NEW DELHI: On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that over the previous nine years, foreign direct investment (FDI) up to Rs 50,000 crore has been drawn to India’s food processing industry, which has become a “sunrise” industry. At Bharat Mandapam in the nation’s capital, Modi was giving a speech at the second World Food India event. The final day of the three-day event is November 5. “The food processing industry has received FDI of Rs 50,000 crore over the past nine years. It is the outcome of the government’s pro-farmer and pro-industry policies, according to Modi. According to him, the capacity for processing food at home has grown dramatically over the past nine years, and exports of processed food have climbed by 150%.The prime minister launched a “food street” as part of “World Food India 2023″ and gave seed cash support to more than a lakh Self Help Groups (SHGs). The celebration of 2023 as the International Year of Millets intends to highlight India as the world’s food basket. The international event was not able to be organised in the following years because of the COVID-19 epidemic, which took place during the first edition in 2017. “Seed Capital Assistance” will assist SHGs in increasing their marketable prices through higher-quality manufacturing and better packaging. Union Minister of Food Processing Industries Pashupati Kumar Paras encouraged international businesses to make investments in India in this field during his speech.According to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, the Modi administration has strengthened the nation’s food processing industry and guaranteed the nation’s food security. He outlined the development initiatives carried out by the national government over the last nine years. Around 200 cooks will participate in the “Food Street,” which showcases regional cuisines and royal culinary legacy, and will include traditional Indian cuisine. Government agencies, business leaders, farmers, entrepreneurs, and other interested parties will have a forum to network, develop alliances, and look into investment opportunities in the agri-food sector through World Food India. CEO roundtables with an emphasis on investment and ease of doing business will also be held during the event. A number of pavilions have been erected to highlight the power and inventiveness of the Indian food processing sector.
