With the availability of cold storage facilities, exporters would be able to fetch greater profits for high quality products .jpg) In a bid to improve food quality standard in the north eastern region of the country, the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has planned to set up four cold storage facilities in the region. The facilities will be established at the airports of Imphal, Aizwal, Agartala and Dimapur.Impact on exporters
While speaking to a FoodProcessing360 correspondent, Bidyut Baruah, regional manager of APEDA, comments, “The initiative to be undertaken by APEDA will help to preserve floriculture and horticulture products for a long period of time. As a result, the quality of products would be retained while being exported to foreign markets such as Japan and Dubai. APEDA has already introduced the Centre for Perishable Cargo in Kolkata, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Kerala to preserve food products to be exported.”
The facilities will be available at the four airports only after two memoranda of understanding are signed by APEDA and the Airports Authority of India. Thereafter, the Assam government would also have to nominate an agency that would ensure that the cold storage facilities are functioning properly and helping exporters to improve sales in the global market.
“APEDA’s initiative will help exporters to fetch high prices for their supreme quality products, which are at times wasted due to high temperatures during the summer season. As a result, exporters undergo losses as they are left with no other alternative but to sell the products at low rates,” says Bimal Saikia, director of Fresh Foods Pvt Ltd, a mid-sized exporter of fresh vegetables and fruits in Dimapur, Assam.
Cold storage facilities is a necessity in hilly regions like Assam as there are high chances of flights being cancelled due to unfavourable climatic conditions. Therefore, with such facilities available at the airports, exporters would not be required to transport food products back to store houses.
Sabrina Mitchell |
