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Model supply-chain for food processing formulated

P.T. Jyothi Datta

NEW DELHI, Sept. 17

THE National Task Force on Food Processing (NTFFP) has laid out a supply-chain management structure ``that combines models of corporates like Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) and ITC, Cola-majors like Coke and Pepsi and co-operative success stories like Amul fr om the Gujarat Co-operative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF) and `Safal' from the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).''

Mr Omesh Saigal, Chairman, NTFFP, told Business Line that the model structure would be presented at the first meeting of the task-force here on Tuesday. The issue is significant as an estimated 40 per cent of fruits and vegetables get wasted due to their perishable nature in the absence of adequate storage and cold-chain facilities.

The model supply-chain parameter involves `HLC or Handle with Love and Care' techniques involving simple measures like pre-sorting at the farm level. These techniques include -- plucking and trimming fruits at the right time/in the right way, washing, sp ray-treatment, waxing, burying in the ground and other traditional practices to enhance shelf-life of fruits and vegetables from a few days to a couple of weeks.

Citing Himachal Pradesh's apples as an example, he said that HPMC, the marketing arm of the Government, helped the growers by providing packaging material at a minimal cost and even rotten apples were being bought back.

This model can be adapted for different fruits and vegetables from different agro-climatic regions, he said. One modification that the supply-chain model introduces into the HP pattern, is that of pre-cooling. It is erroneous to assume that all fruits an d vegetables and other perishable agricultural products need to be frozen to increase their shelf-life to enable efficient distribution, he observes.

``This is true if shelf-life needs to be increased over several months or years. But often, shelf-life can be increased by HLC practices and through suitable packaging and handling technologies. Improved shelf-life can be achieved even through cool store s, as opposed to cold storages.''

Highlighting the need to evolve suitable packaging types for fruits and vegetables like -- grapes, apples, pineapples, cabbages, carrots, etc. -- the NTFFP is planning to have a sub-committee of researchers to come up with suitable, collapsible and reusa ble packaging material for different commodities.

Recently, the Bangalore-based Indian Institute of Science devised a mobile-cooler that could be used by co-operatives or collective groups of farmers.

The task-force, under the Ministry of Food Processing, is also urging the State Governments to evolve food processing parameters for fruits and vegetables from their States.

He said that the model supply-chain management structure would be conveyed to farmers and co-operatives through extension services of the state government. This would cut the loss through wastage by less than 20 per cent, besides reducing the intermediar ies between the farmer and consumer. This eventually would improve quality as well as reduce prices at the consumer's end, he concluded.