Amul, Haldiram's get approval to set up cold-chain units

Q3. Which brand would you associate with Drums Foods?

FMCG players like Amul, Haldiram Group and BigBasket with other companies have got approval to set-up 101 integrated cold-chain projects, according to a report in The Economic Times.

These chains will be built with investment of Rs 3,100 crore for creation of infrastructure for the sector, Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal said, adding that Rs 838 crore will be released as grant-in-aid for the project.

These cold chain stores will be a part of the national cold chain grid being created to transfer perishable goods like fruits and vegetables, fish, meat and ready-to-eat-meals, from farm areas to consumers without spoilage. Badal had announced the initiative earlier this month.

It will also streamline the agricultural supply chain and also help create jobs for farm hands.

The cold chain project will help create additional capacity of 2.76 lakh tonnes of cold storage, 56 lakh litres per day of milk processing, 629 refrigerated and insulated vehicles.

India, which is one of the largest food producer of fruits and vegetables, processes only 2.2 percent of its produce. In India, 30-40 percent of farm produce goes as a waste during transportation and harvesting. The government aims to bring this to a zero level.

The ministry is aiming to set up 150 cold chain units. Badal said that food processing is the priority and a corpse of Rs 2,000 crore in NABARD has been formed to give credit at cheap interest rate for food processing units.