Monday, February 28, 2011

Interview with Dr. Rajesh, Senior Scientist

Q1: In your experience what is your perceptions of Indian Agriculture industry?

A- India is the second largest producer of food in the world. Whether it is canned food, processed food,
food grains, dairy products, frozen food, fish, meat, poultry, the Indian agro industry has a huge potential, the significance and growth of which will never cease.

Q2: In your opinion what are the top three challenges which the industry needs to correct to catapulate itself into a global player?

A: It needs to modernize the available Technologies in delivering the best of services.

Q3: What are the experiences of "Agriculture industry"? And what are its strategies for its future growth?

A: India must diversify her agricultural exports. For example, since 2000, even in commodities such as tea, coffee, cocoa are limited. As India opens up externally, it is also expected to face vulnerability in the wider international price fluctuations. Spices, where India is supposed to have a comparative advantage

Monday, February 21, 2011

EVENT ALERT

Kerala agri food technology expo 2011 from February 24 to 27, 2011 at Thrissur, Kerala,India.
http://bit.ly/eFgq86

-Food Pack Hyderabad- An exhibition on food processing industry from February 25 to 27, 2011 at NSIC trade centre, Hyderabad.
http://bit.ly/cBvyig

-Rythu Pragati- an agricultural trade show from March 6 to 9, 2011 at Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, India.
http://bit.ly/eEXtfd

-International conference on Agricultural Marketing from March 25 to 26, 2011 at Mysore, Karnataka.
http://bit.ly/fnq0ch

-Global Agri Connect 2011-conference & exhibition from 14 to 16 October, 2011 at IARI, Pusa Campus, New Delhi.
http://bit.ly/gOnRsJ

Sikkim turns organic!

The north east states of India have been actively promoting organic farming and Sikkim has gone to the extent that it hoped to see the state fully organic by 2015.

“The Sikkim government is pursuing an ambitious plan to make the state fully organic by 2015, hoping to transform it into a hot spot for organic products,” state agriculture minister D N Takarpa said.

At the Sikkim Food Processing Investors meet, the minister said, “Once the goal has been achieved in 2015, the value of organic products of the state would yield good value not only in the domestic market but also in the international market

CIFT in US??

Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Cochin, conducted a meeting of scientists and technical officers on February 17, 2011.

Dr Bala Swaminathan, senior vice-president, technical, and business development, IHRC, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia, USA, delivered a speech on 'Revolutionising Food-borne Disease Outbreak Investigations in the United States.”

Dr Swaminathan, with more than 30 years of research and management experience in the application of molecular biology techniques to the practical problems of public health and food safety, was the driving force behind the development of PulseNet, a successful molecular sub-typing-based network to detect outbreaks involving food-borne pathogens in the U S.

No ban on onion exports: EGoM

The decision taken by an empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on Thursday to lift the ban on exports on onion completely but set a minimum export price of $600 a tonne as a precaution against further price rice of the commodity.

Meanwhile food inflation, based on the annual Price Index, eased to a two-month low in early February on moderating prices on onions and other vegetables. The food price index fell to 11.05 per cent for the week ended February 5, down from 13.1 per cent a week earlier. Economists expect further easing as vegetables prices at the wholesale level has come down further

Enzyme to keep bread Fresh

Consumers expect baked goods to be fresh and tasty – and to help manufacturers meet this demand, speciality chemicals supplier Cognis has now developed the innovative bakery enzyme preparation Nutrilife AS M. This product significantly slows down staling and improves the elasticity of the crumb, according to a press release from the company.

Delicious sandwich bread, tasty soft buns, mouth-watering panettone – all of them taste great when they are fresh. To keep baked goods soft and moist for as long as possible, manufacturers need solutions that combine excellent quality with a great mouthfeel. The new enzyme in Cognis’ Nutrilife range is tailor-made for maximum freshness retention in all yeast-raised baked products.

Delhi help sought on fertilisers

Meghalaya sought 8,860 metric tonnes of fertilisers from the Centre to meet the demands of farmers during this year’s kharif season.
The demand was made at the Northeast zonal conference on Agricultural Inputs for Kharif, 2011, organised by the Union ministry of agriculture, department of agriculture and cooperation in collaboration with the department of agriculture of the state government.
State agriculture joint director (administration and accounts) in-charge of fertilisers, L. Marbaniang, said Meghalaya requires 3,900 tonnes of urea, 2,500 of DAP, 2,200 tonnes of SSP and 260 tonnes of MOP for the kharif season.
Marbaniang also said fertilisers lifted by the state during the rabi season included 3,068 tonnes of urea, 1,528 tonnes of DAP, 2,024 tonnes of SSP and 72 tonnes of DOP.
However, as farmers of the state are cultivating rabi crops upto March, the state sought additional fertilisers of 500 metric tonnes for the rabi season. This included 400 metric tonnes of DAP and 100 metric tonnes of urea.

