The ‘Atma Nirbhar’ economic stimulus package, to the tune of 10% of the GDP (Rs 21 lakh crores) cushions the economy to a certain extent, but certainly there is more than can and should be done until the structural reforms being implemented.
Fi India and Hi along with Suman Food Consultants conducted a webinar on ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT – Implication And Opportunity For Food Processing Industry on 18 June 2020.
The webinar highlighted the impact of several relief packages being announced for Food Industry in multiple tranches of these economic reforms. Eminent industry experts discussed on how these challenges can be turned in to opportunities to make the Indian Food Industry self-reliant i.e. “Atmanirbhar”.
The lockdown crisis has certainly probed the Indian Government to push a big economic reform – ATMANIRBHAR ABHIYAAN, a relief package and incentives for the Indian Industry aimed to make the nation self-reliant and to counter the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
There were five speakers
- AKSHAY BECTOR, Chairman & MD Cremica Food Industries Ltd
- ANAAM SHARMA, Sr. Manager Corporate Affairs Coca – Cola India Pvt. Ltd
- NITIN PURI, Sr. President Food & Agri Strategic Advisory & Research, YES BANK
- SAMANA TEJANI, Director – Production Gits Food Products Pvt.Ltd
- SAGAR KURADE, Managing Director Suman Food Consultants
Mr. Nitin Puri Sr. President Food & Agri Strategic Advisory & Research, YES BANK, explained in this webinar that Processing of food is not the only way to add value and increase farmer’s income. Some other factors like farmer’s varieties, back end skilling, lower pesticide residue and quality also help for right impact. According to Mr. Akshay Bector, MNC’s have added a considerable amount of value to the ecosystem. He believes that collaborations with multinational companies bring management technical know-how to the country while contributing to the economy. Mr. Samana Tejani elaborated his point of view that technology wise, India is way behind, foreign collaborations help in development. Additional highlights of the discussion were the need for preprocessing infrastructure to carry the supply chain forward and the need for the right value chain.
As per the opinion of Mr. Anaam Sharma, Atamnirbharta is a journey which has to transverse over time, the technology and the machines are imported to match quality, which can’t be achieved on locally available technology. Atamnirbharta in the supply chain is not enough; the source of funds have to be widely used. Nitin Puri addressed the need to widen the scope to include the fresh food produce space. He highlighted that the demand side disruptions and consumers’ behavioral changes have happened for the better. “The focus on health and immunity will give birth to the new categories, innovations in India”
