New Delhi, June 19 (IANS). Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday inaugurated the Northeast’s largest organic spice processing unit at Bhoirimbong in Meghalaya’s Ri-Bhoi district. On this occasion, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma and Sikkim Chief Minister P.S. Tamang shells were also present.
This spice processing unit has been built under ‘Eastern Ri-Bhoi Organic Farmer Producer Company’ (FPC). It is a farmers’ own company promoted under the Government of India scheme ‘Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region’ (MOVCD-NER).
The factory is the first organic certified spice processing unit in the North-East and is expected to become a vital institution for the organic farming sector in the region.
According to Finance Minister Sitharaman, it can process more than 10,000 metric tonnes of valuable organic spices (like ginger, turmeric, black pepper and chilli) every year.
Eastern Ri-Bhoi Organic FPC has created infrastructure such as collection and aggregation centres, processing facilities, cold storage, vermicompost unit, hiring center and transportation facilities.
The unit is certified under the ‘National Program for Organic Production’ (NPOP) and EU Organic Standards, giving it direct access to premium domestic and international organic markets.
According to an official statement, this processing facility is expected to directly benefit about 5,500 organic farmers from Meghalaya and the North-East region. This will improve value addition and processing of organic produce, reduce post-harvest losses through modern storage and processing infrastructure, and strengthen aggregation and quality control systems.
Additionally, it will create direct links with national and international buyers, thereby reducing dependence on middlemen and enabling farmers to get better prices.
The statement said that this will also create local employment opportunities in the fields of processing, packaging and logistics and will promote the export of certified organic products from the North-East.
At the same time, according to Spices Board India, the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement (FTA) is expected to significantly increase the export opportunities of Indian spices. Better market access, regulatory cooperation and greater certainty in trade are likely to benefit exporters, farmers and MSMEs across the value chain.
The EU remains one of the highest priced and tightly regulated markets for Indian spices, and accounts for a large share of premium exports.
–IANS
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