Israel to invest Rs. 40,000 cr in India

Israel has evinced interest to make a whopping investment of nearly Rs 40,000 crore in sectors like agriculture, horticulture, aquaculture and dairy in Madhya Pradesh.

"A team of Indo-Israel Chamber of Commerce led by Embassy of Israel Economic Counsellor Mouneer Agbariya recently met the state government officials and showed interest to invest nearly Rs 40,000 crore in Madhya Pradesh," Rajendra Kothari, state director, Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said.

“Israel is keen to invest in agriculture, horticulture, aquaculture and dairy sectors in Madhya Pradesh,” he said. The team held meetings with principal secretary, agriculture and cooperative department, horticulture and food processing and director, horticulture, adding that the second-round of talks regarding investments would take place in March.

Avian Flu outbreak !!

Meghalaya has sounded an alert following an outbreak of avian flu in Tripura and Bangladesh , Deputy Chief Minister for Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Bindo M. Lanong said Friday.
'All veterinary officials, especially those posted on the Bangladesh border, have been asked to keep a close watch and take all possible preventive measures,' he told.

Lanong said there has been no confirmation of any unusual mortality of birds in the state, especially in areas bordering Bangladesh.

Meghalaya shares a 443-km border with Bangladesh.At least 3,000 poultry, including chicken and ducks, were Friday culled in a state-owned poultry and within its three km radius here following outbreak of bird flu in Tripura.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Goa ideal to promote Indian Wines!

In a recent seminar on food processing organised by the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), Ashok Sinha, secretary, ministry of food processing industries, said that Goa could be an ideal destination to promote Indian wines, given the heavy inflow of foreign tourists.

Sinha said that Goa could be a platform to showcase wines indigenous to India without branding them under various companies. The wine industry which was growing by 25-30% annually had a challenging job on safety and cleanliness front.

GPS tracking devices for PDS in J&K

In response to the damning media reports on the dubious public distribution system, the Jammu and Kashmir government was all set to introduce e-measures to their PDS which included the installation of the GPS tracking devices on vehicles carrying food and other supplies so as to check pilferage.

"The state government has decided to introduce information technology in public distribution system and launch e-PDS in Jammu and Kashmir," state minister for consumer affairs & public distribution Qamar Ali Akhoon said.

He said that a process for tie-up with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) for successful implementation of e-PDS had already been initiated.

India need to modernize agricultural marketing: PM

India needs a major revolution in agricultural marketing, says Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. “Agricultural diversification in food requires back-up support in terms of viable delivery and marketing chains because much of the agricultural produce is perishable. We have not done as much as we should have to promote modernization of agricultural marketing,” Singh said at the inaugural session of the three-day “Leveraging Agriculture for Improving Nutrition and Health” conference organised by US-headquartered International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

Meet this Young Achiever!

Twenty-one-year-old Tanvi Pal from the city made a record of sorts at the seventh annual convocation of Anand Agricultural University

"It is because of the passion with which she pursued her bachelors that she has won so many medals," said Tanvi's proud father Mahitosh Pal, who along with his wife Bhavna collected the medals on their daughter's behalf. . As a student of Bachelors of Science (BSc) in agriculture, Tanvi bagged as many as 15 awards including 14 gold medals and one cash prize at the convocation in Anand district

History of Agriculture

By. Mr. Raghav Sharma.

A fourth South Asian agricultural region, the Ganges River valley, became increasingly developed after about 3000 bp. Although it is clear that some of these changes arose from contact with Indo-European speaking peoples known as Aryans, notions of a devastating Aryan invasion are mistaken and in the past tended to obscure objective research on the region’s history.
Through various forms of exchange, the region saw the introduction of the horse, coinage, the Brahmi script, and the whole corpus of Vedic texts. Written sources of information join the archaeological sources from this point onward. The plow, for example, figures in a hymn of the most ancient of the texts, the Rigveda:Apparently, rice played an important role in the growth of population and the founding of new settlements.
In the later Vedic texts there are repeated references to agricultural technology and practices, including iron implements; the cultivation of a wide range of cereals, vegetables, and fruits; the use of meat and milk products; and animal husbandry. Farmers plowed the soil several times, broadcast seeds, and used a certain sequence of cropping and fallowing. Cow dung provided fertilizer, and irrigation was practiced where necessary.

A more secular eyewitness account is available from Megasthenes , a Greek envoy to the court of the Mauryan empire. In his four-volume Indica he wrote:
India has many huge mountains which abound in fruit-trees of every kind, and many vast plains of great fertility.The greater part of the soil, moreover, is under irrigation, and consequently bears two crops in the course of the year.In addition to cereals, there grows throughout India much millet and much pulse of different sorts, and rice also, and what is called bosporum [Indian millet].

Mr. Raghav Sharma is a professor of Soil Microbiology..

Core committies for increased agricultural productivity

Three core areas have been identified for increasing agricultural productivity and strengthening food security in the region under the Indo-US Agricultural Innovation Partnership (AIP) project, launched at BHU

The five-year project would cost around 10 billion dollars.

