bangladesh, TM India and In recent years, South Asia has received growing Pakistan. Bangladesh and Sri Lanka are by far the attention as a region that is integrating successfully largest importing countries in the region, whereas into the global economy. To maximise the India and Pakistan are the major cereal exporting bene fits in terms of faster growth and poverty countries. The agricultural sector constitutes a reduction, the region needs to strengthen regional significant proportion of GDP of these countries. and bilateral cooperation in several areas. In According to the CIA world factbook, 17.3 this context, closer bilateral cooperation and percent and 17 percent of the GDP of Bangladesh integration between major South Asian countries, and India, is shared by the agricultural sector, such as between India and Bangladesh, will respectively. PDF Editor 54 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 The agricultural sector is considered to be the public sector organisations in the countries, was principal source of employment for both the hailed as historically significant by the agriculture countries, which accounts for 45 percent in executives. Bangladesh and 53 percent in India, leading to an economy boom in both countries. To Conclude Bangladesh is a net importer of agricultural Agricultural Trade commodities including foodgrains, live animals, India and Bangladesh are good neighbours. edible oil, sugar, fruits, onion, lentil, milk and milk N otwithstanding the development that India and products. Despite the good domestic production Bangladesh have witnessed in recent years, the of some of these items, the country needs to two countries together still have to feed a large import as well in view of the high local demand. number of people. This is the real challenge posed before the two countries. Although they are situated in a region endowed with vast resources, they have failed to convert these resources into productive and collective wealth in an accelerating manner. Trade offers immense opportunities for raising the economic welfare of Bangladesh as well as India. Bilateral trade between India and Bangladesh is For agricultural items, India has historically remained an important source of import for Bangladesh. However, if bilateral cooperation and integration is pursued in a way it becomes compatible to the wider aims of regional economic integration, this could be a stepping stone and a necessary step toward regional or subregional accords. India-Bangladesh trade agreement, which was In this regard, more intensive exchange of agri- first signed on March 28, 1972. Under said trade agreement, both countries provide most-favoured nation treatment to each other. professionals of the two countries and creating A remarkable growth in two-way trade between and import, helping Bangladesh to raise its export India and Bangladesh has resulted in robust competitiveness in agri-products in the Indian growth of the economies in the region. India has market and reducing prices of imported agri-items become Bangladesh’s largest trading partner for from India. greater opportunities for commercial presence should be kept in mind. Better trade facilitation can significantly bring down costs of both export INTERNATIONAL conducted under the provisions of the prevailing India’s better ties with Bangladesh have seen an increase in agricultural exports to and textile imports from that country agricultural products in South Asia. India’s better ties with Bangladesh have seen an increase in Recently, India has allowed investment from agricultural exports to and textile imports from Bangladesh in the N orth-East region, there is a that country. For instance, the rice exports from possibility to set up agri-manufacturing facilities, India to Bangladesh have reached to $95 million in by Bangladeshi entrepreneurs, in this region. This 2013 from less than $1 million in 2009. could also deepen bilateral trade cooperation in agri-items between the two countries. To boost the agricultural cooperation further, the Secretaries of Agriculture of the Governments of Bangladesh, India and N epal signed a protocol on cooperation in the evaluation data of rice varieties released in their respective countries for release and commercialisation. The agreement was made during the Regional Cooperation on Seed Issues workshop in Kathmandu, N epal on O ctober 18 2014. References: ht t p://www.fas.usda.gov/dat a/india-sees-surge-agricult uralexport s-least -developed-count ries ht t p://www.livemint .com/Polit ics/ t nvt YZ 1H PZ t nhQSACSgI9I/Bangladesh-now-Indias-largest t rading-part ner-in-subcont ine.ht ml ht t p://irri-news.blogspot .in/2014/10/bangladesh-india-andnepal-sign.ht ml ht t p://www.adbi.org/files/dp78.india.bangladesh.economic. cooperat ion.pdf Paper on “ Examining t he Evolut ion of Agricult ural Product ion of Three SAARC Count ries: Bangladesh, India and Pakist an” TM PDF Editor The protocol on regional cooperation, which applies to rice varieties developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 55 N ew Projects to Strengthen Future for Canadian Agriculture The federal government announced an investment totalling $10.2 million to support Canadian agriculture during the second annual CropSphere conference in Saskatoon. Both investments aim to increase the value of what’s being grown by the country’s farmers. NEWS & HAPPENINGS INTERNATIONAL Pulse Canada will receive over $3.3 million to help increase the use of the pulses by marketing the nutritional value and generating new tools to measure the sustainability performance. “We are pleased to accelerate the commercialisation of value-added research and technology in the sector and to give producers the tools they need to better respond to emerging non-tariff barriers in foreign markets,” said Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz. Pulse