The India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI) has requested the government to allow buffalo-meat import from India to meet the growing demand of the country, sources said.

 

Recently, IBCCI President Abdul Matlub Ahmad has applied to the commerce ministry, seeking authorization for importing such meat.

 

He said in the letter, 'Some of our members are willing to import frozen halal meat from India. And keeping this in view they have already applied to the Directorate of Livestock for permission under Section 23(33) of the Import Policy Order 2021-2024.'

 

He mentioned that the demand for meat products in Bangladesh had been steadily increasing due to the growth of population and changing dietary preferences.

 

India has a well-established and reputable meat industry that adheres to international standards of halal food, hygiene, safety, and quality control, he also mentioned.

 

The current cost of local fresh meat is Tk 800-850 per kg. If frozen halal boneless buffalo meat is imported from India, the selling price can be fixed at Tk 500-550 per kg, according to the chamber.

 

Mr. Matlub Ahmad said, 'For the upcoming election, price hike has been one of the most discussed topics in the country right now. Keeping this in view, if you allow us to import frozen meat, we can deliver it to the consumers at a cheaper price.'

 

According to the Import Policy-2021-24 notification that was issued in April 2022 by the commerce ministry, prior approval has to be taken from the Department of Livestock for import of meat including frozen buffalo (bovine) meat, said an earlier letter sent by the Indian High Commission in Dhaka.

 

Both Indian exporter and Bangladeshi importer associations raised concern over the issue in the past couple of months, read the letter.

 

Earlier, All Indian Buffalo and Sheep Meat Exporters Association (AIMLEA) and Bangladesh Meat Importers and Traders Association (BMITA) requested the Bangladesh government authorities concerned to consider resolving the issue.

 

The previous letter highlighted that the Bangladesh national budget for the fiscal year 2021-22 imposed 20 per cent supplementary duty along with an increase in the assessment value from US$ 4.0/kg to US$ 5.0/kg that was introduced for frozen boneless bovine meat imports from India. The issue ified the SAFTA benefit available to Indian exporters.

 

It mentioned that Indian companies were among the largest global exporters of high-quality, hygienically processed meat, of a variety that was non-competitive in Bangladesh.

 

Bangladesh is now self-sufficient in meat production, a source said, but it spent nearly US$ 2.5 million in the fiscal year 2017-18 to import the item from 14 countries. Some luxury hotels and food chains import the meat, the source added.

 

The country produced over 8.71 million tonnes of meat in the FY 2022-23 against an annual demand for nearly 7.6 million tonnes, according to the Department of Livestock Services (DLS).

 

According to a Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) concept paper, meat import increased four times in five years - from US$ 0.72 million in FY 2013-14 to nearly US$ 2.5 million in FY 2017-18.

 

Bangladesh imported meat from 14 countries, with India being the largest source.

 

Other countries included Ethiopia, France, Korea, Thailand, China, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the USA, Pakistan, Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.

Bengaluru is all set to host the 5th World Coffee Conference (WCC), an event highlighting the economic importance of growing coffee around the globe. It is for the first time that a global coffee event is being held in India, in Bengaluru and Asia.

 

International Coffee Organization (ICO), in collaboration with the Coffee Board of India, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Karnataka Government and the Coffee Industry, will host the 5th World Coffee Conference (WCC) - 2023 from September 25-28 at Bangalore Palace. It will be a four-day coffee event in Bengaluru which will see the participation of industry leaders, experts, exporters, traders, coffee chain owners, coffee rrowers, coffee roasters, coffee enthusiasts and students.

 

The event will be inaugurated by Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal and is expected to draw participants from over 80 countries, including 2,400 delegates, 117 speakers, 208 exhibitors, 10,000 visitors and over 300 B2B meetings.

 

The conference aims to create pathways to benefiting coffee farmers who play a pivotal role in the coffee production chain. The central theme of the event will be 'Sustainability Through Circular Economy and Regenerative Agriculture'. It is also, dedicated to promote the coffee trade and fostering good relations among coffee-producing and consuming nations.

 

The event will include panel discussions, workshops, competitions, coffee tastings, and an exhibition showcasing unique coffee products and services and networking events which will give expansion opportunities to entrepreneurs, retailers and coffee businessmen. It also offers opportunities to participants like ourselves who are looking to further their coffee knowledge.

 

Coffee Museum will have a dome-shaped structure that will showcase the coffee plantations from India and demonstrate the journey of a coffee bean from its source to the cup.

 

World Coffee Conference will have discussions on crucial matters concerning the global coffee industry.

 

Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal, underlined the Government's commitment to improving the ease of doing business in India, making it easier to start and run businesses. While addressing the Bada Business's ‘Entrepreneurs Launchpad’ event held today in New Delhi, he highlighted the success of the Startup India initiative as the nation has witnessed remarkable growth from 450 startups in 2016 to over 1 lakh today, making India the world's third-largest startup ecosystem.