Talking to journalists after the launch of AIP, K Vijayaraghavan, regional coordinator, Cornell University, south Asia programme, said that primarily, the strategic partnership would promote field experience of students studying food sciences, agriculture and life sciences. on Thursday.

India can become Food basket of the world: Scindia

A second Green Revolution, involving technical innovation, increased investment in agriculture and proper infrastructure for food processing can make India the "food basket of the world", Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jyotiraditya M. Scindia said on Sunday.

"Agriculture sector is critical for our economy as 60-70 per cent of our population is dependent on it for livelihood. We require 4.5 to 5 per cent growth in the farm sector to uplift our economy in rural areas," Scindia said at an award function organized by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda) here.

Non tariff barriers taken to be more seriously

Indian agricultural products will have to move up the value chain in order to achieve the export target of 15 billion dollars in the next three years and the main challenge for the sector will be to deal with emerging range of non-tariff barriers, Union Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar, said.

Speaking at the Export Awards function of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) which coincided with celebrations of APEDA's completion of 25 years, the Commerce Secretary said, 'The agri products will have to deal with emerging non-tariff barriers such as sanitary and phytosanitary measures. We have to address quality and technical issues more seriously.' He also warned that the traceability measures deployed in various agri-products to meet with international requirements may become another mode of banning.

Monday, February 7, 2011

Home marketing proves profitable than exporting

Exporters of premium and quality foods find it more profitable to sell them in the home market than exporting them. The new found Indian craze for export quality speciality teas and coffee, seafood, dry fruits, spices and the famed long-grained Basmati rice is posing a new challenge for the food industry that is now looking at ways to meet the ever-increasing local demand. Prices of several products are equal to, and in certain cases, more than what foreign consumers have to pay. And clearly, no one is complaining.

Indian Scientist develops rice that can grow under high saline condition

Dr SK Sopory (group leader) of International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi have come close to developing a special submergence tolerant variety of rice that can be grown even in high saline condition.

The special variety of rice has been developed with transgenic technology, transferring salinity tolerant genes from brassica and rice plants and the technology is also believed to be safe unlike Bt technology that transfers stress resistant genes from bacteria, raising fears about bio-safety and eco-safety measures.

Do you know Aishwarya Rai Guava?

A variety of Guava has been named after bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai.It will be available in the Indian markets soon.This new variety has been developed by Padmashree horticulturist Haji Kaleemullah Khan after dedicating 8 years towards this unique variety.Its uniqueness lies in its texture and sweetness.The new variety of guava resembles an apple in texture and is sweeter and pulpier.Such guavas have never been grown in India ever.

Coordinate for a better tomorrow: Pawar

The minister of agriculture and food processing industries, Sharad Pawar, emphasised on having greater resources for research and committed team-work among scientists and extension professionals to deal with the challenges of food production, malnutrition, poverty, population growth and environment.

Addressing the 82nd Annual General Meeting of Indian Council of Agricultural Research, the minister said that research had to generate robust agricultural technologies and innovations that could enhance productivity and incomes while conserving natural resource base for sustainability of the development process.

US to learn from Mumbai's Dabbawalahs?

Apart from the scheduled meetings with India's top space and nuclear energy administrators and corporate honchos, the US commerce secretary, Gary Locke, would also meet the famed Dabbawalas in Mumbai. Locke, who was leading a 24 US businesses on a high tech trade mission on Feb 6-11, would visit the dabbawalahs to learn about the unique logistics operation.

"This lunch delivery service, subject of management studies in the US, has been cited as a model of entrepreneurship and supply-chain management at the grass-roots level," the commerce department noted while announcing its schedule.

Harvard Business School had produced a case study on the exciting story of the 4,500 semi-literate Dabbawalas collecting and delivering over 1,75,000 food packages within hours with an error-free record.

The curious case of Bt Brinjal

India grows eight million tonnes of natural brinjals. In fact, in various parts of north India, brinjal is produced in excess and sometimes most of it is fed to the cows so why should one compromise with their health. As far as anyone can tell, there is no crisis in India’s brinjal production.
Bt brinjal produces a protein in the vegetable cells that induce antibiotic resistance. It may also indicate that old GM technology is being used as the technology has already moved on from antibiotic resistance marker genes.

Talking to Explore Mr. Narayanan, an Agriculturist said "Agriculture is a culture that should receive holistic treatment and not the piecemeal introduction of highly toxic inputs that poison a regions daily food. It is one of the livelihood sectors that would suffer drastically through these unnecessary inputs."

Another shocking review is that there have been no independent tests conducted by the Ministry of Health, considering that this is an important food crop in the country. The entire approval process in the country is being pushed at high speed by the Department of Biotechnology, some bilateral agencies like the USAID and the private biotech industry. This is unacceptable since the primary stakeholders like farmers and consumers and some Ministries like Health are not being involved in these decision-making processes.