Status of food processing sector in India
- India is the world’s second-largest producer of fruits and vegetables, after China, yet just 2% of the crop gets processed.
- Despite a significant manufacturing base, the processing is little (less than 10 percent). Processing accounts for around 2% of fruits and vegetables, 8% of marine products, 35% of milk, and 6% of poultry.
- India has the world’s greatest livestock population, with 50% of buffaloes and 20% of cattle, but only around 1% of the entire meat population is transformed to value-added goods.
- The unorganized sector represents more than 75% of the industry.
Government Policies to Meet the Challenges of the Food Processing Sector
Food processing is a type of manufacturing in which raw materials are processed into intermediate foods or edible items using scientific knowledge and technology. Bulky, perishable, and occasionally inedible food resources are converted into more usable, concentrated, shelf-stable, and pleasant meals or beverages using a variety of techniques. Food processing, for the most part, improves the storability, portability, palatability, and convenience of the finished product. General features of raw food resources, principles of food preservation, processing elements that impact quality, packaging, water and waste management, excellent manufacturing methods, and sanitary protocols are all important for food processing professionals to know.
The Food Processing Industry (FPI) is a rising business that has gained traction in recent years. Because of the critical links and synergies that it fosters between the two pillars of our economy, industry, and agriculture, the industry is extremely important. It has a lot of potential for stimulating economic growth, which has prompted the government to take a number of legislative steps to support the food processing industry.
The Indian food sector ranks fifth in terms of scale, contributing almost 6% of GDP, 13% of Indian exports, and 6% of overall industrial investment in the country. Furthermore, it is expected to develop at a pace of 20%, with the processed food category accounting for 25%. Milk and milk products, snack foods, bread goods, fruit and vegetable products, fish and meat processing, and food processing machinery and related equipment are all important aspects of this business. Exports are increasing, which creates more job opportunities.
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