Canada will receive funding under Growing Forward 2 (GF2), a federal-provincial-territorial initiative for the country’s agriculture industry. Canada provides 38 percent of the world’s need for peas and lentils, with the majority coming from Saskatchewan. In 2012, Saskatchewan farmers grew 96 percent of lentils and 70 per cent of dried peas in the country. Both the federal and provincial governments made an announcement at TCU Place for this year ’s agresearch funding through the Saskatchewan Agriculture Development Fund (ADF). Funding for ADF projects is also provided under GF2. Nearly $6.9 million is being awarded to 42 crop-related research projects, with the majority going to the University of Saskatchewan. Projects include studies to improve lentil varieties, enhance wheat midge resistance, decrease oil losses from canola dehulling and reduce the risk of pathogen contamination. “Investments in research have long-term bene fits for the agriculture industry, leading to the increased competitiveness of our industry in the global marketplace and better returns for our producers,” said Saskatchewan Agriculture Minister Lyle Stewart. A large number of industry partners contributed $3.4 million in additional funding to the projects. Almost two-thirds will be provided by Western Grains Research Foundation (WGRF). “We appreciate the opportunity to collaborate with the federal and provincial governments in order to maximise the bene fit of producer research investments,” said WGRF Board Chair Dave Sefton. ‘Green Revolution’ brings Greater CO2 Swings Agriculture has undergone a ‘green revolution’ over the past 50 years, with more and more crops being produced from an acre of land than ever before. That agricultural revolution could be changing concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and possibly having a small effect on climate change, according to two separate and unrelated studies published in the journal N at ure. During the growing season, forests absorb CO 2 from the atmosphere and release it when leaves fall to the ground and decompose in the fall. Likewise, when corn sprouts and grows into mature cob-laden stalk, it absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and releases it — exhaling — when it withers, TM dies and decomposes. Such agricultural inhaling and exhaling of CO 2 contributes to seasonal changes in the global carbon cycle. The new studies suggest that more efficient, high-yield agriculture is making those seasonal changes in the global carbon cycle swing to greater extremes, but the long-term implications for climate change may be small. PDF Editor Researchers have seen a 15 percent increase in the amount of CO 2 being inhaled and exhaled over the past 50 years over the Northern Hemisphere. At the same time, land planted with crops there grew by 20 percent as total crop production tripled. 56 Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 Warming will reduce Wheat Production: Research The researchers found that wheat production would fall by six percent for every 1°C increase in temperatures. The world is now nearly certain to warm by up to 2°C compared with pre-industrial levels, with political efforts concentrated on holding the potential temperature rise to no higher than that limit. In forecasting the effect on wheat production – one of the world’s most important staple crops – the researchers tested 30 computer models against field experiments to establish the most likely scenario. A fall of six percent in yield may not sound dramatic, but as the world’s population grows the pressure on staple crops will increase. Food price riots have been seen in several developing countries following sudden rises of less than 10 percent in food prices in recent years, demonstrating the vulnerability of the poor to grain prices. The global population is currently over 7 billion and is forecast to rise to at least 9 billion, and potentially up to 12 billion, by 2050, which will put more pressure on agricultural land and water sources. The research also counters the optimistic projections of some climate change sceptics, who argue that more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will increase plant growth, as they take up carbon from the air for photosynthesis. But that hypothesis has been widely questioned, as the boost to growing is likely to be outweighed by other effects, such as higher temperatures The scientists behind the report, published as a letter in the peer-review journal N at ure Climat e Change, said: “Understanding how different climate factors interact and impact food production is essential when reaching decisions on how to adapt to the effects of climate change. Temperature changes alone are reported to have potentially large negative impacts on crop production, and hotspots — locations where plants suffer from high temperature stress — have been identified across the globe.” INTERNATIONAL affecting germination and water availability. Their research could be used to help identify adaptation strategies, potentially including genetic modification or improved plant breeding. “There are several adaptation options to counter the adverse effects of climate change on global wheat production — and for some regions this will be critical,” they said. “Ensemble crop modelling could be an important exploratory tool in breeding for identified genetic targets to extend grain filling, delay maturity [both of which increase the size of the crop] and improve heat tolerance in wheat cultivars and other cereals.” The lead scientist was from the University of Florida, while a large number of other US universities, and institutions in Germany, France, Mexico, Australia and China were also involved. TM PDF Editor Business of Agriculture | January-February 2015 57 TM PDF Editor TM PDF Editor TM PDF Editor