 

Shri Goyal delivered a motivating address at the event and shared insights from his own entrepreneurial journey and the challenges he encountered along the way. The Minister encouraged all participants to dream big, be resilient, and contribute to India's progress. He expressed his best wishes for their success, envisioning a brighter future for India.

 

Highlighting the global recognition achieved during India's Presidency of the G20, Shri Goyal emphasized how it provided an opportunity to showcase the development undertaken in the nation under the visionary leadership of the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi to the world. He stressed upon the need to achieve ambitious targets, fostering self-respect and a prosperous future through hard work and dedication.

 

The Minister acknowledged the aspirational nature of India's youth, which is eager for rapid development. He emphasized the crucial role of the country's youth as the foundation for India's development in the "Amrit Kaal." With India's average age being less than 30 years and demographic dividend continuing for the next three decades, he expressed confidence that by 2047, India's economy would experience exponential growth.

 

Shri Piyush Goyal pointed out that the world is increasingly attracted to opportunities available in India and its diversity and economic growth. He emphasized that Indian STEM graduates are a global attraction. 

 

Highlighting India's shift away from a colonial mindset, he cited various projects like Bharat Mandapam, Yashobhoomi, Kartavya Path and Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya as signs of this transformative change. He emphasised the Government's commitment to improving the lives of all 140 crore Indians through welfare measures such as power connection, digital connectivity, cooking gas access, piped water supply, and advancements in health and education, all under the leadership of the Prime Minister.

 

Shri Goyal urged all citizens to work with a sense of duty and dedication toward the nation's development. He commended the Entrepreneurship Launchpad for energizing and imparting knowledge to participants, fostering entrepreneurship growth.

Union Finance Minister Ms. Nirmala Sitharaman & Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar unveiled initiatives focused on agri-credit (KCC & MISS) and crop insurance (PMFBY/RWBCIS).

 

The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare launched three initiatives, namely the Kisan Rin Portal (KRP), KCC Ghar Ghar Abhiyaan, an ambitious campaign aiming to extend the benefits of the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme to every farmer across the nation, and a manual on Weather Information Network Data Systems (WINDS). These initiatives aim to revolutionize agriculture, enhance financial inclusion, optimize data utilization, and improve the lives of farmers across the nation.

 

Delivering the keynote address on the occasion, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman assured full cooperation of banks for the success of Ghar Ghar KCC Abhiyan. The finance minister commended the Ministry of Agriculture for its initiatives and successful implementation of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY). She said that over 1,40,000 crores of insurance amount has been disbursed to farmers so far against a premium amount of Rs. 29,000 crores. She also appreciated real-time estimation for rice and wheat crop output and called for the estimation to be extended to Dalhan and Tilhan crops so that better planning can be done for their imports if needed.

 

The finance minister said that real-time estimation of crops will help the economy and ensure the right prices for farmers at the end of the crop season. Sitharaman also called for full automation of regional rural banks and cooperative banks and directed the Department of Financial Services to study the gap between loan sanction and loan disbursement for these banks.

 

Narendra Singh Tomar in his address highlighted the importance accorded to agriculture and rural economy under the current government. He informed that the budget for the Ministry of Agriculture has increased from Rs. 23,000 crore in the year 2013-14 to Rs. 1,25,000 crore in 2023-24. Talking of the WINDS manual, the minister said the aim is to ensure real-time weather information so that farmers can take the right precautions for their crops at the right time. Tomar said that the use of technology and transparency is important for agriculture and this government has taken necessary steps in this regard. The agriculture minister informed that there are around 9 crore beneficiaries under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi and KCC Ghar Ghar Abhiyaan aims to connect around 1.5 crore beneficiaries who are not yet connected to the KCC scheme.

 

What is Kisan Rin Portal (KRP)

Developed collaboratively by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare (MoA&FW), the Department of Financial Services (DFS), the Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAH&D), the Department of Fisheries (DoF), RBI, and NABARD, KRP is poised to revolutionize access to credit services under the Kisan Credit Card (KCC). It will also assist farmers in availing of subsidized agriculture credit through the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme (MISS).

 

The KRP portal serves as an integrated hub, offering a comprehensive view of farmer data, loan disbursement specifics, interest subvention claims, and scheme utilization progress. By fostering seamless integration with banks, this pioneering portal enables proactive policy interventions, strategic guidance, and adaptive enhancements for more focused and efficient agriculture credit and optimum utilization of interest subvention.

 

Ghar-Ghar KCC Abhiyaan: Door to Door KCC Campaign

The event also marks the commencement of the 'Ghar Ghar KCC Abhiyaan,'. MoA&FW’s commitment to universal financial inclusion is underscored by this campaign, ensuring that every farmer has unhindered access to credit facilities that drive their agricultural pursuits. The campaign will begin from 1st October 2023 to 31st December 2023.

