Food Processing

The Food Processing sector in India has a quintessential role in linking Indian farmers to consumers in the domestic and international markets. The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) is making all efforts to encourage investments across the value chain. The food processing industry has a share of 12.38% (at 3-digit of NIC classification) in the employment generated in all Registered Factory sector engaging approximately 1.93 Mn people. Unregistered food processing sector supports employment to 5.1 Mn workers as per the NSSO 73rd Round report. Major sectors constituting the food processing industry in India are grains, sugar, edible oils, beverages, and dairy products.

Under PMKSY, 41 Mega Food Parks, 376 Cold Chain projects, 79 Agro-Processing Clusters, 489 proposals under Creation/Expansion of Food Processing & Preservation Capacities (CEFPPC), 61 Creation of Backward and Forward Linkages Projects, 52 Operation Green projects, 183 Food Testing Laboratories projects have been approved across the country.

The key sub-segments of the Food Processing industry in India are Fruits & Vegetables, Poultry & Meat processing, Fisheries, Food retail, dairy industry, etc.

Key facts:

• The total horticulture production is estimated to be 342.33 Mn tonnes in the year 2021-22, showing an increase of about 7.73 Mn tonnes (an increase of 2.3%) over the year 2020-21 (final)
• India ranks 1st in Milk production and the total milk production in the country during 2021-22 is 221.06 Mn tonnes. In the year 2021-22, the milk production has registered an annual growth rate of 5.29%
• In 2021-22, the total egg production in the country is 129.60 Bn which have increased by 6.19% as compared to the previous year
• The fish production in 2021-22 is 16.24 Mn Tonnes comprising of marine fish production of 4.12 mn Tonnes and 12.12 Mn Tonnes from Aquaculture
• Online grocery retail in India has seen a CAGR of over 50% and projected to grow to $10 Bn to 12 Bn by 2025.
• Seafood products export from India during the last three years has increased from $ 6679 mn in FY 2019-20 to an all-time high record figure of $ 7759.58 mn in FY 2021-22. Exports to these three countries contributed 63% of exports.
• The export of other cereals recorded a growth of 13.64% in nine months of the current fiscal.
• Other cereals’ exports increased from $764 Mn in April-December 2021 to $ 869 mn in April-December 2022 and the export of milled products increased from $188 Mn in April-December 2021 to $255 Mn in April-December 2022—registering a growth of 35.71 % in the nine months.
• The total meat production in the country is 9.29 Mn tonnes for the year 2021-22 with an annual growth rate of 5.62%. The total five major meat producing States are Maharashtra (12.25%), Uttar Pradesh (12.14%), West Bengal (11.63%), Andhra Pradesh (11.04%), and Telangana (10.82%)
• As per 4th advance estimates, the estimated production of rice is 130.29 Mn Tonnes, Wheat is 106.84 Mn Tonnes, and Nutri/Coarse cereals is 50.90 Mn Tonnes for the year 2021-22.
• During Sugar Season (SS) 2021-22, India exported 110 LMT sugar and became second largest exporter of sugar in the world and earned about INR 40,000 Cr worth of foreign exchange for the country.
• Non-Basmati Rice has emerged as India’s top export item among the many agricultural and processed food product exports under APEDA basket, with the export of $4,663 Mn in nine months of 2022-23.