AgroSpectrum December 2020

4 AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Volume 01  |  Issue 10  |  December 2020

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AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com AGRO EDIT 5

Effective
communication is key

Farmers’ participation on a large scale in a behind due to various reasons. Experts feel that
march to the national capital for an agitation while making the agri trade competitive it is
to demand withdrawal of the three new necessary to understand that agriculture is not like
farm legislations clearly indicated the severe any other commodity when a large percentage of
dissatisfaction and anger simmering among them population is involved in it.
over the issue. Sheer magnitude of the farmers’
protest makes it necessary to take note of the Hence, in the new open market atmosphere
grievances they have over the legislation. the farmers want guarantee of minimum support
price (MSP) and continued presence of Agricultural
Opposition to the three legislations was not Produce Market Committee (APMCs). Government
only for their content but was also due to the lack has assured that both will continue but the farmers
of consultative process with the stakeholders. want MSP included in the legislation. Regarding
While being vocal against the way they were passed the APMCs the fear is that they may not be able to
hurriedly in the Parliament, the opposition parties sustain when private entities will enter in agri trade
had demanded greater scrutiny. Farmers were and once the APMCs become defunct then private
uncomfortable over the content of the legislation. buyers will control the prices. There are numerous
The government and the ruling party tried hard to complaints about APMCs, still one has to accept that
communicate to the farmers through advertisements their prices became the benchmark for open trade
and speeches as to how the legislations will and payment default was not there.
revolutionise the farm sector and benefit the
farmers. But the number of agitating farmers was Another fear is about skewed and unbalanced
indicative that they were not convinced. bargaining between large corporations and small
farmers, ultimately affecting the farmers. How many
The government should have looked at their farmers will be able to understand and make perfect
dissatisfaction in a more sensitive way by hearing contracts with corporates is a question. This is
them out and understanding their point of view. coupled with more worry about denying regular and
The manner in which the legislations were pushed established dispute resolution mechanisms by taking
through, bypassing the consultative process created away civil courts’ jurisdiction in such matters and
a trust deficit, even if the government’s argument giving it to Sub-Divisional Magistrates.
is weighted. The agitation is proof that this has not
happened as per the farmers’ satisfaction. Farmers’ As the legislation removes old barriers in agri
leaders were called to the capital for talks. But the trade, the farmers fear that it would indirectly do
Union Agriculture Minister did not participate away with the old system in due course of time.
in the talks and the leaders left dissatisfied. Such Hence, they want the old systems, simultaneously
incidences added to the trust deficit. Instead of a operational by law and not merely by assurances.
dialogue, the government stressed on the repeated When an old system is demolished to make way
monologue of advertisements and speeches, for the new, no matter how beneficial the latter
explaining how the Acts will revolutionise the farm may be, the stakeholders do not feel comfortable
sector, double the farmer’s income and improve with it unless they experience it. Till then, they too,
their condition. need a parallel system. The government needs to
understand this sentiment and deal with the issue.
The thrust of the Acts is to open up agri trade by Thus, maintaining effective communication at every
expanding the scope of selling options and outlets point is the key to all problems.
for farmers and making it more competitive. In
the competitive atmosphere those who can attain Dr. Milind Kokje,
efficiency move ahead but several others are left Chief Editor

[email protected]

6 CONTENT AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

CONTENT

COVER STORY 17

SECTOR IN FOCUS

The impact of COVID-19 on Indian economy is as devastating as it
is on the rest of the world. Disruption of demand and supply chain
of agricultural commodity like fish and seafood products for the
prolonged nation-wide lockdown has directly affect 14.5 million
people associated with the sector. The scale at which this pandemic
has caused damage to this trade is immeasurable with exports
slipping down drastically, production, distribution and marketing of
inland fisheries coming to a halt and seed supply scoring an almost
zero due to lack in demand. As per the Central Institute of Fisheries
Technology (CIFT), the monthly loss for the sector is estimated to
be about Rs 6,838 crore, with Gujarat — the No. 1 state with 7.8 lakh
tonnes marine seafood production in 2018 — have been hit severely.
However, experts from the industry feel that now the inimical phase
has passed by and it is time to rebuild this sector. AgroSpectrum
analysis the ongoing trade situation and speak to some stalwarts of
this trade get the clear picture on the necessary strides needed to
get this business back on track.

25 High on production, low on preservation

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com CONTENT 7

CONTENT

Cover story

29 36

New vistas in fish Current scenario of
processing and fisheries in India -
preservation Challenges & Opportunities

Ravishankar C N, Dr Partha P. Biswas,

Director, ICAR-Central Institute Incharge-Fisheries Training &
of Fisheries Technology, Kochi Culture Unit, Simurali Krishi Kendra,
Simurali, West Bengal
32 39
Speaking with
A bankable ‘Blue
Revolution’ for ‘‘Unscientific farming
practices is a hindering
fisheries growth factor to achieve
production efficiency’’
Sagar Mehra, Rajamanohar
Somasundaram,
Joint Secretary, Department of
Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Founder & CEO, Aquaconnect

Husbandry & Dairying, Government
of India

Webinar
Bengaluru Tech Summit 2020

41 Our local tech solutions have the
potential to go global: PM Modi

REGULARS People News..............................42
Technology News.....................43
Editorial.......................................05 Academic News........................45
Your Views.................................08 Agri-Inputs news.......................47
Policy News...............................09 Supply chain news...................49
Finance News............................11
Livestock news.........................13
Startups News..........................15

8 YOUR VIEWS AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

TOP VIDEO Volume 1 Issue 9 November 2020 150

Rita Teotia,
Chairperson
FSSAI speaks
about rules and
regulations for
GM food crops

Scan the QR S K Malhotra, Feedback
Code  Agriculture
Scan the QR Commissioner, Informative articles
Code  Ministry of on Farm Bills
Scan the QR Agriculture
Code  informs about AgroSpectrum November issue on Farm
bio fortified Bills has provided very good information
Lentil about all the angles of farm bills. It is not
only useful for agriculture industry but
Sunil Kumar also for the consumers. Looking forward
Singh, Addl for many such informative and useful
Managing Director, articles.
NAFED speaks
about pulses Saumya Tawade, Pune
procurement and
MSP Interesting interview

Courtesy : IPGA Interview of Rajnikant rai, CEO, Agri
division ITC published in AGS November
issue, was an interesting read. It throws
light on upcoming activities of ITC like
e-Chaupal, which helps organising the
agri-supply chain. AGS should conduct
such type of interviews, which gives
industrial insights.

Malhar kajale, Nagpur

More focus on poultry

AGS should publish a special issue on
poultry industry, which is one of the
largest allied industry of agriculture.
New technologies and investment
activities in poultry industry should be
covered. Expert views on poultry sector
will be definitely useful for budding
entrepreneurs and industry.

Saurav Mukherjee, Delhi

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com POLICY NEWS 9

Gujarat Cabinet approves MIS for
launches ‘Kisan apple procurement in J&K
Suryoday
Yojana’ The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi,
approved the extension of Market Intervention Scheme (MIS)
Prime Minister Narendra for apple procurement in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) for the
Modi launched the Kisan current season also, for the 2020-21 period, on the same terms
Suryodaya Yojana to provide and condition as was done in J&K during last season of 2019-20.
16 hours of power supply to The procurement of apple will be done by National Agricultural
farmers in Gujarat. In order Cooperative Marketing Federation Ltd (NAFED), the Central
to provide day-time power Procuring Agency through the Directorate of Planning and
supply for irrigation, the Marketing, Department of Horticulture and the Jammu &
Gujarat Government under Kashmir Horticulture Processing and Marketing Corporation
Chief Minister Vijay Rupani (JKHPMC), directly from apple farmers of J&K and the payment
had recently announced the will be made through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) into the
‘Kisan Suryodaya Yojana’. Bank account of apple farmers. 12 LMT of
Under this scheme, farmers apples can be procured under this scheme.
will be able to avail power Government has also allowed NAFED
supply from 5 AM to 9 PM. to utilise Government Guarantee of
Dahod, Patan, Mahisagar, Rs 2,500 crore for this operation. It
Panchmahal, Chhota Udepur, will ensure remunerative prices for
Kheda, Tapi, Valsad, Anand apples resulting in overall income
and Gir-Somnath have been enhancement of farmers in J&K.
included under the Scheme for
2020-21. The state government Centre announces Rs 65,000
has allocated a budget of Cr fertilizer subsidy
Rs 3500 crore for installing
transmission infrastructure Close on the heels of agri reform Bills, the Centre has provided
under this scheme by 2023. another fillip to the Indian agriculture sector by announcing Rs
While speaking about Kisan 65,000 crore fertilizer subsidy to farmers. As part of the larger
Suryodaya Yojana the Prime economic stimulus package of Aatmanirbhar Bharat 3.0, this
Minister said, “Earlier most subsidy of fertilizers will directly help increase the supply of the
of the farmers used to receive same, ensuring adequate fertilizer availability in the upcoming
electricity for irrigation only crop seasons, as per a statement issued by Nirmala Sitharaman,
in the night and had to remain Finance Minister of India. 140 million farmers will be positively
awake all night. In Girnar and
Junagadh, farmers also face impacted by this subsidy. The
the problems of wild animals. growth in usage of fertilizer has
Under the Kisan Suryodaya been estimated at 17. 8 per cent over
Yojana farmers will get 3 phase
power supply from 5 AM to 9 the actual usage in 2019-20 of
PM.” 581 lakh metric tonnes. This
increase has been attributed
to favorable monsoons and
the subsequent increase in
sown area. The fertilizer use
is expected to be around 673

lakh metric tonnes
in 2020-21, as
opposed to the 499
lakh metric tonnes
in 2016-17.

10 P O L I C Y N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Kharif Centre approves 29
procurement farmer centric projects
operations hits
MSP value of Twenty-one projects under the Scheme for Integrated Cold Chain
Rs 54147.38 Cr and Value Addition were approved by Inter-Ministerial Approval
Committee (IMAC) meeting chaired by Narendra Singh Tomar,
In the ongoing Kharif Marketing Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, on November 10,
Season (KMS) 2020-21, 2020, leveraging investment worth Rs 443 crore and supported
Government continues to with a grant of Rs 189 crore. Eight projects leveraging investment
procure Kharif 2020-21 crops at worth Rs 62 crore with grants of Rs 15 crore under the BFL
its MSP from farmers as per its Scheme were approved in another meeting chaired by Tomar.
existing MSP schemes. Paddy Launched with the aim of benefiting farmers and consumers,
procurement for Kharif 2020- Tomar urged the officers to expedite the implementation of
21 is continuing smoothly in approved projects. It is estimated that the 21 projects are likely
the procuring States & UTs of to generate employment for nearly 12,600 people and benefit
Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, 2,00,592 farmers. The projects are spread across the 10 states of
Telangana, Uttarakhand, Tamil Andhra, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala,
Nadu, Chandigarh, Jammu & Nagaland, Punjab, Telangana, Uttarakhand, and Uttar Pradesh.
Kashmir, Kerala, Gujarat and The Scheme for Integrated Cold Chain and Value addition
Andhra Pradesh with purchase of infrastructure aims at arresting post-harvest losses.
over 286.79 lakh metric tonnes
(LMTs) of paddy upto November Kerala opens Indo-Dutch CoE
11, 2020 against the last year’s for vegetables and flowers
corresponding purchase of 241.78
LMT. Out of the total purchase An Indo-Dutch Centre of Excellence (CoE) for vegetables and
of 286.79 LMTs, Punjab alone flowers was inaugurated on November 5, 2020 in the Wayanad
has contributed 199.32 LMTs, district of Kerala. The Chief Minister of Kerala Pinarayi Vijayan
which is 69.41 per cent of total inaugurated the CoE in a virtual conclave. Union Minister
procurement. About 24.78 for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar
lakh farmers have already been
benefited from the ongoing KMS presided over the function. Narendra
procurement operations with Singh Tomar said “This centre will
MSP value of Rs 54147.38 crore. not only benefit Kerala but the entire
Approval for procurement of nation. This centre will mainly showcase
45.10 LMT of Pulse and Oilseeds the technological achievements of
of Kharif Marketing Season the Netherlands by activities such as
2020 has been granted for the production and distribution of quality
states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, planting materials and seeds to farmers.
Maharashtra, Telangana, Gujarat, It will showcase post-harvest handling,
Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, storage and marketing of produce for farmers. It will offer training
Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh programmes for officers for enhancing the income of farmers.” The
under Price Support Scheme CoE will be based in the Regional Agricultural Research Station
(PSS). of the Kerala Agricultural University at Ambalavayal in Wayanad
district, Kerala and was set up at a cost of Rs 13 crore.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com F I N A N C E N E W S 11

Rallis India Q2 revenue Coromandel
drops 3% despite strong International
domestic performance posts 17% rise in
profit in Q2 FY21
Rallis India Limited, a TATA Enterprise and a leading player
in the Indian agri-inputs industry, announced its financial Coromandel International
results for the quarter ended September 30, 2020. The company Limited, India's leading
witnessed a moderate quarter-ending with 3 per cent decrease agri solutions provider in
in revenues Year-over-Year (YOY), despite strong domestic Fertilizers, Crop Protection, Bio
performance. Crop Care grew by 8 per cent YOY and Seeds by 29 Pesticides, Specialty Nutrients,
per cent. However, international revenues were under pressure, among others, has released the
recording a decline of 29 per cent. Earnings Before Interest, financial results for the quarter
Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) margins were ended September 30, 2020.
stable. Sanjiv Lal, Managing Director and CEO, Rallis India said, The company's consolidated
“Gradual return to normalcy and a good monsoon season have total income stood at Rs 4,620
led to a favourable momentum for agricultural activities. Even crore in comparison to the
though we are now in the ‘Unlock corresponding quarter last
phase’, we continue to prioritise year, which was Rs 4,867
the safety and wellbeing of our crore. EBITDA for the quarter
employees. Strong operating ended September 2020 has
discipline resulted in improved grown by 18 per cent to Rs
cash from operating activities. 845 crore, as compared
Despite COVID challenges, our to Rs 713 crore during the
capex programme and focus corresponding quarter of last
on new product introduction year. Consolidated net profit
remain on course.” after tax for the quarter is
Rs 589 crore, in comparison
Bayer Crop Science sales with Rs 504 crore for the
drops 11.6% in Q3 2020 corresponding quarter last
year, registering a Year-
Bayer’s agricultural business, Crop Science reported a decline in over-Year (YOY) growth of
sales by 11.6 per cent to 3.028 billion euros. Business was down 17 per cent. For the half year
in North America in particular, while sales increased in the Asia/ ended September 2020, the
Pacific region. Global sales at Corn Seed & Traits fell by 39.9 per company's standalone total
cent, with substantial declines in North America, in particular, income is Rs 7,828 crore, while
due to higher product returns and lower license revenues arising the same for 2019 was Rs 7,007
crore. EBITDA is Rs 1,250
from lower than anticipated planted acreages for crore, which has grown by 38
corn this year. At Herbicides, sales per cent in comparison to half
declined by 12.7 per cent year ended September 2019 Rs
against the strong quarter 908 crore.
in the previous year.
EBITDA before special
items at Crop Science decreased to
minus 34 million euros (Q3 2019: plus

500 million euros). The decline was mainly due to the decrease
in sales in North America, which was primarily attributable to
the developments relating to product returns. There was also a
negative currency effect of 123 million euros.