 

MoA&FW has diligently verified existing KCC account holders’ data against the PM KISAN database, identifying account holders who match with the PM KISAN database and those who, although PM KISAN beneficiaries, do not have KCC accounts. This campaign plays a pivotal role in reaching out to non-KCC account holder PM KISAN beneficiaries and fostering the saturation of KCC Accounts among eligible PM Kisan beneficiary farmers.

 

Launch of WINDS Manual

The Weather Information Network Data Systems (WINDS) initiative stands as a pioneering effort to establish a network of Automatic Weather Stations and Rain Gauges at the taluk/block and gram panchayat levels. This initiative creates a robust database of hyper-local weather data, supporting various agricultural services.

 

This comprehensive WINDS manual launched today provides stakeholders with an in-depth understanding of the portal’s functionalities, data interpretation, and effective utilization. It guides States and Union Territories in establishing and integrating with the WINDS platform, fostering transparent and objective data observation and transmission. It also offers practical insights into leveraging weather data for improved crop management, resource allocation, and risk mitigation.

The Rajasthan government has drawn out a plan for value addition and export promotion of agricultural commodities.

 

'The plan aims at offering sops to farmers engaged or are planning to enter this field. The government’s main aim is to attract investment in agro-processing along with value addition,' an agriculture department official said.

 

Rajasthan is one of the leading producers of many crops and animal products with a high potential for processing and value addition.

 

The state is one of the top producers of mustard, moth beans, bajra, guar, and Isabgol.

 

In mustard, the state contributes over 43 per cent of the country’s total production, and in guar, its share in the country stands at over 70 per cent.

 

The official pointed out that under the Rajasthan Agro-Processing, Agri-Business and Agri-Export Promotion Policy, 2019, a 50 per cent subsidy in the capital cost is provided to farmers and 25 per cent to non-farmers for agricultural products processing.

 

The government has enhanced this capital subsidy to 75 per cent and 50 per cent for farmers and non-farmers, respectively. The maximum limit of grant is now Rs 1.5 crore.

 

Moreover, to encourage beekeeping, 10,000 farmers of Bharatpur, Shri Ganganagar, Alwar, Dholpur and some other districts will be benefited in the coming year. He said that over Rs 100 crore will be spent on this. 

 

As part of the plan, a centre of excellence for apiculture is proposed at Tonk. Moreover, mini food parks will be set up in select districts, including Jaipur, Sikar and Alwar, among others.

African country Malawi looks to deepen trade and investment relationship with India in areas of energy, agriculture, mining and tourism, its High Commissioner to India Leonard Mengezi said here on Saturday. Mengezi said that Malawi looks forward to cementing the 'great cohesion' with businessmen in Gujarat to further strengthen India-Malawi relationship and attract investment.

 

Mengezi was here to participate in the India-Malawi Trade Conference organised by India Africa Trade Council with the aim to enhance business cooperation with Gujarat. 'Malawi has been in great trade, economic and investment relations (with India) since 1964, when Malawi got its independence. But there is a need to deepen relationships further in the areas of energy, agriculture, mining, tourism,' he told mediapersons.

 

Mangazi said Malawi relies on India for the pharmaceutical industry and patients suffering from critical ailments get treatment here. 'They come to Indian hospitals. Our idea is we bring doctors to help us do operations in Malawi and to deepen relations to that effect. That's the idea that we are coming here for,' he said.

 

Textiles, mechanised agriculture, and tourism are some of the sectors in which Malawi is looking for an investment as the country creates mega farms to produce rice and believes that tourism can benefit by investment in hotels and as a cinema destination, he said

 

On the African Union granting permanent G20 membership, Mengezi said that this will help the countries participate in decision-making and offer them a great opportunity in all areas of life. 'G20 provides a platform for us to make sure that the decisions that are made there also benefit us. ...In a platform that you have, you are able to participate in the decision-making and find your way where investment is required ..India being a friend proposed that thing through Prime Minister Narendra Modi. So we are very grateful, it is a great opportunity in all areas of life,' he said.

 

The conference had the presence of Gujarat-based companies looking to explore opportunities in Malawi. During the day the High Commissioner inaugurated the India Africa Trade Council - Malawi Trade office and presented the certificate of appointment to Sunil Hukumatray Rajdev as the trade commissioner of the Gujarat office. The idea of this conference was to share the business potential of Gujarat and explore opportunities in Malawi. A delegation mainly of Gujarati business was announced to visit Malawi in November this year.

More than 2000 exhibitors are participating in the Uttar Pradesh International Trade Show- a first of its kind event being held in UP to showcase products manufactured in the state to B2B and B2C buyers from India and abroad.

