During this virtual mission you will learn more about the developments and opportunities surrounding the food value chain. The focus is mainly on reducing food waste, food processing, logistics and short chains.
For whom?
The mission is only open to companies and knowledge institutions that offer solutions to the following challenges:
• waste after harvest, for example due to storage, transport or in the cold chain;
• food processing and safe ingredients for food and animal feed;
• circular processing of residual flows;
• short chains;
• provide food to cities;
• last piece of delivery (last-mile delivery);
• e-commerce.
Challenges
A lot of food is lost in India. This can be as much as 30%, depending on the crop or product. According to the Central Institute of Post-Harvest Engineering and Technology, this causes the entire food chain to lose about $ 12 billion in value each year. This is partly due to insufficient storage, processing and packaging facilities. But also due to an inefficient chain organization and too little knowledge.
Until recently, chains had many intermediaries and there was little coordination of supply and demand. A few months ago, the Indian government changed its policy to market agricultural products. Farmers can now more easily deliver directly to retailers and processors. In addition, companies are allowed to conclude contracts with farmers. The (private) storage of agricultural products is also now less limited.
Indian food processing industry
The Indian food processing industry is a sleeping giant. The sector is already worth about $ 500 billion. Despite this enormous turnover, the sector only processes an average of 10% of the primary products:
• 2% fruit and vegetables
• 6% poultry
• 21% other meat
• 23% fish
• 35% milk
But the sector is growing fast: between 2018 and 2023 an expected annual growth of about 12%.
The growing middle class is increasingly demanding safe and processed food. The corona crisis is reinforcing this trend. Digital systems are also emerging strongly. For example, e-commerce is growing and more companies are using artificial intelligence for automatic quality assessment.
The Indian government gives this sector priority. The country wants to increase production, reduce waste and create the right infrastructure. In addition, India wants to double its agricultural exports and be less dependent on imports.
Opportunities
The Indian government allows foreign investment. In addition, it supports the following sectors with programs:
• mega food parks
• food processing
• chain integration
• laboratories
• infrastructure for dairy processing
This offers opportunities for Dutch companies and knowledge institutions with knowledge of, for example, logistics and food processing.
During this mission you can visit a company online and thus increase your chances. Also participate and exchange knowledge about food waste, processing and sustainable chains.