12 F I N A N C E N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

GSFC profit in Q2 BoB, Mahindra &
2020 soars 205% Mahindra sign MoU to
provide tractor finance
The Gujarat State Fertilisers and Chemicals
Limited (GSFC) has posted a net profit of To boost agriculture finance, state-owned Bank of
Rs 171 crore in the second quarter ended Baroda (BoB) announced that it has entered into
September 30, 2020 as compared to Rs 56 an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with
crore in the corresponding quarter in 2019, Mahindra & Mahindra to venture into the tractor
finance business. The lender, through its over 5,000
denoting a rise of 205 per cent. rural and semi-urban branch network, will provide
Fertilizer sales volume grew by tractor loan facility to customers of Mahindra &
10 per cent in H1FY20-21 as Mahindra. Vikramaditya Singh Khichi, Executive
compared to H1FY19-20, whereas Director, Bank of Baroda said, “This MoU will give
profit before tax grew from Rs 63 a boost to agri-business and will help farmers in
crore to Rs 216 crore. There was availing hassle-free credit facilities for buying
a substantial improvement in the tractors”. He also added that the tractor financing
EPS as it grew from Rs 1.40/ share scheme was first piloted in the UP zone for a year,
to Rs 4.29/ share as compared to which was successful. This is being expanded into
the same quarter last year. GSFC 11 zones of the bank. The bank has tied up with
stopped purchasing finished Gromax, which comes under
fertilizers, except urea (imported the Mahindra stable as the
preferred brand. Besides,
by Government of India) and Khichi said, the bank is
Muriate of Potash (MOP) (where focusing on dairy sector
there is no option but to import). Reduction self-help groups and
in raw materials consumption expenditure, farmer producer
despite an increase in sales by 10 per cent in organisations for
volume in H1 of FY 20-21 as compared to H1 expanding the
of FY19-20 and lower price of natural gas and agriculture finance
more efficient management of resources have portfolio.
also played a major part in GSFC’s financial
results.

Insecticides India reports a decline of
9.4% in profit in Q2 FY21

Insecticides India Limited has recorded revenue moisture and improving agricultural activity
from operations of Rs 456 crore in Q2FY21, on one hand, but uneven and excess rainfall in
representing a decline of 9.4 per cent on a certain parts of India. This has also led to lower
Year-on-Year (Y-oY) basis. The company
delivered EBITDA of Rs 58 crore in pest infestation and reduced frequency of
Q2FY21, with margins of 12.7 per cent. Net sprays during the quarter.” During the first
profit for the year was Rs 41 crore, with half, the company has generated robust cash
margins of 9 per cent. Commenting on the from operations of Rs 156 crore and it has
performance, Rajesh Agarwal, Managing also reduced out total debt by Rs 128 crore.
Director, said, “Second quarter of the The company is now cash surplus with cash
fiscal year had a varied experience for the and cash equivalents of Rs 80 crore, at end
agriculture and agrochemicals sector, the of September 2020. In light of strong cash
quarter was marked with normal monsoon flows, Board of Directors has recommended
on an average, resulting in adequate soil interim dividend of 20 per cent on face value
i.e. Rs 2 per share.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com L I V E S TO C K N E W S 13

Gokul launches UHT milk
with six months of shelf life

Gokul, one of the largest selling packaged milk and a huge cosmopolitan
its derivative brands in Maharashtra, has recently
launched Gokul Select (Ultra High Temperature population with
Treated) Tetra Pack milk with six months of
shelf life in Mumbai, to facilitate consumers. buying behaviour
Available in easy to open one litre pack, Gokul
Select can be stored at room temperature safely shifting towards
for consumption within six months. This will help
consumers reduce the number of visits to milk Tetra Pack milk due
vendors or dairy stores to buy milk and add to
public safety amidst the pandemic, with regard to to high shelf life,
social distancing. "Mumbai market is big and has
easy to use and

gives the customer

opportunity to stock the product for monthly

supply,” said Ravindra Apte, Chairman, Kolhapur

Zilla Sahakari Dudh Utpadak Sangh Ltd, the

producer of Gokul brand Tetra Pack milk.

Mother Dairy NABARD to aid
expands its milk Kerala to set up milk
range sales in powder factory
Madhya Pradesh
Kerala is all set to get a state-of-the-art milk
Mother Dairy, a subsidiary of the National powder factory, at a time when the state dairy
Dairy Development Board (NDDB), has sector has faced grave crisis due to a dip in milk
announced the launch of its milk sales consumption after the outbreak of the COVID-19
operations in Bhopal, the city of lakes. After pandemic. K Raju, State Forest and Dairy
Indore, Gwalior and Jabalpur, the company Development Minister, said that it had been
has forayed in the city of Bhopal as part of decided, in principle, to form the multi-crore
its expansion strategy in the state of Madhya facility in association with the National Bank for
Pradesh. Mother Dairy milk is currently Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
available across more than 100 cities across The Rs 53.93 crore facility would be set up in
the country. It is introducing four milk northern Malappuram district, under MILMA's
variants namely Full Cream Milk, Double (popular name for the Kerala Cooperative Milk
Toned Milk, Super T milk and India’s largest Marketing Federation), Malabar Regional union
selling Cow Milk variant. The range will be using NABARD's infrastructure investment
made available across 1500 outlets spread fund. "There was a major crisis due to lower
milk consumption during the time of COVID-19
across the city, which will be pandemic. In this backdrop, the idea of having
further strengthened to 2500 an own milk powder production factory was
outlets. For its milk supply in conceived on the instructions of Chief Minister
the state of Madhya Pradesh, Pinarayi Vijayan," revealed an official statement.
Mother Dairy sources raw
milk from farmer-centric
institutions situated in and
around the state, which are
processed and hygienically
packed in associated plants in
Dewas and Morena.

14 L I V E S TO C K N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

NDS develops CIBA to set up
indigenous bovine sex multi-species
sorting technology fish hatchery in
Kerala
NDDB Dairy Services (NDS), a wholly-owned
subsidiary of National Dairy Development Board Chennai-headquartered Indian Council
(NDDB), has announced an indigenous technology of Agricultural Research-Central Institute
for sex sorting bovine sperms that will ensure the of Brackish water Aquaculture (ICAR-
birth of female calves. The first female calf from CIBA) has partnered with the Fisheries
sex sorted semen dose produced at Alamadhi Department in Kerala to set up a multi-
Semen Station was born in a farm near Chennai species fish hatchery under the aegis of
in October, 2020. This was the results of the field the government to increase brackish water
trials conducted by NDS in partnership with Jiva fish production in the state. An MoU was
Sciences, a Bangalore-based R&D organization, signed between CIBA and Agency for
to ascertain the performance of the product under Development of Aquaculture (ADAK) of the
actual field conditions are encouraging. The Kerala government to set up the hatchery at
ability to assure the birth of only female calves Odayam in Thiruvananthapuram district,
provides huge financial advantage to dairy farmers following the initiatives taken by Fisheries
as the economic utility of a male calf is negligible. Minister J Mercykutty Amma. CIBA will
The current technologies for the sex sorting of provide scientific and technical support
bovine sperms was earlier proprietary to a few to the government for developing captive
multi-national companies, which made it difficult breeding and seed production technology
for dairy farmers to access the technology due to of commercially important brackish water
its high pricing. fishes Asian sea bass, milk fish and Kerala's
state fish, pearl spot. The hatchery will
target seed production of these species
throughout the season, enabling continuous
seed production. This would also enhance
the livelihood generation during every step
of the fish production process.

FreshToHome secures $121M in funding from ICD

FreshToHome, an online brand in fresh fish the Government of Dubai, while Investcorp is a
global manager of alternative investments. Shan
and meat e-commerce, announced that it Kadavil, co-founder and CEO of FreshToHome
said, “COVID-19 has transformed the fish and meat
has raised $ 121 million in a funding round purchasing behaviour of consumers dramatically
and due to safety concerns, consumers have made
l e d by Investment Corporation of the habit-forming shift to e-commerce”. He also
added that online demand for their products went
Dubai, Investcorp, Ascent up many folds this year. Kadavil concluded that
the current raising of capital will help the company
Capital, The U.S. International realise the full potential through rapid expansion
in India and the Middle East.
Development Finance

Corporation (DFC) and Allana

Group, with Barclays acting

as advisor for the transaction.

Investment Corporation of Dubai

(ICD) is the principal investment arm of

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com S TA RT U P  N E W S 15

Ninjacart secures funding from
Walmart and Flipkart

Ninjacart, the B2B agri-marketplace, has raised grows its Supermart
money in a follow-on round of funding from US (grocery) and Flipkart
retail giant Walmart Inc and Flipkart, its Indian Quick (hyperlocal
e-commerce arm. The company will utilize the capital business). Ninjacart
to expand to new markets and build new offerings has secured more than
and supply chains for emerging customer segments. $150 million so far overall. Other investors in the
"The e-grocery market in India has seen tremendous company include venture capital firms Accel, US-
growth over the past several months as people have based Qualcomm Ventures, Russia’s HR Capital,
increasingly taken to ordering groceries and fresh Japanese venture capital firm-cum-accelerator
produce online," said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO Mistletoe, Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani’s
at Flipkart Group. The company will continue to NRJN Trust and South Korea-based Neoplux, the
play a key role in providing fresh produce as Flipkart venture arm of Doosan Corp.

CropData launches GramworkX develops
Blockchain & AI IoT & AI enabled
powered e-marketplace smart farm resource
management tool
Indian agri-tech startup CropData
Technology Private Ltd has recently built Bangalore-based GramworkX has developed
an e-marketplace, using the capabilities of an Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial
Microsoft Azure, to empower farmers in intelligence (AI)-enabled smart farm resource
the country. The startup is helping small management tool, which helps the farmers guide,
farmers improve their yields and sell directly optimize and monitor utilization of water. This
to buyers by utilizing new-age technologies company is actively involved in changing the
like Blockchain and AI-enabled Cloud. landscape of agriculture through modern farming
The Nagpur, Maharashtra-based company methodologies and application of cutting-
has just launched a blockchain-enabled edge technology. The technology includes the
e-marketplace for Indian farmers to sell GramworkX unique machine learning algorithm,
their produce directly to end buyers in open which provides micro-climatic condition
auctions, in partnership with UAE’s Dubai predictions for the farmer to make accurate and
Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC). proactive decisions. This methodology provides
Sachin Suri, Managing Director, CropData, a 20-30 per cent yield improvement, by enabling
said in a Microsoft blog, “Till now, farmers precision agriculture leading to water
in India had to wait till their crops were savings. Additionally, remote control and
harvested to get a sense of the income they’d automation help to manage farms from
make or they could go for advanced trading anywhere, anytime. The GramworkX
on an individual basis that relies mostly on IOT device continuously monitors
guesswork. We have converted that into a key parameters in the field such as
scientific trade to help farmers get a better Temperature, Pressure, Humidity and
price on advance trading.” Rainfall. This information is provided
to the farmers in real-time via the
GramworkX — Kisan App. GramworkX
was founded in 2019 helps in precision
farming by integrating field data,
weather patterns, and crop information
to drive agronomic advice to farmers.

16 S TA RT U P  N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Origo raises Rockstart, Navus
Rs 35 Cr debt ventures invests €500K
from Northern in MoooFarm
Arc Capital
Rockstart, a global accelerator-
Agritech supply chain and VC has announced that one of its
trade finance firm Origo has portfolio companies, MoooFarm
recently raised Rs 35 crore Agritech startup based in Delhi, has
debt from Northern Arc raised €500k in pre-seed funding.
Capital and other investors. The round was led by Navus
Origo provides end-to-end Ventures, a Dutch investment
agriculture supply chain fund, with Rockstart as co-investor.
solutions such as procurement, MoooFarm is part of the Rockstart
storage, and financing. AgriFood 2020 batch and has
Origo group firms Origo managed to raise this investment only four months into the
Commodities and Origo programme. The startup plans to use the funding to strengthen
Finance, will use the fund for their product-market fit and hire key technology talent to launch
securitizing the agricultural new services to farmers. MoooFarm is an agritech startup working
markets and streamlining in India to build sustainable, inclusive, efficient, and nutritious
the supply chain mechanism food systems for 75 million dairy farmers and over 1 billion
for agri produce in India, as consumers. It is disrupting the €101 billion ($120 billion) Indian
per a statement issued by the dairy industry through its mobile application. Using an Uber-like
company. Origo Commodities model, the mobile application allows farmers to connect virtually
India (OCI) has raised Rs and schedule physical visits with veterinarians and artificial
15 crore from Northern Arc insemination technicians. It has helped 23,000 dairy farmers
while Origo Finance raised Rs increase their daily milk yield.
20 crore for development of
micro-lending avenues and TeleSense secures
agri supply chain financing. $10.2M in Series B round
The funding will help Origo
to improve agri processes, US-based grain monitoring startup TeleSense, has announced
warehousing, and accessibility the close of a $10.2 million Series B round of financing led by
to lakhs of Indian farmers existing investor Finistere Ventures, an agri and food investment
who are in dire need of pioneer. The company also added Soren Wolck Schroder, former
tech-enabled services in the CEO of Bunge, and Mark Palmquist, CEO of United Malt and
country. Sunoor Kaul, co- former CEO of GrainCorp, to its Board of Directors. TeleSense
founder of Origo Commodities, is creating a digital global grain supply chain that uses data to
said, 'Through the support combat grain spoilage, making the supply chain more sustainable
of Northern Arc and other and saving companies billions of dollars in lost grain along the
financial partners, we aim to way. A powerful mix of new investors and industry leaders with
serve the agri ecosystem by global reach, including Fulcrum Global Capital (FGC), UPL Ltd.,
providing solutions that can Artesian and Mindset Ventures, as well as existing investors
take care of all commodity
needs for procurement, such as Rabobank’s Food & Agri Innovation Fund
financing and warehousing.' also joined the round. Schroder and Palmquist
will now actively support the company’s aggressive

growth plans by sharing
their extensive expertise
and making connections
throughout their global
grain networks.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 17

COVER STORY SECTOR IN
FOCUS

The impact of COVID-19 on Indian economy is as devastating
as it is on the rest of the world. Disruption of demand
and supply chain of agricultural commodity like fish and
seafood products for the prolonged nation-wide lockdown
has directly affect 14.5 million people associated with the
sector. The scale at which this pandemic has caused damage
to this trade is immeasurable with exports slipping down
drastically, production, distribution and marketing of inland
fisheries coming to a halt and seed supply scoring an almost
zero due to lack in demand. As per the Central Institute of
Fisheries Technology (CIFT), the monthly loss for the sector is
estimated to be about Rs 6,838 crore, with Gujarat — the No. 1
state with 7.8 lakh tonnes marine seafood production in 2018
— have been hit severely. However, experts from the industry
feel that now the inimical phase has passed by and it is time
to rebuild this sector. AgroSpectrum analysis the ongoing
trade situation and speak to some stalwarts of this trade get
the clear picture on the necessary strides needed to get this
business back on track.

