The Ministry of Finance has announced the approval of 1,646 food processing projects, including food testing labs and R&D initiatives, under various sub-schemes of the PM Kisan Sampada Yojana. These projects, approved until December 18, 2024, are valued at Rs 31,830.23 crore, with the potential to attract Rs 22,722.55 crore in private investment.

Implemented by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) since 2016-17, the PM Kisan Sampada Yojana aims to increase processing and preservation capacity by 428.04 LMT per annum, create 13.42 lakh jobs, and benefit 51.24 lakh farmers.

The government is committed to driving growth in agriculture and food processing by encouraging both private and public investments in areas such as aggregation, modern storage, efficient supply chains, processing, and marketing. This push is aimed at increasing the level of food processing and enhancing the export of processed foods by creating modern infrastructure with efficient supply chain management from farm gates to retail outlets.

PMFME Yojana: First Scheme for the Unorganised Sector

The PM Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Yojana, a centrally sponsored scheme implemented by MoFPI since 2020-21, provides financial, technical, and business support for upgrading micro food processing enterprises. It is the first-ever scheme for the unorganised sector.

Under the PMFME Yojana, over 3.10 lakh SHGs have received seed capital support, and 1,14,388 individuals have benefited from credit linkage subsidies as of December 18, 2024. The Ministry of Finance also provided updates on financial support for the establishment of 50 multi-product food irradiation units in the MSME sector, as announced in the 2024-25 budget.

An Expression of Interest (EOI) was issued in August 2024 inviting proposals for the establishment of multi-product food irradiation units under the Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure Scheme of PMKSY. So far, 20 project proposals have been received, and they are under scrutiny or evaluation in accordance with the scheme guidelines.

PLI Scheme Update:

Regarding the PLI scheme for the food processing industry, the finance ministry reported that 133 companies are currently covered under the programme. Investments totalling Rs 8,910 crore have been attracted so far, and incentives worth Rs 1,084 crore have been disbursed in 85 eligible cases. (With ANI Inputs)