 

The show being held at the India Expo Mart in Greater Noida was inaugurated on Thursday by president Droupadi Murmu. Murmu pointed out that the G20 New Delhi Leaders' Declaration included the goal of local value creation and identifying the challenges faced by MSMEs and connecting MSMEs at the international level and said the trade show would 'advance India's national and international priorities in line with the goals of the G20'.

 

CM Yogi Adityanath in his address at the inaugural ceremony said in the last six years UP has moved from being a Bimaru state to becoming a prosperous state. 'The new UP is presenting itself to the world today by changing its scale into skills now,' he said.

 

More than 70,000 B2B from 70 countries have registered for the trade show, he noted.

 

The show is also expected to give international exposure to the products produced under UP's flagship One District One Product (ODOP) scheme and to 54 GI-tagged products from the state

Market development has been strengthened through the Madhukranti portal where more than 20 lakh growers are registered. Upscaling of the capacity building programmes especially linking women SHGs is also on the cards. Honey production data is generally collected by the National Bee Board (NBB) through the registered growers and only registered growers are involved in the export process.

 

According to the PIB, there are 19.34 lakh honey bee colonies registered with the National Bee Board. India produces about 1.33 lakh tonnes of honey (2021-22 advance estimate) and exports over half of its output, at 74,413 tonnes in 2021-22, worth Rs.1,221 crore. The US constitutes the lion’s share of Indian honey exports (about 80 per cent) and prefers mustard honey, which is primarily used with bread.

 

To ensure checks on the issue of impurity, the Export Inspection Council (EIC) plays an important role through SPS (Sanitary Phytosanitary) measures. Recommended tests like C4, C3, and NMR (Nuclear magnetic resonance) are conducted on honey to detect impurities. However, prices have fallen drastically and growers are not able to cover their expenses.

 

One more important issue to note is the crystallisation of honey, which does not imply adulteration. Pure mustard honey tends to crystallise due to its higher pollen content. The government is also raising awareness about this aspect.

 

Assurances regarding honey’s originality and quality norms can be made through Geographical Indications (GI) tagging.

 

The government has engaged in dialogues with various stakeholders to expedite the process of geographical indications in the honey sector. However, it is surprising to learn that the current number of total GI-tagged agricultural products in India is approximately 450, much behind the leaders Germany and China. Unfortunately, right now there is only a single GI-registered honey product in India, — Marthandam Honey from Tamil Nadu. There are four other honey products in the process of obtaining a GI tag, belonging to Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, and the Jammu region. Almost a decade ago, Cameroon registered its famous Oku honey under geographical indication, which led to improved price realisation.

 

However, researchers have claimed that even the GI tag could not ensure long-term economic viability for honey producers in Cameroon. A holistic development of the value chain, including honey by-products, is vital to ensure sustainability. For instance, Shahi Litchi from Muzaffarpur, Bihar, has a GI tag, but there should also be an emphasis on granting a GI tag for honey produced from it.

 

Booster Strategy

The government needs to prioritise a cluster-based approach to strengthen the Geographical Indication system for honey products. Emphasis must also be granted towards identifying and nurturing specific geographic regions, such as the Himalayan white honey from Himachal Pradesh. Producers are still at the mercy of supply chain agents. GI tag can provide unique identification not only in the domestic market but also in global markets, leading to increased income realisation for producers.

 

However, we should learn from the African example and focus on building more producer-friendly market channels based on quality and origin-based pricing. More emphasis should be placed on empowering the local community, facilitating knowledge exchange, and investing in modern paradigms to drive positive change in this direction.

 

Integrating honey-producing Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), co-operatives with various industries like wine, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals is vital. Sustainable value chain development can uplift small and marginal farmers associated under collectives.

 

The writer is Faculty at Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa, Bihar

The approval was given to six companies to import one crore eggs each, confirmed commerce ministry's Public Relations Officer Md Haider Ali on Thursday (21 September).

 

The companies which were given permission are: Cheese Gallery, Popular Trade Syndicate, M/S Ripa Enterprise, S M Corporation, BDS Corporation and M/s Joynur Traders.

 

According to the commerce ministry, the country's daily demand for eggs stands at four crore, with local production exceeding this demand.

 

However, the Bangladesh Poultry Industry Central Council said the current daily egg production has fallen below four crore pieces due to the closure of many layer farms amid the pandemic.

 

On Wednesday (20 September), the four importers, who were given permission to import four crore eggs, confirmed that poultry eggs will be available for purchase at Tk9-10 each at the retail level starting next week.

 

This decision to permit egg imports came in response to traders who had ignored the government's call to adhere to fixed pricing. Despite the government setting the retail price for each egg at Tk12, eggs continue to be sold in Dhaka at Tk12.50 or even higher.

 

Fisheries and Livestock Minister SM Rezaul Karim previously said the price of eggs should not be more than Tk12 a piece at the retail level as the production cost per egg is around Tk10.50.