18 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

The pandemic COVID-19 has devoured concurrently, fishing ban season also started
many businesses and trades across the from July 15 and continued till June 15, in east
globe and its tremours could be felt coast. For the west coast, it began from June 1
on global seafood trade as well. The till July 31. All this accounted for loss of trade
virus has squeesed out demand and supply to an of around 75 days in east and 130 days in west
extent that it has caused the economic meltdown. coast. Apart from that, when the lockdown was
Like other countries, India’s trade sector is also announced there were fishermen and big seafood
suffering from the repercussions of the ongoing companies, who had already ventured into the
economic crisis, especially the seafood sector, sea but while returning, they were surprised as
which is in its dire state. they couldn’t monetise their catch due to the
lock down. Since there was no movement of
As per CIFT, the fisheries sector contributed the catch, many seafood processing units had
about Rs 1.75 lakh crore to Gross Value Added in to close their operations resulting a heavy dent
2017-18. Marine products are the most important on the supply chain. Abhay Hanjura, Founder,
agricultural commodity exported, accounting for Licious stated, “During the initial stage of
close to $6.7 billion, growing more than 10 per lockdown, there was a strict ban on fishing. This
cent per year. In 2018-19 India’s fish production resulted in lack of availability of raw material
was 13.34 million metric tonnes, which was for processing. Fishing and fisheries activities
about six per cent greater than the previous year. were finally exempted from the restrictions and
Whereas seafood export is concerned, it is the remain operational during the later stages of
fourth biggest exporter in the world and in 2018, lockdown, but the adverse situations aroused like
India exported 13,77,244 tonnes seafood, which unavailability of fishing accessories had made the
fetched $7.08 billion. The data retrieved from sector difficult to thrive.”
Marine Products Development Authority and
Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence Highlighting another element due to which
and Statistics (MPEDA, 2020; DGCI&S, 2020) seafood sector witnessed huge slump, Ganesh
shows that, India exported seafood worth Rs Nakhawa, Chairman, West Coast Purse Seine
44368.44 crore ($6.72 billion) with a volume of Fishing Welfare Association stated, “Another
13.92 lakh tonnes during the year 2019, which important reason for the shortfall in the trade
includes fish, crustaceans, molluscs and other is closure of restaurants across the globe. Even
aquatic invertebrates. The export pattern has though the supply chain was lingering during
shown an increasing trend with a growth rate of lockdown but restaurants in their nonfunctioning
1.1 per cent quantity-wise and 3.28 per cent value mode were adding pain to the agony. Now despite
wise. Frozen shrimp is the major exported item in restaurants are in their full operational mode,
the seafood trade basket both quantity and value people are still reluctant to eat out and this is
wise followed by the frozen fish, frozen cuttlefish, not helping trade to make for the losses during
frozen squid, dried items, chilled items, live items lockdown.”
and others.
The processing capacity and output have
The seafood exports have been on a path of decreased due to the reduction in the workforce
exponential growth, over the years. The marine with the exodus of migrant labourers. The
products are currently exported from India to primary impact of COVID-19 on seafood trade
more than 100 countries. The country has vast is felt due to the disruption of the fish supply
resources in the form of coastline and pristine chain leads to a reduction in the unavailability of
quality waters with abundant fishery resources seafood products, which significantly reduced the
to promote culture as well as capture fisheries for seafood export.
safe and sustainable fishery production.
Government initiatives
When the pandemic hit the nation, it was
an alarming sign for everyone including the Looking at the potential of this sector, the
Government of India and this resulted in Government of India has decided for introducing
a massive country wide lockdown starting a comprehensive and integrated ‘National
from March 23, 2020. As a part of lockdown, Fisheries Policy, 2020’ on September 15, 2020
fisherman and big traders in this business by integrating the National Policy on Marine
were not allowed to venture into the sea and Fisheries, 2017 (NPMF), the Draft National

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 19

Inland Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy (NIFAP) (KCC) to fishers and fish farmers to help them in
and the Draft National Mariculture Policy (NMP) meeting their working capital needs.
along with the elements of Post Harvest.
During these inimical times when every
The Guidelines for regulating Coastal business is going through a lull phase, Ministry
Aquaculture appended to the Coastal Aquaculture of Finance recently cleared a stimulus package of
Authority Rules, 2005 under the Coastal worth Rs 20,050 crore under PMMSY to double
Aquaculture Authority Act, 2005 provides various fishers, fish farmers and fish workers incomes
measures, which inter alia include environment by 2024. This package provided a much needed
impact assessment, environment monitoring relief to the people associated with this sector.
and management plan, waste water management Of the total investment under this package, the
and integrated coastal zone management in central share would be Rs 9,407 crore, the state
order to address the environmental issues and to share of Rs 4,880 crore and beneficiaries' share
ensure environmentally responsible and socially of Rs 5,763 crore, an official statement said.
accepted aquaculture in coastal areas.
The scheme is aimed at contemporary
On September 10, 2020, Prime Minister infrastructure that includes solidification and
Narendra Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri upgradation of the value chain to improve the
Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) at an availability of certified quality fish seed and
estimated investment of Rs 20,050 crore for a feed, traceability in fish and including effective
period of five years, i.e., from 2020-21 to 2024- aquatic health management. While making the
25. PMMSY aims to achieve fish production to announcement about the package, Nirmala
22 million metric tonnes (MMT) by 2024-25 Sitharaman, Finance Minister, Government
and also to create an additional employment of India, stated, “With this package, we are
opportunity to about 55 lakh people. expecting to generate 5.5 million employment,
which will eventually double India’s export
The new scheme provides thrust for infusing to around Rs one trillion. It will bring better
new and emerging technologies in fisheries standards and traceability, new fishing vessels
and aquaculture to enhance production can be given to fishermen, new fishing harbours
and productivity, welfare of fishers and fish can be made available. Fishermen don’t go to
farmers, creating a conducive environment for the sea during a particular period. They can get
private sector participation, development of assistance for that period. Personnel and boat
entrepreneurship, promotion of ease of doing insurance will also be provided. This will lead
business, innovations and innovative project to additional fish production of 700,000 tonnes
activities including start-ups, incubators etc. over the next five years.”
In addition, the Fisheries and Aquaculture
Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF), which This recently floated scheme is focused at
was started in 2018-19 Rs 7,522.48 crore will bringing about Blue Revolution with the help
also cater to creation of fisheries infrastructure of supportable and accountable expansion of
facilities both in marine and inland fisheries fisheries sector in India under two components
sectors to augment the fish production in the - Central Sector Scheme (CS) and Centrally
country. Besides, the Government has also Sponsored Scheme (CSS).
extended to facilities of Kissan Credit Cards

20 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Separate Ministry for Fisheries to enhance growth rate

The fisheries sector is major source of livelihood for over 1.60 crore people along with double
the number in down and upstream. Development of fisheries can ensure nutritional security, food
security of India and also provide employment in these regions that are predominately inhabited by
rural populace.

The government of India has given the due importance to fisheries sector by creating a separate
Ministry for it. Fisheries sector will play a crucial role in the doubling of farmers’ income. The
Ministry of Fisheries, will strive to further increase this 14 per cent growth rate in inland fisheries
and are working towards creating more awareness among the State governments and the people.

The total fish production of 12.59 million metric tonnes was registered during 2017-18 with a
contribution of 8.90 million metric tonnes from inland sector and 3.69 million metric tonnes from
marine sector. The average growth in fish production during 2017-18 stands at 10.14 per cent when
compared to 2016-17 (11.43 million metric tonnes). This is mainly due to 14.05 per cent growth in
Inland fisheries when compared to 2016-17 (7.80 million metric tonnes). India is currently world’s
second largest producers of fish. It is also world number two in aquaculture production as well as in
inland capture fisheries.

The percentage contribution of inland fish production in the total fish production of 29 per cent
during the year 1950-51 and has increased to 71 per cent in the year 2017-18. Andhra Pradesh has
recorded the highest production of inland fish (34.50 lakh tonnes) whereas Gujarat is the leading
state in marine fish (7.01 lakh tonnes) in the country. Total registered fishing vessels and fishing
crafts in coastal states/union territories was 2, 69, 047 as on July 31, 2019.

There has been steady growth in the export of fish and fish products over the period. Efforts
are being made to boost the export potential through diversification of products for export. During
2017-18 the volume of fish and fish products exported was 13,77,243.70 tonnes worth Rs 45,106.90
crore. The export of Marine Fish products has registered growth of 21.35 per cent (Quantity) and
19.11 per cent (Value) during the year 2017-18.

Source: Handbook on Fisheries Statistics – 2018

Blue Revolution The utilization of the water resources for the
development of fisheries was done by the Neel
Blue Revolution popularly known as Kranti Mission in a sustainable manner.
‘Neel Kranti Mission’ was introduced by the
government of India in 1985-1990 as a part of Now Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers
7th Five Year plan with the core objectives of Welfare has collaborated with the Department
develop, manage, and promote fisheries to double of Animal Husbandry, Dairying & Fisheries to
the farmers’ income. Later, in 8th five year chalk out new plans to be installed in this scheme
plan (1992-97), the Intensive Marine Fisheries in order to give new 2.0 version to the ongoing
Programme was launched, and eventually, the scheme. The government has already imbedded
fishing harbours in Vishakhapatnam, Kochi, all the schemes of fisheries sector into the single
Tuticorin, Porbandar, and Port Blair were also umbrella of ‘Blue Revolution’.
established over the time.
With an aim to enhance the production and
The Neel Kranti Mission aimed to enhance productivity of aquaculture and fisheries, Blue
the economic condition of India through the Revolution will also encourage economically
augmentation of fisheries and thus contributing backward sections such as Scheduled Castes,
towards the food and nutritional security. Scheduled Tribes, Women etc. to adopt fishing
business to earn their livelihood.
There are about 1212 marine product
exporters listed with Marine Products The Union Finance Minister also stated that
Development Authority (MPEDA) 2017. the centre is all committed to usher a new Blue
Revolution to further strengthen and support
the fisheries sector. She also stretched that
the lesson learnt from the previous revolution

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 21

Top Aquaculture Companies in India “During the initial stage of
by Market Capitalization (BSE) lockdown, there was a strict ban
on fishing. This resulted in lack
Company Name............. Market Cap of availability of raw material
(Rs crore) for processing. Fishing and
Avanti Feeds................................7,084.77 fisheries activities were finally
Apex Frozen.................................... 918.59 exempted from the restrictions
Waterbase....................................... 449.27 and remain operational during
Coastal Corp...................................... 168.8 the later stages of lockdown, but
Zeal Aqua.......................................... 78.16 the adverse situations aroused
Shantanu Sheo.................................... 3.56 like unavailability of fishing accessories had made
the sector difficult to thrive.”
Source: moneycontrol.com - Abhay Hanjura, Founder, Licious

(1987-1997) will be implemented in the newer “Even though the supply
version, otherwise the entire new concept will chain was lingering during
stand obsolete. India, which is way behind China lockdown but restaurants in
(60 million tonnes per annum) in aquaculture their nonfunctioning mode were
production has the potential to upstage China adding pain to the agony. Now
with its long costal line. Though China has almost despite restaurants are in their
double costal line and inland water sources and full operational mode, people are
reservoirs as compared to India, that doesn’t hold still reluctant to eat out and this
India to ramp up its production because it has is not helping trade to make for
the largest Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) areas the losses during lockdown.”
of over 2 million sq km compared to China’s 0.88 - Ganesh Nakhawa, Chairman, West Coast Purse
million sq km. Seine Fishing Welfare Association

“It is very important to revamp the EEZ by “It is very important to revamp
installing new schemes and systems into it. the EEZ by installing new
EEZ also calls for large-scale deployment of schemes and systems into
offshore aquaculture activities of high value it. EEZ also calls for large-
species. Apart from that, we need to also focus scale deployment of offshore
on ocean ranching to get us fruitful results in aquaculture activities of high
future and that to without causing any harm to value species. Apart from that,
the ecosystem. India also needs a single uniform we need to also focus on ocean
national data on marine fisheries because ranching to get us fruitful results
authentic data truly reflect ground realities, in future and that to without
which in turn help in efficient planning for the causing any harm to the ecosystem. India also
future,” opined Supratim Chowdhury, associate needs a single uniform national data on marine
professor at West Bengal University of Animal & fisheries because authentic data truly reflect
Fishery Sciences. ground realities, which in turn help in efficient
planning for the future.”
The new Blue Revolution will also link the - Supratim Chowdhury, associate professor, West
‘Sagarmala Project’ of the Mahatma Gandhi Bengal University of Animal & Fishery Sciences
National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme
(MGNAREGA), Ministry of Shipping and also “If we talk about the gaps of
to National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM), Indian ports as compared
Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY), etc. to their global counterparts
there is still a scope for further
Sagarmala - Developing coastline improvement. For example,
Turnaround time (TAT) at some
Sagarmala is an initiative, which was approved of the major ports is 2.5 days
by the Union Cabinet on March 25, 2015. As part of in 2018-19 whereas, the global
the programme, a National Perspective Plan (NPP) mark is two days, so there is
for the comprehensive development of India’s still a need to churn up wheels
faster. However, there are some
private ports such as Mundra and Gangavaram in
India that have achieved this target of two days so
this clearly indicates that we have the potential to
match international levels.”
- BK Mishra, Managing Director, National
Federation of Fishers Cooperatives

22 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

India celebrates ‘World Fisheries Day’ on November 21

The Department of Fisheries, Ministry of The Minister of State for Micro, Small &
Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Medium Enterprises and Fisheries, Animal
Government of India celebrated the ‘World Husbandry and Dairying, Pratap Chandra
Fisheries Day’ on November 21 to demonstrate Sarangi addressing at the celebration of the
solidarity with all fisherfolk, fish farmers and World Fisheries Day-2020, in New Delhi
concerned stakeholders throughout the world. on November 21, 2020. The Secretary,
It started in 1997 where “World Forum of Fish Department of Fisheries, Dr Rajeev Ranjan
Harvesters & Fish Workers” met at New Delhi and other dignitaries are also seen.
leading to formation of “World Fisheries Forum”
with representatives from 18 countries and signed to the socio-economic growth of the country.
a declaration advocating for a global mandate Sarangi said that this sector is responsible
of sustainable fishing practices and policies. for providing nutritional security, livelihood
The event aims to draw attention to overfishing, support and employment to millions of Indians.
habitat destruction and other serious threats It is estimated that the world’s population will
to the sustainability of our marine and inland exceed 9 billion by 2050. With the increase in the
resources. The celebrations serve to focus on population, the demand for nutritional security
changing the way the world manages global also goes on parallel lines. The agriculture and the
fisheries to ensure sustainable stocks and healthy allied sectors have to contribute the food demand
ecosystems.

