Govt set to establish farmer producer bodies to bolster crop supply

Kolkata: The state government has taken the initiative of establishing Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) to ensure balance in supply chain of crops.

"We have started the initiative called FPO. Around 12,000 farmers of a particular area have joined hands to make these organisations and we are encouraging them for collecting activity. They will decide who will grow what and how much," said P A Siddique, secretary of state Food Processing Industries and Horticulture, on the sidelines of the National Conference on Multi-Modal Logistics Stystem for Food Processing Sector of India, on Thursday.

Consul General of Nepal Eaknarayan Aryal and Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) director Perminder Jeet Kaur were present on the occasion as well.

According to a report published by the Boston Consultant Group recently, 1.6 billion tonnes of food worth approximately 1.2 trillion dollars are lost worldwide or go to waste every year.

According to the Central Institute of Post Harvest Engineering and Technology, 18 percent of fruit and vegetable production valued at Rs 31,500 crore is lost annually for improper post-harvesting management in India. If this problem is not addressed today, it is expected to become a 1.5 trillion dollar problem by 2050.

It might be mentioned that recently the price of onions had shot up throughout the country due to a shortage of supply from Nasik. In Tamil Nadu and Madurai, onion was sold for over Rs 200 per kg, while in Kolkata, the price touched Rs 150.

To maintain balance of supply and demand, the state Food department had decided to sell onions at Rs 59 per kg from all fair price shops and Sufal Bangla retail outlets.

Last week, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had also paid a surprise visit to the Sufal Bangla retail outlet at Jadubabur Bazar, to take stock of the prices of onion and other vegetables.