Addressing the gathering, the Minister of State
for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying,
Pratap Chandra Sarangi, said that World Fisheries
Day is our way of thinking globally and acting
locally as we reach out to our fisher communities
through local events. He said that through
this event we send a message to our fishers, to
our nation and to the world that fisheries is an
important sector that contributes immensely

7,500 km coastline, 14,500 km of potentially and this is because of poor infrastructure and
navigable waterways and maritime sector has been lack of machinery. Although over the years,
prepared, which was released by the Narendra operational efficiencies of Indian ports have
Modi, Prime Minister, India, on April 14, 2016 improved but they still lack behind as per the
at the Maritime India Summit 2016. As per the global standards.
Sagarmala Programme, government of India
has identified 577 projects that will go through BK Mishra, Managing Director, National
various stages of development such as across Federation of Fishers Cooperatives stated,
port modernisation and new port development, “If we talk about the gaps of Indian ports as
port connectivity enhancement, port-linked compared to their global counterparts there
coastal economic zone industrialization and is still a scope for further improvement. For
coastal community development for phase wise example, Turnaround time (TAT) at some of the
implementation over the period 2015 to 2035. The major ports is 2.5 days in 2018-19 whereas, the
government has estimated to invest around $9.2 global mark is two days, so there is still a need to
billion in these projects. churn up wheels faster. However, there are some
private ports such as Mundra and Gangavaram in
The programme was crafted in order to India that have achieved this target of two days
increase ports at India’s coastline which will so this clearly indicates that we have the potential
initially increase fisheries and aqua business of to match international levels.”
the country. Currently, Indian ports faced lot of
issues while conducting their regular operations Owing to the recent lockdown due to
pandemic, logistics have become one major

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 23

and supply will play an important role combined fishermen and other people associated in this
with other food sectors to meet the nutritional sector. Let us celebrate this ‘World Fisheries Day’
demands of the growing population. to highlight and protect the life and livelihoods of
fishing communities, sustainable fish stocks and
The Minister of State further said that healthy ecosystems in India.
the marine capture fisheries of our country
has become stagnant and there is a paradigm During the event, for the first time in
shift from capture to culture based fisheries. Fisheries Sector the Government of India
Aquaculture activities have to be taken up in India awarded best performing States for 2019-20
as the alternative way of meeting the growing namely, Odisha (amongst Marine states), Uttar
demand of nutritional security. Pradesh (amongst Inland states) and Assam
(amongst Hilly and NE states). The Centre also
Pratap Chandra Sarangi said that the awarded best Organisations for 2019-20 [Tamil
fisheries sector is extremely diverse and quite Nadu Fisheries Development Corporation
dynamic. There is a need to streamline policies Ltd. (for Marine); Telangana State Fishermen
and programmes to take R&D benefits to the Cooperative societies Federation Ltd (for Inland),
farmers and fishers for orderly and sustainable and Assam Apex Cooperative Fish Marketing
utilisation of all potential resources with focus on and Processing Federation Ltd. (for Hilly
increasing efficiency and reducing environmental region)]; Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh as
footprint. We need to diligently explore the best Marine District; Kalahandi, Odisha as best
resources available in the country such as Inland District; Nagaon, Assam as Best Hilly
waterlogged area, wetlands, lakes, reservoirs, and NE District. Besides, awards were given
canals, ponds, tanks, floodplains, backwaters, to best Fisheries Enterprise; best performing
lagoons, low saline inland areas for increasing Fisheries Cooperative Societies/FFPOs/SSG
the fish production. and best Individual entrepreneurs; best Marine
and Inland Fish Farmer; and best Finfish and
Lastly, he appealed to all the dignitaries Shrimp hatcheries as well, in recognition to
present at the occasion to provide as much their accomplishments in the field and their
support as possible for the development of this contribution into the growth of the sector.
sector, to increase fish production and in turn
improving the socio-economic conditions of the

problem to move the cargo from the ports. Strengthening through Blue Economy
Developing ports will not only going to solve
logistical problem but it will also reduce the Blue Economy of the country is basically
logistical cost drastically. Around 87 per cent derived from the trade of marine resources that
of the Indian freight uses either road or rail include fisheries, deep sea mining and offshore
transport for goods. A significant share of this oil and gas. Currently, the Blue Economy
cargo experiences “idle time” during its transit to contributes around 4 per cent of India’s
the ports due to capacity constraints on highways economy as per the data released by Finance
and railway lines connecting ports to production Ministry, Government of India in 2019. Now the
and consumption centers. With the construction government is aiming to increase the percentage
of these ports, the cargo can be moved from one by focusing more on Blue Economy.
port to another relevant port and then can be
transported to the nearest production centres. During a summit January 2020, M Rajeevan,
Waterborne transport provides an environment, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences stated,
which is cheaper, cleaner and safer compared to “When we look at Blue Economy’s contribution to
other modes but unfortunately, it accounts for the country’s economy, it seems too less but
less than 6 per cent in India. By adding new ports one needs to also note that there are lot of
along the Indian coastline, the government also activities relating to Blue Economy that go
wants to promote water transport as one of the unreported.”
key logistical modes in the country.
To further harness economic growth of Blue
Economy, government is increasing its defence
corridors in the India Ocean Region, which forms

24 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

10 Most Promising Seafood Companies – 2019

Name Description
BMR Groups
Complying with industry specific standards like BAP, BRC, HACCP, and others
C Shore to globally provide inhouse grown shrimps fed with high protein nutrition and no
Foods antibiotics
Goldmarine
Exports One of the biggest supplier of high quality frozen seafood rendering a majority of
Hook Catch the food service industry with timely, cost effective and uninterrupted supplies

Jeelani One of the biggest exporter of an array of high quality fresh and live seafood
Marine products to countries in the Middle East, Far East, South East Asia and South Asia
Products
Kings Infra An internationally certified seafood company offering a large range of quality
Ventures seafood products to the Indian market without compromising on hygiene
Megaa Moda standards

Pearl Coast One of the leading suppliers of quality Sea-Caught & Aquaculture products in
Marine Foods India that caters to the domestic and international market requirements

Wiser Foods A 60-year old seafoood company specializing in Seafood Processing & Aquaculture
by adopting technology backed, ecofriendly, and industry best practices
Zeal Aqua
An internationally certified seafood company acting as a 100 percent exporter of
frozen seafood that speaks of quality and hygiene

Upholding the quality, offers a wide range of seafood products from unpolluted
Indian waters specializing in all Seafood like Shrimps, Lobster, Cephalopods
(Squid, Cuttle fish & Octopus), Clams, Crabs Mussels and Fishes in Block Frozen,
IQF and cooked forms

A young seafood company producing a gamut of frozen seafood products that are
processed using freezing techniques such as IQF, IVP, IWP or BLOCK and offered
to clients in India and UK

One of the leading aquaculture company in Gujarat delivering the highest quality
shrimp, free from all kinds of antibiotics and banned substances

Source: siliconindia.com

a very vital part of the project. As a part of the from the industry. With the schemes such Blue
programme, Indian Navy and Coast Guard are Revolution, Sagarmala, strengthening of Blue
further strengthening their presence in IOR to Economy, Government of India is all set to fine
provide an extended security umbrella to the tune the gaps of fisheries sector and the results
fishermen and fishing companies. Currently, will be visible in the coming future. Owing to
most of the deep sea fishing is done by Chinese the ongoing crisis because of COVID-19 that
fishermen as Indian fishers are not yet stepped resulted in loss of business to individuals and
out their territorial area. Beyond this, the companies, the newly introduced schemes and
Indian fishermen don’t have training, proper financial impetus introduced by the government
equipment and craft to conduct such kind of is poised to refurbish the industry and make up
deep operations. As part of the programme, for the losses that occur due pandemic. Apart
government is also planning to equip these from providing financial and healthy trade
people with every nook and corner to perform environment, these government initiatives will
deep sea fishing. also churn millions of job opportunities in the
country which is a very positive sign for the
With new schemes and financial support, sector.
Government of India is all set to revamp India’s
fisheries sector all it need is the time and patience Nitin Konde

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 25

High on production,
low on preservation

Cold storage systems are an important prerequisite to maintain the smooth
functioning of the food supply chain, particularly when it comes to sea and
meat products. Once the catch is unloaded, it needs to be transported to the
preservation centres for further processing. In a country like India, which is one of
the largest producers of food and ranks second in fish production (as per a report
by National Fisheries Development Board), it is very important to keep the food
supply chain up and running, to feed its ever growing population and to beef up
its export line. However, the country’s cold storage system, presently, is not well
placed in comparison with its foreign counterparts. This is also the reason why the
country has to bear heavy food losses every year, like clockwork. AgroSpectrum
takes a closer, analytical look at India's Sea Food Cold Storage System, with
pertinent observations by industry bigwigs on this crucial matter.

26 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Fish begin to rot right from the time it Director, Apex Frozen Foods, India, observed,
is caught. Obviously, it becomes a first “The top level of the supply chain is following
priority of the trader to store it in a every guideline and rule to preserve the catch.
temperature controlled environment. But as the product starts down the line, which
Before reaching the storage destination, the is where the problem arises. And, this is mainly
corporate fishermen, who sail deeper into the sea because the people involved at the lower end
and spend more than 72 hours before returning of the cycle cannot afford heavy temperature
to the port, are required to maintain a certain controlled units to preserve the product for a
conducive temperature in their vessel to preserve longer time.”
their catch. That's why most modern fishing
trailers are also equipped with cold storage Another COVID-19 casualty
facilities. The actual preservation of the catch
begins once it is offloaded onto the port and To address the cold storage shortfall, many
taken to the cold storages for further processing. companies have already planned to increase the
A slight delay or shortage of cold storage can lead number of cold storage facilities in the country by
to a massive loss of seafood. installing new units. As per the CRISIL Research
report, 2019, the Indian market is poised to
According to a report by the National receive an investment of Rs 16,000 -21,000 crore
Horticulture Board (2018), there is a 90 per cent to enhance the cold storage system of the country
deficit of cold storage facilities in India. The total in the span of five years. But due to COVID-19,
fish production in the country stood at around the entire global economy has slumped and India
13.42 million metric tonnes during 2018-19. Of too, is witnessing the adverse effect of the recent
this, marine fisheries contributed 3.71 million economic slowdown. Consequently, there will be
metric tonnes. During 2018- 19, export of marine an unprecedented and massive delay in rolling
products stood at nearly 1.4 million metric tonnes out the above investment into the market.
and were valued at Rs 46,589 crore.
“Investment coming in now is a blurry picture
In a recent media report, India suffers considering current losses that the market
annual post-harvest losses of Rs 61000 crore suffered due to the virus. Fresh investment
in production of marine and inland fisheries. was expected from private players, while the
The main reasons for this loss are lack of cold government typically supported the sector
storage facilities, transport and miss handling through subsidies. For instance, the Union
of products. Currently, 95 per cent of the cold Ministry of Food Processing Industries has
storages are owned by the private sector, 3 per offered subsidy at 50 per cent of the project cost
cent by cooperatives and the remaining 2 per with a cap of Rs 10 crore. But now, the entire
cent by the public sector undertakings. Since, investment model will change and the entire
bulk of the capacity is owned by the private process of strengthening the cold storage line will
sector, there is greater need for the central and be delayed by almost two to three years.” Ravi
state governments to rise up to the occasion and Kumar Yellenki, former President, Society of
support the beleaguered industry. Aquaculture Professionals.

Lack of cold storage facilities at the retail During the lockdown, there were heavy
level has been a major issue of massive sea food seafood losses across the country. On March 25,
wastage in the country. At the same time, it is 2020, the Government of India had imposed a
apparent that wholesalers of fish can afford to nationwide lockdown to prevent the spread of
have a cold storage wagon to supply fish at retail COVID-19.
markets. However, since most of these retailers
are small traders and cannot afford large cold As this protocol was followed by many
storage units, they have to depend heavily on ice countries, who also decided to seal their borders,
for storage, which is not a healthy solution. Apart all trade came to a standstill. In the absence of
from that, quality of ice also plays a pivotal role in exporters and traders, there can be no selling.
preserving the catch. Since most of these traders Since all the trade activities were halted, the
use low quality ice, sea food starts decomposing capacity of limited seafood storage houses was
quickly, adding massive losses. full and they couldn't accommodate the fresh
stock coming from the recently returning fishing
Karuturi Subrahmanya Chowdary, Executive vessels. Apart from that, there were logistical

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 27

Major cold chain players in India “The top level of the supply
chain is following every
1. Snowman Logistics guideline and rule to preserve
2. Cold Star Logistics the catch. But as the product
3. Schedulers starts down the line, which
4. Gubba Cold Storage is where the problem arises.
5. Kailash Agro Cold Storage And, this is mainly because the
6. M J Logistics Services people involved at the lower end
7. Deccan Cold Storage of the cycle cannot afford heavy
8. Dev Bhumi Cold Chain temperature controlled units to
9. Gati Kausar Cold Chain Solutions preserve the product for a longer time.”
10. ColdEx - Karuturi Subrahmanya Chowdary,
Executive Director, Apex Frozen Foods
Source: ResearchAndMarkets
“Investment coming in now
issues as well, that added to the traders’ agony. is a blurry picture considering
In the absence of labour, servicing the current losses that the market
suffered due to the virus. Fresh
industry, tasks such as loading and unloading of investment was expected
fish, transport of stock and ice and other jobs that from private players, while the
are labour intensive and integral, could not be government typically supported
performed. The fisherfolk, who had just returned the sector through subsidies.
from the sea did not know what to do with their For instance, the Union Ministry
stock, so they threw it away or sold it at marginal of Food Processing Industries
prices. has offered subsidy at 50 per cent of the project
cost with a cap of Rs 10 crore. But now, the entire
Woes of an unorganised sector investment model will change and the entire
process of strengthening the cold storage line will
The fisheries sector provides employment to be delayed by almost two to three years.”
14 million fishers, which in itself, is a whopping - Ravi Kumar Yellenki, Former President,
figure. But today, the highly dispersed and Society of Aquaculture Professionals
unorganised sector is calling out for appropriate
tools to create a good database to enable better “All the exporters are making
planning. sure that their catch is preserved
properly so that it stays fresh
Aminath Prabu Emmanuvel, Director, Nila and fit to be exported as per the
Sea Foods, said, “When you are playing a big international guidelines. But as
game on a professional level then you tend to the catch moves down the chain
keep yourself aligned with the international for domestic consumption,
guidelines but priorities change when the game the preservation system goes
becomes smaller. This is what is happening with for a toss and no one can be
our sector at the top level. All the exporters are blamed for that because when
making sure that their catch is preserved properly it reaches vendors or sellers who are buying in
so that it stays fresh and fit to be exported as per small quantities, they cannot afford to preserve the
the international guidelines. But as the catch product similar to how a big player was preserving.
moves down the chain for domestic consumption, In fact, their first priority becomes selling off the
the preservation system goes for a toss and no produce before it decays further.”
one can be blamed for that because when it
reaches vendors or sellers, who are buying in - Aminath Prabu Emmanuvel,
small quantities, they cannot afford to preserve Director, Nila Sea Foods
the product similar to how a big player was
preserving. In fact, their first priority becomes “Well, regarding the availability
selling off the produce before it decays further.” of high quality cold storage
transportation, we have to admit
Echoing similar thoughts, Karuturi that we are still lacking behind
Subrahmanya Chowdary stated, “When any as compared to our western
counterparts. Currently, such a
commutation system in India
charges a high amount, which is
why only big players are using it.
Small traders are still sticking to
the old school ways which leaves a big gap in this
segment”.
- Zaheer Rafiq, Founder, C Shore Foods

28 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

produce or product is sold or purchased in especially in the coastal areas, ice is not
bulk, its preservation system automatically gets considered the best solution, as it tends to melt
aligned to a set standard but when it is sold in faster.
smaller quantity, the buyer’s first precedence
becomes to sell the product before it gets “Well, regarding the availability of high
spoiled. Since our sector is unorganised, at the quality cold storage transportation, we have
domestic consumption front, there are traders to admit that we are still lacking behind as
or individuals, who don’t have a brand name or compared to our western counterparts. Currently,
any business identity and their sole purpose is to such a commutation system in India charges
quickly sell off products that they have purchased a high amount, which is why only big players
with minimum preservation.” are using it. Small traders are still sticking to
the old school ways, which leaves a big gap in
“So a lot of the catch that moves out of this segment,” stated Zaheer Rafiq, Founder of
the harbour and into the market for domestic C Shore Foods, Bangalore, one of the largest
consumption either gets sold to the buyers or gets seafood suppliers and cold storage service
spoiled due to lack of preservation facilities,” he providers of the country.
added.
Stressing on alluring technological solutions
High quality cold storage to the problem, Rafiq opined, “If, like many
transportation other sectors, we encourage tech startups to fill
the gap with their innovative solutions, I think
India’s cold chain sector is a combination this step will not only make the service available
of surface storage and refrigerated transport. to all but will also reduce food loss drastically.
Currently, India has upwards of 6,500 cold These innovative transportation ideas should
storage facilities spread across the country, be coupled with a strong awareness programme
with an installed capacity of 35 million metric to educate traders and fishermen about using
tonnes (MT), with the storage of potatoes and proper advanced storing and transport systems
pharmaceuticals accounting for the lion’s share. to reduce food loss. If we manage to imbue this
idea among the people that investing a little more
Marine produce, being a highly perishable in cold storage and transportation could provide
commodity, requires high quality cold storage them a heavy dividend, I am sure that nobody
transportation. Though big players use high will oppose it.”
quality insulated trucks to transport the catch
from the harbor, a lot of small traders still use India urgently needs to multiply its cold
traditional orthodox methods for carriage. storage line. Being one of the major fisheries
These traders mostly use ice to keep fish and and aqua life exporters, the country is aiming to
marine catch fresh but in a country like India double its export line in the coming years. But,
with searing temperatures and high humidity, to achieve this target, a lot of investment from
the private as well as the government has to be
sought, to enhance the cold storage facilities.
There are certain gaps in the business chain,
especially when it comes to big players and
small traders and this is because the sector is
highly unorganised. This makes it very difficult
for the government to formulate policies that
can benefit each and every business operator.
Also, there is a strong need to spread awareness
among the traders to opt for advanced storing
and transport systems to reduce food loss. Once
they understand that these whopping losses can
be avoided by simply adopting the latest available
cold storage and transportation facilities, then
the entire business cycle will be on the right
track, as it should be.

Nitin Konde

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 29

New vistas in fish
processing and
preservation

RAVISHANKAR C N, causes which can be achieved by controlling the
storage temperature, maintaining proper water
Director, activity and pH level, use of preservatives, alone
ICAR-Central or in combination.
Institute of Fisheries
Technology, Kochi Many emerging processing techniques like
high pressure processing, irradiation, microwave
processing, pulsed light technology, pulsed
electric field, cold plasma technology, radio
frequency, ultrasound techniques etc. find
application in the seafood processing industry.

Demand for fishery products with Emerging processing and
minimal processing has given birth preservation techniques
to many innovative processing
and preservation technologies to Effectively addressing the increasing demand
preserve and extend the quality for minimally processed foods, which are
and stability of these valuable safe and superior with regard to the sensory
commodities without compromising and nutritional features have employed high
its nutritional, functional, and sensory pressure processing (HPP) to develop high
characteristics. quality products with an extended shelf life,
without the use of preservatives. HPP is a cold
Fish play a major role in satisfying pasteurization technique, referred to as high
the demands of the diverse global hydrostatic pressure (HHP) or ultra-high-
customers on account of its availability, pressure processing (UHP). Generally, vacuum
accessibility, nutritional value, as well as packed foods are placed in a pressure vessel
quality and safety aspects. These valuable marine containing a pressure-transmitting liquid (water
commodities are simultaneously convenient due or aqueous solution) and are subjected to high
to its potentiality for high product diversification. hydrostatic pressure ranging from 100 to 900
Though an excellent source of nutrients with MPa, depending on the product. Employing
quality protein, omega-3 fatty acids, essential this technology helps to inactivate vegetative
vitamins and minerals, it is highly perishable microorganisms, spores and enzymes and
too, which requires effective processing and extend the shelf life as well as preserving the
preservation. Effective approaches in this organoleptic attributes of foods. This technique
regard is crucial to maintain its inherent quality opens up unique opportunities to the food
characteristics and extended stability for better industry for the development of novel foods of
returns, to abate post-harvest losses as well as for superior quality, novel texture, more convenient,
consumer safety and satisfaction. Preservation higher safety.
aims to delay, lessen or hinder spoilage on
account of chemical, enzymatic or microbial Non-thermal methods of food preservation
are being developed to eliminate or minimize the
quality degradation of foods that results from
thermal processing. In this regard, pulse light
technique is an emerging non thermal technology
to induce minimum quality degradation and

30 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

for decontamination of food surfaces. Pulsed Microwave sterilization technique
light consists of a successive repetition of short
time high power pulses of broadband emission This is another evolving technique,
light, including wavelengths from 200 to 1000 extensively used in the food industry for heating,
nm with a considerable amount of light in the cooking, pasteurization, sterilization and drying.
short-wave UV spectrum to kill the pathogenic Microwaves are electromagnetic waves of
and spoilage microorganisms. Solving some frequencies varying from 300 MHz to 300 GHz.
technological problems like food overheating, Microwave is strongly penetrable and food gets
better penetration, treatment homogeneity, heated uniformly with a rise in temperature.
nutritional degradation issues etc. by proper The major advantage of this technique is that
standardization procedures can widen the scope food can be stored at ambient temperatures
of this technology in seafood industry. and re-heated prior to consumption, thereby
cutting down the cost for food processors and
Pulsed electric field (PEF) processing distributors, as well as for consumers. Since
the heat is produced directly in the food, the
This technology is used for the inactivation thermal processing time is sharply reduced.
of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms This technique guarantees better colour, texture
in various food products. The food material and other sensory attributes to the foods in
is placed between electrodes and microbial comparison with conventional retorting.
inactivation is achieved through dielectric
breakdown of the bacterial membranes. Irradiation treatment
Microbial inactivation is a function of the
particular electric field (maximum discharge rate In recent times, irradiation has assumed
/ electric distance) and the number of pulses more importance as a standard treatment
applied (total treatment time). This technique to sterilize packages in aseptic processing of
is suitable for batch or continuous non thermal foods and pharmaceuticals. It is a physical
pasteurization of food products, improving their treatment that consists of exposing foods to
quality and safety and can be combined with electromagnetic radiation to ensure safety
aseptic packaging of food products for improving and extend the shelf life, because of its high
the application potential. effectiveness in inactivating pathogens without
deteriorating product quality. Three types

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 31

of ionizing radiation are used in commercial Whereas the application in fish products has got
radiation to process products such as foods meager attention. However, few studies conducted
and medical and pharmaceutical devices viz., in plasma application in seafoods viz., direct
radiation from high-energy gamma rays, X-rays, application in fresh and dried products and indirect
and accelerated electrons. Different forms of application in activated water and wastewater
irradiation treatment are raduarization (for shelf purification, widen the application potential of
life extension), radicidation (for elimination plasma technology in the sector. On the other hand,
of target pathogens) and radappertization (for a few disadvantages reported in these investigations
sterilization). Electromagnetic radiation (EMR) viz., effect of plasma in oxidizing the products
is a form of energy that is transmitted through requires effective addressal. Comprehensive
space at an enormous velocity (speed of light). In investigations are required in this regard for
EMR/dielectric heating, the waves can penetrate efficient exploration of this technology to deliver
quickly either in vibrational movement as in case safe and stable seafood in a cost-effective way.
of infrared (IR) or rotational movement, as in
the case of radio frequency (RF) and microwave Value addition approaches
(MW), in the food material and causes rapid heat
and mass transfer leading to reduced processing India, being one of the fastest growing
time and better product quality. economies and the second largest consumer
market in the world, offers a strong platform
Application of EMR heating has several for the processed seafood industry. As far as
advantages over the conventional processes, the fish processing industry is concerned, value
such as faster and efficient heat transfer, low addition is one of the possible approaches to raise
processing cost, uniform product heating and profitability on account of the highly competitive
better organoleptic and nutritional value. and increasingly expensive nature of the industry.
In foods, value is a combination of functional
Ohmic heating technology attributes as well as emotional benefits arising on
account of nutritional and sensory facets at superior
This is considered an advanced technique quality along with affordable price. In addition, it
for continuous processing of particulate food promises utilization of the under-exploited nutrient
products. It is a process wherein electric current rich resources in the most effective manner. Value
is passed through food materials, heating occurs can be added to fish and fishery products according
in the form of internal energy transformation to the requirements of different markets.
(from electric to thermal) within the material
and it enables the material to heat at extremely Value added fish products are presented
rapid rates from a few seconds to a few minutes. in a preparatory and convenient form such as
It processes the particles and neighbouring dressed/trimmed, minced etc. or those that have
particles at the same time and inhibits added ingredients such as a coating, bioactive/
overcooking and reduces fouling problems and functional constituents in it. A number of such
thermal damage to products compared with diverse products have already invaded the
conventional heating methods. It has several industry, globally ranging from live fish and
potential future applications, including its shellfish to ready to serve convenience products.
use in blanching, evaporation, dehydration, Value added fishery products primarily fall under
fermentation, extraction, sterilization, the categories viz., mince/mince-based products,
pasteurization and heating of foods. surimi/surimi-based products, enrobed or coated
products, ready to serve retorted products, cold/
Plasma technology hot extruded products, speciality products, ethnic
products like marinated, dried products etc.
This is also an emerging, green process that
has evolved in recent times in the food industry Notably, demand for fishery products
for exploring its preservation and shelf-life with minimal processing has given birth to
extension. It has the feasibility of being energy these innovative processing and preservation
efficient, short term processing and operational technologies to preserve and extend the quality
at reasonable temperatures. It is more effective and stability of these valuable commodities
in reducing microbial and enzymatic actions in without compromising its nutritional, functional,
various vegetables, beverages and meat products. and sensory characteristics.

32 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

A bankable ‘Blue Revolution’
for fisheries growth

SAGAR MEHRA, mitigate hunger and malnutrition.
Foreseeing the immense potential for
Joint Secretary,
Department of development of fisheries, the centre launched
Fisheries, Ministry ‘Integrated Development and Management
of Fisheries, Animal of Fisheries’, dubbed the Blue Revolution, in
Husbandry & Dairying, December 2015, with a total outlay of Rs 3000
Government of India crore for integrated and holistic development
of fisheries sector. The Blue Revolution made
To consolidate the achievements vital contributions towards the development
of Blue Revolution and to provide of the fisheries sector especially in terms of
focused attention to the sector, the enhancement of fish production and productivity,
government, in its Union Budget, post-harvest infrastructure and marketing,
2019-20 had announced a new fisheries exports and fishers welfare. To
scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Matsya consolidate the achievements of Blue Revolution
Sampada Yojana (PMMSY). The and to provide focused attention to the sector, the
PMMSY expected to generate government, in its Union Budget, 2019-20 had
livelihood opportunities as well as announced a new scheme, the Pradhan Mantri
earning foreign exchange through Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY). Thereafter,
exports and go a long way in Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada has been
achieving the vision of Aatmanirbhar approved with an estimated investment of Rs
Bharat. 20,050 crore to be implemented over a period
of five years from FY 2020-21 to FY 2024-25.
Fisheries and aquaculture are important The scheme intends to address critical gaps in
sources of food, nutrition, employment fish production and productivity, infusion of
and income in India. The fish production innovation and modern technology, post-harvest
in India has registered an average infrastructure and management, modernisation
annual growth rate of more than 7.5 per cent and strengthening of value chain, traceability,
during the last five years and stood at an all-time establishing a robust fisheries management
high production of 142.20 lakh metric tonnes framework and fishers’ welfare. Attention is also
during 2019-20. The Gross Value Added (GVA) made towards creating awareness for harnessing
of the fisheries sector in the national economy fisheries potential in a sustainable, responsible,
constituted 1.24 per cent of the total National inclusive and equitable manner.
GVA and 7.28 per cent share of Agricultural GVA.
The sector provides livelihood to about 28 million A holistic approach has been undertaken
fishers and fish farmers at the primary level and under this scheme to achieve target production
almost twice the number along the value chain. of 220 lakh metric tonnes and to increase the
Fish being an affordable and rich source of contribution of GVA of fisheries sector up to 9 per
animal protein, is one of the healthiest options to cent with regards to agriculture GVA by 2024-25.
The overall goal of the scheme is to create 55 lakh
direct and indirect employment opportunities
along the supply and value chain in the fisheries
sector as towards AtmaNirbhar Bharat.

PMMSY: A game changer

PMMSY focuses on doubling the income
of fishers and fish farmers via activities like

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 33

development of cold water fisheries, stocking of years. PMMSY lays special emphasis on the
open water bodies, cage culture, deep sea fishing, development of fisheries resources in Himalayan
mariculture and cultivation of sea weed. In states/UTs/North East/ to ensure that these states
aquaculture emphasis will be towards the quality are self-sufficient in terms of their fish production
seed and feed, species diversification, technology for domestic consumption and generation of
infusion and ornamental fisheries. Thrust will livelihood and employment opportunities. Various
be given for quality, sustainability, standards activities will also be promoted in islands and
and traceability in fisheries sector from ‘catch aspirational districts in a holistic manner to make
to consumer’, post-harvest infrastructure and them a role model for fisheries.
management, modernization and strengthening
of value chain, enhancement of fisheries Coldwater fisheries
export competitiveness and a robust fisheries
management and regulatory framework. The potential of coldwater fisheries in the
country is also untapped to a great extent. Hence,
In the Inland sector, the area focussed to harness the huge potential in the Himalayan
under the scheme are exploration of potential of states/UTs and the North Eastern Region (NER),
reservoirs and other open water bodies through an investment of Rs 330 crore has been envisaged
optimum stocking, cage culture and pen culture. during next five years while generating one lakh
Establishment of hatcheries are also planned to employment opportunities. Special efforts will
ensure quality seed production. Development of be made to ensure that best quality fish seed of
Inland saline areas for production of brackish trout including exotic species i.e. rainbow trout
water fish species/ shrimp is also targeted as and domestic species Mahseer is available to fish
production from these areas will add especially farmers for culture as well as promoting infusion
to the shrimp export basket of India. An area of of new technologies for optimum utilisation of
two lakh hectare affected with salinity/alkalinity, resources.
is available in states of Haryana, Punjab,
Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh. Suitable forward Cultivation of seaweed
and backward linkages will be established for
development of suitable aquaculture in these This is one of the priority areas under this
areas with investment of Rs 526 crore over five scheme, as these activities will open new avenues
for women in coastal areas and provide a source

34 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

of income for economically weaker sections of opportunities in a cluster based approach while
society especially among rural areas. With an promoting entrepreneurship model for economic
investment target of Rs 640 crore during next five viability and sustainability. As marine capture
year for the entire value chain including setting fisheries is the riskiest profession or pursuit of
up of Seed Banks for plant material production livelihood, it is proposed that at least 25 per
and processing and marketing etc, it is estimated cent of marine fishermen may be weaned away
that there will production of 1.7 lakh ton seaweed and brought in the fold of marine open sea cage
in the country while generating employment culture for conservation purpose and to address
opportunities to the tune of Rs 6 lakh, directly the overfishing issues as well.
and indirectly.
Upgradation of fishing vessels will also be
Ornamental fisheries and mariculture promoted under PMMSY to explore deep sea
fishing with target investment of Rs 1605 crore
Ornamental fisheries is yet another prominent to reduce fishing pressure in inshore waters as
aquacultural activity, which can be instrumental well as increased fishing days at sea and reducing
in providing employment especially to the youth wastage and expenditure per trip. Installation of
of the country. PMMSY envisages an investment biotiolets in mechanised vessels will be initiated
of Rs 576 crore, promotion and production of as a measure towards ‘Swachh Sagar’.
ornamental fisheries and generation of seven
lakh employment opportunities. Welfare activities

In the marine sector, mariculture will be In terms of welfare activities different
focussed on the development of activities like provisions like insurance to Fisherman/ vessels
establishment of hatcheries, open sea cage and livelihood and nutritional support for
culture for species like cobia and pompano which socially-economically backward active traditional
can be a breakthrough in the sector for enhancing fisher’s families for conservation of fisheries
the production as the marine capture fisheries resources during fishing ban/lean period is also
is reaching plateau. With target investment of ensured under this scheme. Setting of a fish
Rs 636 crore in open sea cage culture, PMMSY farmer producer organisation is also envisioned
aims for creation of four lakh employment under this scheme to enhance bargaining power

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 35

of fisherman and prevent fisher and fish farmers infrastructure requirements of the fisheries
from exploitation of middle man. sector. Provisions have been made under FIDF
to provide concessional finance to the Eligible
Different infrastructure projects like Entities (EEs), including state governments/
development of harbour, landing centre are Union Territories and state entities for
planned to enhance the quality of catch and to development of identified fisheries infrastructure
meet the quality export demands. Post-harvest facilities through Nodal Loaning Entities (NLEs)
infrastructure like establishment of cold chain, namely (i) National Bank for Agriculture and
value added enterprise is implemented with an Rural Development (NABARD), (ii) National
aim to reduce post-harvest losses from 25 to 10 Cooperatives Development Corporation (NCDC)
per cent. Various marketing infrastructures are and (iii) All scheduled Banks.
also established to maintain direct linkages with
the consumers. The PMMSY, FIDF, extension of Kisan Credit
Card (KCC) facility for fishers and fish farmers,
Technology infusion will be crucial to along with convergence on ongoing schemes
promote technology adaptation amongst fish of other Ministries/Departments will provide
farmers and aquapreneurs with an envisaged huge impetus towards bringing sustainability
investment of Rs 1236 crore. It will intend in the sector and cluster-based development
towards the theme of more crop per drop with suitable forward and backward linkage
with technologies like aquaponics, biofloc and accompanied by enhance participation
recirculatory aquaculture systems. of private investment and promotion of
entrepreneurship.
Fisheries and Aquaculture
Infrastructure Development Fund Fisheries and aquaculture will expand, both
horizontally and vertically, with the grounding of
Department of Fisheries, Ministry of focused activities under PMMSY while generating
Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying livelihood opportunities as well as earning
during 2018-19 had created a dedicated foreign exchange through exports and go a long
fund called the Fisheries and Aquaculture way in achieving the vision of Aatmanirbhar
Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF) with Bharat.
a total funds size of Rs 7522.48 crore to address

36 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Current scenario of
fisheries in India -
Challenges & Opportunities

DR PARTHA of fisheries resources, both inland and marine.
P. BISWAS, The country has a long coastline of 8,118 km and
equally large areas under estuaries, backwaters,
Incharge-Fisheries lagoons, etc., conducive for developing capture as
Training & Culture well as culture fisheries. The total fish production
Unit, Simurali Krishi of India during 2017-18 was about 12.60 million
Kendra, Simurali, metric tonnes, of which nearly 65 per cent is
West Bengal from the inland sector. The latest estimates of
the fish production during the period of 2019-20
Aquaculture or fisheries is considered in India is close to 15 million tones. Freshwater
as the only answer to the growing aquaculture production is predominantly driven
need to nutritive food stuff for the by smallholder farmers and institutionalized
ever increasing global population. But culture fisheries in part. It is the primary
this sector is to be made sustainable. source of animal protein for billions of
It has vast potential in providing people worldwide, where capture fishery and
livelihood security. Culture fisheries aquaculture serves the livelihoods of more than
is more sustainable than of capture 10 per cent of the global population (Anonymous,
fisheries in ecological viewpoint. 2020b).

Fisheries including aquaculture is one Current fisheries scenario
of the fastest-growing industries in the
world and has been playing an important Fishing in India is a major industry
role in the economic development of employing 14.5 million people. 1.07 per cent
many countries. Fisheries are getting the status of the total GDP of India is contributed from
of priority sector due to its contribution to fisheries. According to the National Fisheries
food and nutritional security, national income, Development Board the Fisheries Industry
employment opportunities as well as generating generates an export earnings of Rs 334.41 billion
livelihood options. In India fisheries sector is ($ 4.5 billion). Marine exports constitute about
providing excellent opportunities for employment five per cent of the total exports and about 19 per
and income generation, especially in the more
economically backward rural areas. Top five fisheries states in
India in 2017-18 (in lakh Tonnes)
India currently ranks third in fisheries and
second in aquaculture production in the world, States ........................Inland ....Marine
contributing 6.3 per cent to the total global fish
production (Anonymous, 2020a). We have plenty Andhra Pradesh .............. 28.45 ........ 6.05

West Bengal .................... 15.57 ......... 1.85

Gujarat ............................ 1.34 .......... 7.01

Kerala .............................. 5.34........... 1.51

Tamil Nadu ..................... 1.85 .......... 4.97

All India production.....89.02.......35.88

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com C O V E R S TO RY 37

cent of agricultural exports. The marine fisheries with major share of Indian mackerel, oil sardine
sector is dominated by the socio-economically and ribbonfish. Demersal or bottom sea finfish
backward artisanal and small scale fishers whose constitute 29 per cent in which threadfin breams,
lives are closely intertwined with the oceans and croakers and Priacanthus spp. were found as the
seas. However, 75 per cent of the total marine fish major groups. The share of crustacean landings
production comes from the mechanized sector, was assessed at 12 per cent of the total landings
23 per cent from the motorized sector and only and that of molluscan resources at only 7 per cent
two per cent from the artisanal sector. where squids and cuttlefishes got the maximum
share. Indian mackerel have been placed in the
Percentage share of markets during 2011-12 top spot of the major resources obtained from
Indian waters in 2016 with an estimate of 2.5
MIDDLEEAST OTHERS JAPAN lakh tonnes. Since 2013, oil sardine landings
continued to show a decreasing trend.
5% 8% 13%
Inland fisheries
USA
Inland fisheries and aquaculture constitute
18% the main components of the fisheries sector in
India from production point of view.
SOUTHEST Aquaculture is practiced in both fresh and
ASIA brackish waters. The freshwater culture resources
in the country comprise 2.36 mha of ponds and
25% tanks. The other resources where fish farming
can be undertaken include the floodplains lakes
CHINA EU and other natural lakes, reservoirs, irrigation
canals and paddy fields. India is basically a
8% 23% carp country with more than 75 per cent of the
production being contributed by carps alone.
Marine fisheries The other significant contributors in recent is
Pangasius species & Tilapia. India is now the
A tropical country like India has highly rich third largest producer of Pangasius in the world
marine fishery resources in its 2.02 million after Vietnam and Thailand. In eastern part
square kilometer Exclusive Economic Zone of the country production of catfish is very
(EEZ), with an annual harvestable potential of popular.
about 4.4 million metric tonnes. The coastline of
peninsular India runs over 9 states and 2 Union Since the early eighties, development of
Territories (UT) and is bound by the Arabian Sea brackish water fish culture has gained popularity.
in the west and Bay of Bengal in the east. The About 1.2 mha has been estimated as amenable
western coastal states are Gujarat, Maharashtra, for brackish water aquaculture in the coastal
Goa, Karnataka and Kerala and the eastern areas of the country. Besides tiger shrimp
coastal states are Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, (Penaeus monodon), the exotic white leg shrimp
Odisha and West Bengal. The UTs, which have (Littopenaeus vannamei), giant fresh water
sea-line running along their borders are Daman prawn are very profitable for farmers. Farmed
& Diu and Puducherry. The Andaman & Nicobar shrimps contribute a sizeable percentage to the
Islands are separated from the peninsular India total exports from the country.
and contributes significantly to the marine
fisheries. The Indian marine fisheries sector COVID-19 impacts
provides livelihood to nearly 4.0 million people.
In the year 2016, it has been estimated the COVID-19 and the subsequent lockdown
marine fish landings for peninsular India as 3.63 has left India’s fisheries in the lurch like other
million tonnes which has witnessed an increase countries. Severe economic losses to fisheries
of 6.6 per cent compared to 2015. West coast have been reported across the world, and in all
contributed a major share of 64 per cent to the cases, the damage has been greatest for export-
total landings. In marine fish production, Gujarat driven fisheries with complex supply chains.
remained as the major producer followed by Further social distancing and confinement
Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

Pelagic or open marine resources contributed
52 per cent to the total landings of the country

38 C O V E R S TO RY AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Opportunities

• Fish waste, a highly proteinaceous resource may be converted into value-added products like fish
meals for poultry feed, silage, foliar spray, manure etc. One estimate suggested that the annual
production of fish waste was around 5.7 million tonnes in 2017.

• The success of utilising the entire quantity of shrimp and prawn shells for the production of
valuable chitin and its derivatives could be another attractive issue.

• Also, small-scale fisheries meet a raging concern for poverty reduction and food security in
developing countries as it contains a rich animal protein and omega 3 fatty acids, providing a
nutritional diet.

• The present marine capture system is stagnating world over, and therefore, mariculture or
marine resources culture in confined sea water must receive priority.

• The technological options in this domain include several components such as recirculating
aquaculture systems, integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, cage farming could be an important
option.

• There are several compounds that can be derived from aquatic animals and plants which include
a product range of biofuels, drugs, and pharmaceuticals including anti-cancerous compounds.
However, India is yet to graduate into a significant player.

Challenges

• Weak multi-disciplinary approach in fisheries and aquaculture
• Inadequate attention to the environmental, economical, social and gender issues in fisheries and

aquaculture
• Weak linkages between research and development machinery
• Weak marketing and extension network
• Poor technology transfer and anthropogenic interventions, resulting in loss of biodiversity
• Depletion of natural resources
• Over-exploitation of coastal fisheries
• Clandestine entry and spread of exotic fish species
• Contamination of indigenous fish germplasm resources & inbreeding depression
• Traditional post-harvest technologies
• Environmental degradation poses a host of problems, both short and long term
• India has been vulnerable to natural disasters on account of its unique geo-climatic conditions
• As far as processing is concerned, only 23 per cent of India’s marine fish catch is processed, and

the rest is marketed fresh. The majority of exports are at a low level of value addition, in frozen
and chilled form, without going for higher-order “ready to eat” or “ready to cook” fish products
• Value addition of inland fish and fish products are quite less

measures have also led to the closure of many possible future steps.
fish markets globally. Trade has been further Increasing contributions of aquatic protein
affected by border closures and significant
declines in the availability, and increases in the from inland fisheries and aquaculture has been
cost of global air-freight & surface freight. These a paradigm shift observed for last one decade.
impacts have created challenges for the sale of Aquaculture can only supply protein rich food to
fresh fish products, even where demand still eliminate malnutrition and related complications
exists domestically and internationally. Future globally more importantly with a low carbon
of India’s fisheries to combat both COVID-19 footprint. Institutional finance may bring about
damage and beyond, requires a comprehensive the Blue revolution in aquaculture and fisheries
follow up to understand present crisis and sector in India and it is very much an achievable
dream.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com S P E A K I N G W I T H 39

‘‘Unscientific farming
practices is a hindering
factor to achieve
production efficiency’’

RAJAMANOHAR
SOMASUNDARAM,

Founder & CEO, Aquaconnect

Chennai-based Aquaconnect was founded by Rajamanohar Somasundaram,
Sanjai Kumar and Shanmuga Sundara Raj in 2017. It’s a full-stack aquaculture
technology venture that works with shrimp and fish aquaculture farmers to
improve their farm productivity and market linkage through Artificial Intelligence
(AI) and satellite remote sensing technology. The company’s ‘Aquaconnect App’ is
an AI-driven advisory solution and Package of Practices (POP) that helps farmers
improve productivity, predict disease and ultimately achieve higher farm income.
It is funded by HatchFund, Norway and India’s biggest agri-tech venture capital
Omnivore, which has funded more than 20 agri startups in India. Company’s
strategic partnership with other entities exponentially expands its operations.
Partnership with IDH-Farmers in Transition (FIT) in disease management helped
the company to be a pioneers in prediction and disease control in shrimp farms.
This project will impact 350 hectares of aquaculture production. In an interview
with AgroSpectrum Rajamanohar Somasundaram, Founder and CEO, Aquaconnect,
shares his views on the aquaculture industry in India. Edited excerpts.

How do you see the shrimp and world. The meteoric rise in shrimp production and
aquaculture industry in India? exports in 2017 has made India the largest global
exporter of frozen shrimp. We have seen a robust
In India, aquaculture has evolved over the last 10X growth in the past decade. The industry has
three decades from the traditional backyard activity been growing at 25 per cent compound annual
to commercial intensive farming. We produce low growth rate (CAGR) every year. Understanding
value fishes for domestic consumption and high the potential the industry holds, the government
value shrimp for exports. has also come up with various programmes and

We are the second largest fish producers in the

40 S P E A K I N G W I T H AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada What is the role of technology in
Yojana (PMMSY) and Fisheries and Aquaculture aquaculture?
Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF) to create
more opportunities and double the production. Technology plays an important role in
Such collaborative efforts from both the private the development of the aquaculture industry
and public sectors have the potential to transform especially in a country like India, where the
India into a global aquaculture leader in the majority of rural and coastal farmers are involved
upcoming days. in shrimp and fish farming. Even though
aquaculture in India is one of the fastest-growing
How has the Aquaconnect App helped in industries, unscientific farming practices is a
solving the problems of fish farming? hindering factor to achieve production efficiency
and disease prediction. This results in higher
Our AI-driven app Aquaconnect, helps farmers production costs due to production inefficiency,
to increase productivity and disease prediction. losses due to diseases, and economic losses, too.
It records production data such as water quality Technological interventions like IoT, smart farm
parameters, feed inputs, health status, and tools and farm advisory improves the problem
biomass conversion. Collected data is analysed sensing capabilities and real-time analytics in
on a real-time basis and offers advisory services the farming operations. This will lead to the
to farmers regarding their pond operations. provision of data-driven insights for farmers to
The mobile app understands the farmer’s needs improve their farm productivity and increase
inherently based on the input given by the farmer their profit margins.
as well as the data captured by the Internet of
Things (IoT)/Smart farm management platforms. What are the opportunities and
The app acts as a farm companion, aiding in challenges in seafood export in India?
tasks ranging from stocking to harvest, using
artificial intelligence and providing real-time data- Although India is one of the largest
driven decision making capability. Aquaconnect aquaculture players in the world, the country
creates patterns using the collected data and gets largely remains as a raw product exporter.
intelligence on cultural practices and continues There should be an intense focus required to
to offer personalized suggestions and advisory for make a significant shift towards value addition.
farmers. Our data-driven app helps in achieving Traceability is the biggest challenge in the export
improvement of production efficiency, quality of markets. Keeping our produce traceable will help
the output, and increased profits. the sector to access better value for the harvest
produce and access premium markets.
How does AquaCRED help the small and
marginal farmers? What are the plans and growth
strategies of the company for the
Lack of formal finance is the biggest problem in upcoming year?
the growth of the Indian Aquaculture sector. This
leads the farmers to depend on informal lenders, Currently, Aquaconnect is working with more
which leads to paying high annualized interest about than 26,000 farmers in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat,
40-60 per cent. AquaCRED provides enhanced access and Andhra Pradesh. We are planning to expand
to farmers to avail formal finance from the banks. Our our operations to the rest of the coastal regions
tech-enabled platform powered by Machine Learning such as Odisha and West Bengal. We have opened
and remote sensing helps banks to build credit Aquaconnect hubs, a one-stop-shop destination
profiles, risk scores to evaluate and monitor portfolios for aquaculture inputs and equipment in Bapatla,
in the near time. This bridges the gap between Ongole, and Avanigadda in Andhra Pradesh. We
farmers and banking, financial services and insurance will be launching 25 hubs in the next two years in
(BFSI) players and enables them to provide loans to Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Gujarat and
farmers. The inclusion of low-interest formal finance aim to engage more than 45000 farmers. Wider
de-risks the system and eliminates the sectors’ launch of AquaBazar, an e-bidding platform that
dependency on informal lenders. AquaCRED further connects seafood buyers directly to the farmers is
helps the insurers to create customized insurance for also in the pipeline.
the aquaculture farmers.
Dipti Barve
[email protected]

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com W E B I N A R 41

Bengaluru Tech Summit 2020

"Our local tech solutions have

the potential to go global"

The 23rd Edition of Bengaluru Tech The Prime Minister, Narendra Modi
Summit 2020 (BTS-2020), Asia's speaking after virtually inagurating the
Largest Technology Event, Bengaluru Bengaluru Tech Summit, in New Delhi on
Tech Summit 2020, was organized November 19, 2020.
by the Government of Karnataka along with
Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society November 21. Dr Murali Muthuswamy, former
(KITS), Karnataka government’s Vision Group on President, Association of Biotechnology Led
Information Technology, Biotechnology & StartUp, Enterprises (ABLE), India hosted the webinar
Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) and MM and set the agenda.
Activ Sci-Tech Communications. The theme of this
year’s summit is "Next is Now". The summit was Participating in the discussion, Dr
held virtually for three days with opening remarks Meenakumari B, Former Chairperson of the
from Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi on National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) spoke
November 19, 2020 and concluded successfully extensively about the Biological Diversity Act
on November 21, 2020. This first virtual version formulated in 2002. Ashish Paradkar, Director &
of the event was curated by MM Activ Sci-Tech Head, Research and Development at Novozymes,
Communications, the Event Partners. put forth some expectations vis-a-vis some
positive changes he would like to see approvals
Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi in the regulations. Rita Teotia, Chairperson,
inaugurated the Bengaluru Tech Summit 2020 in Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
the presence of Scott Morrison, Prime Minister (FSSAI), extolled, at length, about Cell based
of Australia, Guy Parmelin, Vice President of meat' and cultured meat, which is quickly making
Swiss Confederation and Ravi Shankar Prasad, headway in the society. The opinions expressed
Union Minister for Communications, Electronics by the panelists have brought the challenges and
and Information Technology, and Law & Justice. gaps in the regulations and the expectations of
The inauguration function was presided by B S the industry as a whole which needs to be jointly
Yediyurappa, Chief Minister of Karnataka and addressed by the governmental bodies and
also graced by Dr C.N. Ashwath Narayan, Deputy respective industry stakeholders.
Chief Minister and Minister for IT, BT and S&T,
Government of Karnataka and Jagadish Shettar, Nitesh Pillai
Minister of Large and Medium Scale Industries and [email protected]
Public Enterprises, Government of Karnataka.

Addressing the Tech Summit, the Prime
Minister said “India is uniquely positioned to
leap ahead in the information era. India has the
best minds as well as the biggest market.” He
pointed out that our local tech solutions have the
potential to go global. He stressed that it is time
for tech-solutions that are designed in India to be
deployed for the world.

As part of BTS-2020, quite a few webinars,
live panel discussions and recorded speeches
were showcased in varied fields of industry.
Among them, a webinar on ‘Regulatory
Challenges to Growth in Biotech’ was held on

42 P E O P L E N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Board of IDF Narendra Singh Tomar
elects NDDB assumes charge of MoFPI
chairman
Dilip Rath On September 23, the Union Minister of Agriculture and
Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar assumed charge
Dilip Rath, Chairman, National as the Minister of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) in
Dairy Development Board Panchsheel Bhawan. The Minister met all the senior officials
(NDDB) has been unanimously and reviewed the schemes of
elected to the Board of the ministry. Tomar is currently
International Dairy Federation holding the charge of the Minister
(IDF) on November 2, 2020 of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare,
during the General Assembly Minister of Rural Development,
of IDF. Rath said, “I see my and Minister of Panchayati Raj.
election to the IDF Board as The post was vacant with the
an opportunity to bring along resignation of the Shiromani Akali
valuable insights from the Dal (SAD) Member of Parliament
Indian dairy experience and and Food Processing Minister
foster complementarities and Harsimrat Kaur Badal from the
synergies between dairying Union Cabinet on September 17
nations. It is a privilege for in protest against the passing of two Farm Bills in Lok Sabha
me to represent the world’s on September 16. Speaking on the occasion, Tomar said that
largest milk producing Food processing Industry is in the growing stages and MoFPI
nation and contribute to is making all efforts and contributing towards creation of new
promoting Sustainable Goals opportunities of employment for youth, bringing profits to our
of dairying and also meet the farmers by offering remunerative prices to them, making the
UN Sustainable Development goods available for its consumers etc.
Goals. I keenly look forward
to furthering IDF Board’s IVPA re-elects Sudhakar
mandate.” Dilip Rath is Rao Desai as president
associated with IDF for the last
10 years as Member Secretary Sudhakar Rao Desai, Chief Executive
of Indian National Committee Officer (CEO) of Emami Agrotech
and as a member of the Ltd, has been re-elected unanimously
Standing Committee on Dairy as the President of Indian Vegetable
Policy and Economics. He oil Producers’ Association (IVPA).
has participated in National Vipin Gupta, CEO, Louis Dreyfus
Committee Secretaries’ Commodities India Pvt Ltd, has been
meetings as well as the General re-elected unopposed as the Vice-
Assembly on numerous President of the IVPA. The 43rd
occasions. annual general body meeting of IVPA
elected the office-bearers for 2020-
21, the IVPA release said. The team IVPA made the requisite
efforts in the imposition of safeguard duty and later in bringing
the RBD Palm/Palmolein into the restricted list much to the
cheer of the domestic industry in line with the ‘Make in India’
policy, stated the release. IVPA worked towards suspension
of the import licences and removal of the stock limits in oils.
IVPA has taken up strongly the issue of zero duty imports from
the SAFTA countries. This has been causing price and margin
injury to the domestic industry and indirectly hurting the
farming community in the domestic oilseed sector.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com T E C H N O L O G Y N E W S 43

ICAR-DMAPR partners with IPFT

The Indian Council of of insecticides / adjuvant / synergist / botanicals
/ entomopathogens by the ICAR-DMAPR and
Agricultural Research- formulation technology of formulation by the IPFT
and subsequently, product development and its
Directorate of Medicinal commercialization for farmers and stakeholders. Dr
Satyajit Roy, Director, ICAR-DMAPR emphasized
and Aromatic Plants that the partnership programme would trigger
the indigenous formulation technologies based on
Research (ICAR- medicinal and aromatic plants. Dr Jitendra Kumar,
Director, IPFT said that the association will go a
DMAPR), Anand, Gujarat, long way in the area of research and development
and other outreach programmes.
signed a Memorandum

of Understanding (MoU)

with the Institute of Pesticide

Formulation Technology (IPFT), Gurugram,

Haryana on October 28, 2020. The MoU aims at

facilitating the field testing of new formulation

Praj Praj Industries’ demonstration plant that deploys innovative technology
unveils for the production of Compressed Biogas (CBG) was recently inaugurated
technology by Union Minister Prakash Javadekar. Located in the Praj Matrix R&D
to produce campus, the plant deploys Praj’s technology, which utilises a proprietary
biogas microbial consortium made from feedstock such as agri residues and press
mud. Also known as Renewable Natural Gas (RNG), CBG forms part of
from Praj’s Bio-Mobility portfolio, which uses captive bio based feedstock to
biomass produce carbon neutral transportation fuel across all modes of mobility.
Further, with India committed to reduce its GHG emissions by 30-35
per cent by 2030, it has become imperative to commercialise alternative
indigenous energy sources derived from advanced biofuels technologies.
Moreover, biofuels like CBG produced from agricultural crop waste is also
an alternative to the burning of agri residue after harvesting. Since the
last 20 years, Praj has executed more than 50 biogas plants, most of them
operating on industrial waste streams.

IIT Guwahati develops technology to
make psychoactive drugs

Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (IIT-G) (caffeine) and anti-
researcher has developed a low-cost membrane
technology to produce psychoactive drugs and anti- aging compounds
aging compounds from wide range of agricultural
resources like camellia sinensis, citrus fruits and (flavonoids) are
peels especially orange peels, berries, ginkgo biloba,
parsley, pulses, tea, sea buckthorn and onions. attributed to stimulating
The technology has been patented and developed
by Prof. Mihir Kumar Purkait, Head, Centre for detoxification of enzyme activity
the Environment, and Professor, Department
of Chemical Engineering, IIT Guwahati, along and inhibition of cell invasion and
with his M Tech student V L Dhadge. The low-
cost technology doesn’t use any organic solvents. angiogenesis. Because of medicinal applications,
The health-related benefits of psychoactive drugs
flavonoid components have gained popularity as

ingredients in the pharmaceutical industry. These

are also found in smaller amounts in bamboo

leaves, grapes, apples, and other natural sources.

The patented membrane based green technology

has enormous scope to replace existing costly

organic solvent based techniques.

44 T E C H N O L O G Y N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Gauhati University researchers patent
new biological pesticide

The Government of India has issued a patent to Northeast, tea plants are colonized by a large variety
a new biological pesticide developed by a team of of pest species, including the tea mosquito bug, the
researchers from Gauhati University. The team red spider mite, pink mites, the red slug caterpillar,
of researchers, which includes Novonita Baruah, the looper, the green leaf hopper, etc. Among
Alak Chandra Deka, Mohan Chandra Kalita these, the red spider mite (oligonychus
and Jogen Chandra Kalita have developed coffeae) is one of the most destructive
a biological pesticide to control red pests in all the tea-growing regions
spider mites that attack tea bushes of the Northeast. A large number of chemical
and cause heavy crop loss annually. pesticides (insecticides and acaricides) are used
The new pesticide is a low-cost for controlling red spider mites and such insects,
bio-formulation created with an eventually, develop resistance to these chemicals
indigenous fungal bio-agent. In the when used excessively.

Govt allows ICRISAT Netafim India
to use drones for launches FlexNet
agri-research
Netafim India, a leading smart irrigation
The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) and solution provider, has launched FlexNet, a
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have revolutionary mainline and sub-main line
granted conditional exemption to the International piping for above and below-ground drip
Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid irrigation systems for Indian farmers to
Tropics(ICRISAT), Hyderabad, Telangana for the make farming simplified. This multifaceted
deployment of drones for agricultural research piping solution could be adapted for any
activities. Amber Dubey, Joint Secretary, Ministry type of Rabi, Kharif, vegetables, cucurbits, or
of Civil Aviation said, “Drones are poised to other crops varieties that use drip irrigation
play a big role in the agriculture sector in India in the row beds. FlexNet differs from the
especially in areas like precision agriculture, traditional Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) as
locust control and improvement in crop yield. The well as lay flat tubing systems majorly in
government is encouraging young entrepreneurs terms of portability and convenience. One
and researchers to look at ruggedized low-cost of the most salient aspects of the product is
drone solutions for the over 6.6 lakh villages in that due to its light weight and sturdiness,
India.” The conditional exemption is valid for 6 installation and usability becomes much
months from the date of issue of the letter or until expedient for farmers. Due to low product
the full operationalization of Digital Sky Platform weight, customized outlet spacing, and
(Phase-1), whichever is earlier. This exemption specially designed drip line connectors,
shall be valid only if all conditions and limitations farmers could easily layout and retrieve
are strictly adhered to, as stated in the letter. In these portable pipes. These features reduce
case of violation of any condition, this exemption the installation time and manpower-cost up
shall become null and void. to 30 per cent for farmers when compared to
a typical PVC and layflat installation.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com A C A D E M I A N E W S 45

ICAR-SBI ICAR conducts 111th Agri
commences Foundation course
'Crosses for
Fluff Supply The 111th Foundation Course for Agricultural Research Service
Programme' (FOCARS) was held on November 12, 2020 at the ICAR-National
Academy of Agricultural Research Management, Hyderabad. Dr
Despite the prevailing COVID-19 Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary, Department of Agricultural
situation, the ICAR-Sugarcane Research and Education (DARE) & Director General, Indian
Breeding Institute (SBI), Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) interacted with the
Coimbatore has started making Scientist-Probationers undergoing the course and urged
crosses since the first week them to take cognizance of the various concerns associated
of November, at the National in the Indian agricultural sector and come up with innovative
Hybridization Garden facility ideas to address them. Dr Mohapatra highlighted the need
for the fluff supply programme for building the core competencies in preparing competitive
by following all precautionary project proposals, science communication, nurturing agri-
measures. This year, since entrepreneurs, developing startups and using frontier tools like
the COVID-19 related travel IoT, AI and BlockChain Technology. He outlined the initiatives
restrictions, the ICAR-SBI has taken for enhancing the production of pulses and oilseeds in
taken-up the responsibility the past 4 to 5 years and reiterated the government’s resolve to
of making the crosses for the achieve self-sufficiency in oilseeds by 2030. He also stressed on
entire country. Dr Bakshi Ram, the need for engagements with the private sector for the funding
Director, ICAR-SBI, Coimbatore, of agricultural research.
highlighted the supply of the
seed (fuzz) from the crosses ICAR-ATARI holds
made under the National 'Awareness Programme
Hybridization Garden (NHG) to on Farm Acts - 2020'
the respective research stations
for raising the progenies and to The ICAR-Agricultural Technology Application Research
select superior, locally adapted Institute (ATARI), Pune, Maharashtra and Krishi Vigyan
varieties. Coimbatore is the only Kendra (KVKs), Navsari, Gujarat jointly organized a 'State
place in India having the climatic Level Webinar for Creating Awareness on Farm Acts-2020'
condition more conducive for on October 30, 2020. Dr Z P Patel, Vice-Chancellor, Navsari
profuse flowering and excellent Agricultural University, Navsari, Gujarat, urged the farmers
seed setting of sugarcane. A to accept the Farm Acts in their best interest. He stressed
NHG was established at ICAR- that the Acts have been implemented at the right time for
SBI in 1974 for enabling the the right cause, in order to make farming more remunerative
sugarcane breeders from 24 State and give freedom to farmers to sell their farm produce across
Sugarcane Research Stations the states. Over 200 farmers virtually participated in the
across the country to make webinar. Amitaben Patel, District President, Navsari narrated
crosses of their choice. the benefits of Farm Act-2020, stressing on empowering the
farm women on the Agriculture Bills and joining hands for
constituting the Farmers’ Producers’ Organizations. Dr Lakhan
Singh, Director, ICAR-ATARI, Pune urged all the KVKs to
create awareness on the New Farm Acts by using the different
social / digital platforms in local languages.

46 A C A D E M I A N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

ICRISAT wins the Inspire ARS spearheads
Challenge by the CGIAR research to
Big Data Platform reduce allergenic
potential of
A collaboration between Chennai based startup Pure Scan AI peanuts
and Hyderabad based International Crops Research Institute
for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) to create a portable Peanut allergies are a serious
aflatoxin detector has won the Inspire Challenge by the CGIAR health threat, and consuming
Big Data Platform at the recent Big Data Convention, earning even a trace amount has the
a $ 100,000 grant to build and scale up the device. Utilizing potential to cause a life-
the blacklight fluorescence feature of aflatoxin, this device threatening reaction. In the
captures the fluorescence by cameras with filters. Images are past 20 years, peanut allergies
processed and the fluorescence degree and pattern are fed have tripled in the United
into a learning model that predicts the quantity of aflatoxin States, said Soheila Maleki, a
present in the sample to an accuracy of 1 part per billion error chemist with the Agricultural
margin. This is the first time ICRISAT has won an Inspire Research Service (ARS). ARS
Challenge award. Aflatoxin – a carcinogenic mycotoxin found scientists are researching
in groundnut (and other produce e.g. maize, chillies, rice, tree solutions to prevent or treat
nuts etc.) produced by a fungus Aspergillus flavus – can cause peanut allergies and methods
liver damage, malnutrition, immune suppression and cancer. to create a safer peanut
Aflatoxin contamination is also responsible for millions of through food processing
dollars in trade loss for farmers, processors and exporters. and crossbreeding cultivars
with naturally lower levels
Crop Science publishes of allergens to develop
Indian research on a hypoallergenic peanut
'Promising Wheat Lines' plant. At the ARS Southern
Regional Research Center in
Landmark research study led by Prof. K C Bansal, Former New Orleans, LA, a team of
Director, ICAR-NBPGR has been published in the world ARS researchers, including
renowned journal, 'Crop Science', published by the Crop Maleki, has been involved in
Science Society of America, USA. It has also been featured on ongoing research to develop
the Cover Page of the journal. The study involved scientists immunotherapeutic tools for
from the ICAR-NBPGR and wheat researchers across the the treatment of peanut and
country. It was completed at the national level at different tree nut allergies, improve
hotspots from resistance to diseases, heat stress and identified diagnostics of peanut and tree
promising lines. The national wheat improvement programme nut allergies, and understand
in the country has contributed significantly towards achieving the mechanisms of cross-
food security since the advent of the green revolution in the reactivity of peanut-allergic
1960s. However, there has always been a need for sustainable individuals with tree nuts.
wheat production in this era of climate change by developing Maleki and colleagues in
high yielding thermo-tolerant varieties with durable disease Spain showed that cooking
resistance and with the capacity to produce more with less peanuts under high heat
water and fertilizers. This was a gigantic task and pressure could reduce
and never attempted before involving allergenic potential.
all (about 22,000) wheat
accessions conserved in
the National Gene
Bank at ICAR-
NBPGR, New Delhi.

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com A G R I I N P U T S N E W S 47

Mahindra & Mahindra launches
Krish-e centres in Telangana, AP

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd’s Farm Equipment Mahindra & Mahindra said, "We are happy that
Sector (FES) has launched six Krish-e centres in Krish-e is rolling out its centres in the 75th year
Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. These e-centres of the Mahindra Group. Krish-e is an innovative
are located in Mahbubnagar,
Miryalaguda and Kamareddy towns new business vertical conceived with
in Telangana and Tadepalligudem, the idea of ushering in a new digital
Nandyal and Tenali in Andhra age of farming in India”. Sikka
Pradesh (AP). These centres are added that it aims to transform the
part of Mahindra's new 'farming lives of farmers, by helping them
as a service' business. Krish-e is a business adopt better and more effective
vertical that provides technology driven services, farming techniques that are powered by Artificial
which are progressive, affordable and accessible Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and
to farmers. Hemant Sikka, President, FES, digital solutions, which are affordable and
accessible.

New Holland Bayer launches Ethiprole
Agriculture adds manufacturing unit in Vapi
new model to its T6
tractor range The German agrochemicals major Bayer,
recently inaugurated a new plant at its Vapi
New Holland Agriculture extends its site in Gujarat. The plant will manufacture
Ethiprole, an active ingredient used in
acclaimed all-purpose T6 tractor range with insecticides for crop protection products. Set
up with an investment of 24 million euros,
a new 6-cylinder model, the T6.160 Dynamic the plant’s annual production capacity is
1,500 metric tons. It will cater to domestic
Command in Europe. This unique tractor demand in India and also export to global
markets across Asia Pacific and Latin America.
combines the high performance of the proven The Vapi site is an integral part of Bayer’s
commitment towards the government’s vision
NEF 6-cylinder engine with New Holland’s of ‘Make in India’ that aims to promote job
creation and build best-in-class manufacturing
exclusive Dual Clutch and CVT technology to infrastructure, ensuring sustained growth
of the Indian economy. Ethiprole-based
deliver high efficiency and productivity. This insecticides have been in use since 1994. In
2010, Bayer had expanded its portfolio of
comes in a compact package with a 2.6-metre Ethiprole insecticides to include broad acre
crops such as sugarcane, soybean, corn and
wheelbase and 10.5 tonnes Gross Vehicle Weight. cotton. In rice, they are used extensively for
control of three major insect pests, namely,
The T6 range now offers two six-cylinder models hoppers, weevils and stinkbugs.

with Dynamic Command: the existing 145-hp

T6.180 and the new 135-hp T6.160 – the only

compact 6-cylinder tractor on the market with

rated power below 140 hp. The T6.160 Dynamic

Command will be available in the second half of

2021.The T6.160 Dynamic Command features

the proven, powerful NEF 6-cylinder 6.7 litre

engine that generates 135 rated horsepower and

delivers a strong pulling

away performance, engine

stability with fluctuating

loads, and effective

engine braking

in downhill

operation and

transport.

48 A G R I I N P U T S N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

Escorts Agri Domestic tractor sales up by
Machinery 10-12% in Q2 FY21: CRISIL
posts 2.3%
rise in sales As per the latest report by Credit Rating Information Services
in Oct '20 of India Limited (CRISIL), domestic tractor sales volume
should recover faster than expected and notch up 10-12 per
Escorts' Agri Machinery cent growth this fiscal, compared with a de-growth of 1 per
(EAM) segment announced cent estimated earlier, as a raft of tailwinds lifts farm incomes
that the company has sold despite COVID-19. Higher volume and improved product mix
13,664 tractors in October will drive expansion in operating margin of tractor makers,
2020, which is the company's supporting credit profiles. Good monsoon and higher crop
highest ever October sales and production generally support farm incomes and provide a fillip
registered a growth of 2.3 per to tractor demand. In the just-past rabi season, crop production
cent from 13,353 tractors sold surged a significant 7 per cent on-year. This is reflected in
in October 2019. Sequentially, the strong pick-up in tractor sales volume
the company's tractor sales in the second quarter of this fiscal
surged 15.3 per cent in October despite a sharp de-growth in the first
2020 from 11,851 units sold quarter due to pandemic-related
in September 2020. Domestic containment measures. In April-
tractor sales in October September, industry volume was up
2020 was at 13,180 tractors, 12 per cent on-year. Tractor volumes
registering a growth of 1.1 may continue to grow for the rest of
per cent from 13,034 tractors this fiscal given good crop prospects
sold in October 2019. Export over the medium term and timely
tractor sales in October 2020 government interventions.
was at 484 tractors, 51.7 per
cent higher than 319 tractors IFFCO slashes price of NP
exported in October 2019. fertilizers nationwide
As per a company statement,
despite operating at near-full The Indian Farmers Prime Minister Narendra
capacity, the demand has still
outpaced supply resulting in Fertilizer Cooperative Modi’s vision of doubling
lower-than-normal inventories.
Festival period of Navratri (IFFCO) has announced the the farmers’ income by
and Dussehra witnessed good
footfalls, however sales even reduction of Rs 50 per bag in 2022. The cooperative
prior to that remained buoyant.
Higher crop production, the price of NP 20:20:0:13 revealed that it will keep on
good crop prices, sufficient
availability of water and easy Ammonium Phosphate reducing prices for farmers,
availability of finance also
contributed favourably. Sulphate fertilizers across wherever possible. Recently

India with immediate effect in September, 2020 IFFCO

on all stocks. According had also announced that

to an IFFCO statement, they will not increase the

the cost has been reduced price of Diammonium

by Rs 1000 per tonne as Phosphate (DAP) and

a supportive measure to nitrogen phosphorus

farmers. Sulphur is a key potassium (NPK) fertiliser

input nutrient for the soil in this rabi season.

and is also very important

for all types of oilseeds

crops. It improves the

quality of the crops and

also helps in the good

growth of the plants. This

reduction is in line with

AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com S U P P LY C H A I N N E W S 49

S4S Technologies aims to
reduce food waste across India

S4S Technologies, a Mumbai-based company relies aspiring to empower rural women and reduce food
on innovative technology to restore and add value waste with their patented solar conduction dryer.
to India's agricultural supply chain. The company The technology allows agri-entrepreneurs to easily
closed a $1.75 million pre-series A round on October dehydrate produce, extending its shelf life up to
16, 2020, led by Acumen Fund and joined by return one year without adding any chemicals. S4S offers
investor Factor[e] Ventures and (C-SAW),
to expand into new markets and improve a suite of solutions across the value chain to
their technology and consumable product improve the way produce is graded, sorted,
offerings. Factor[e] Ventures first invested preserved, processed, and consumed by
in the company in 2018 when the company over one million people in India. They are
consisted of Dr Vaibhav Tidke and a group supporting hundreds of female agri-
of technical and operational experts, entrepreneurs and providing dehydrated
products to over 650 industry customers.

IIT Kharagpur develops biodegradable

food packaging material

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur nanomaterial has addressed this challenge.
researchers, Prof Jayeeta Mitra and N Sai Food packaging materials require nano-filler
Prasanna, have developed cellulose nanocrystals reinforced bio-composites, which can be
from cucumber peels with high cellulose derived from the cellulose widely available
content, compared to other peel wastes, which from the outer skin of fruits and vegetables.
can be used to create food packaging materials. These cellulose fibres can be used to produce
While single-use plastic is consciously being cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs), bio-based
avoided by consumers, they still remain largely nanomaterials with defined nano-scale
in circulation as food packaging items. Natural structural dimensions. They are
biopolymers are unable to make way in this produced through controlled
industry as they lack strength, elongation, acid hydrolysis, which removes
barrier property, optical property, and in some amorphous regions, and produces
cases even biological safety. The cellulose more crystalline regions.

Ninjacart, Kilofarms jointly produce
first set of ‘Residue-Free’ tomatoes

Ninjacart, India’s largest B2B fresh produce free including muskmelon, watermelon, chillies,
supply chain company, has produced its first set of potatoes, ridge gourd, ladies finger by February 2021,
Residue-Free tomatoes in partnership with agri- and 18 more crops by mid of next year. Residue-
tech platform Kilofarms. The set has been tested free vegetables are grown with optimal farm inputs
and cleared by Shriram Institute for Industrial that do not contain any harmful chemicals and are
Research, Bangalore, and also meets the 2013- not necessarily organic. Residue-free vegetables
14 National Bank for Agriculture and Rural and fruits are exported from India, but for local
Development (NABARD) testing list criteria
in order to be safely tagged as residue- consumers, these methods were not being utilized
free consumable produce.Ninjacart, to the fullest potentials. Tech-enabled methods
along with its associate partner such as automated drip irrigation to assist
Kilofarms, is optimistic in cultivating farmers in achieving the finest grade of
8 more crops that will be residue- fresh produce through Residue-Free
methods.

50 S U P P LY C H A I N N E W S AGROSPECTRUM | DECEMBER 2020 | www.agrospectrumindia.com

WSI, Syngenta to open new agriculture
crop protection product facility

WSI, one of the largest privately opening is Phase One of the agricultural logistics
held logistics companies in the US industrial project located on a 43-acre, rail accessible
has recently announced that it is site in Mills County in a designated Foreign Trade
expanding its agriculture crop Zone. This phase comprises a distribution building
protection logistics footprint by serving the agricultural industry throughout the
partnering with Switzerland-based Midwest. WSI plans an expansion to include a bulk
tank farm and possibly additional packaging space.
Syngenta, a leader in agriculture innovation, by Syngenta is the initial occupant of the first phase.
opening a state-of-the-art storage and distribution The strategically located distribution center provides
center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The crop protection Syngenta additional capacity and flexibility toward
facility will expand upon an already established, meeting the increasing demand for its innovative
nationwide network for Syngenta and unlock new crop solutions in the US.
growth potential within the agriculture sector. The

Dow, Royal Umbrella collaborate to reduce CO2
emissions with improved packaging

Thailand based Dow recently production. The collaboration material polyethylene rice bags
announced its collaboration utilizes Dow's sustainable made from Dow's innovative
with Royal Umbrella and packaging solution INNATE INNATE precision packaging
Prepack, Thailand’s leading and down-gauging technology. resins. In spite of a reduction
flexible packaging producer The new recyclable rice in thickness, packaging made
under SCG bags will be launched in with Dow's resins will be
Packaging stronger. "In the initial phase,
(SCGP), to 2021 in response to it is anticipated that 300
reduce carbon consumers' demand for metric tonnes of plastics will be
dioxide emissions environmental-friendly reduced, which is equivalent to
by optimizing plastic packaging and to address eliminating 600 metric tonnes
resin used in of carbon or planting more
rice bags as well the partners' sustainability than 237 acres of trees," said
as reducing goals. Royal Umbrella's Chatchai Luanpolcharoenchai,
energy use in President, Dow Thailand.
developmental packaging
is Thailand's first brand
to use multi-layer, mono-

FACT receives 3rd MoP shipment at Tuticorin port

The Fertilizers and Chemicals Travancore Limited of MoP and one parcel of NPK (16:16:16) to meet
(FACT) has recently received the third Muriate the demand of farmers during Kharif. FACT, one of
of Potash (MoP) shipment at Tuticorin port in the first large-scale fertilizer manufacturers of the
Tamil Nadu. Bagging of the 27500 metric tonnes country, has been maintaining good performance
(MT) product is in progress. With this shipment, in the manufacturing and marketing of fertilizers
the total MoP import for the year reached 82000 during the year.
MT. FACT, a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU)
under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers,
had placed orders for import of three shipments
of MoP. MoP, along with FACT's prime product
FACTAMFOS, is a preferred fertilizer combination
by the farmers of South India. The company is
planning for two more parcels during this year.
Earlier the company had imported two shipments