Union Minister for Commerce and Industry,  Textiles and Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Shri Piyush Goyal today termed the Union Budget 2022-23 as a direction setting budget, addressing both macro-economic and micro-econimic concerns, looking at inclusive development.

 

Speaking at a Public Function to explain the nuances of the Union Budget in Mumbai today, the Minister said 'the Budget should be seen as an exercise in continuity to make India future ready'.   Recalling Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of converting crisis into opportunity, Shri Goyal said, the Government has been pro-actively announcing new projects and schemes through the year, and Union Budget has attempted to show the way ahead for the next 25 years.

 

Shri Goyal said the budget has laid a big thrust on infrastructure development and highlighted the importance of the PM Gati Shakti National Plan. He said the plan will leverage data and inter-connected national maps to better align infrastructure projects.

 

Explaining how the nation adopted to the Covid 19 pandemic by swiftly moving to remote working mode, Shri Goyal asserted that India did not let down a single international obligation, thanks to Digital India and thrust given on expansion of broadband connectivity.  He said despite the pandemic, India’s services export remained robust and would achieve $240 bn target.

 

Shri Goyal said that India produces second highest number of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) graduates and this should encourage us to become not only the Start-up Capital but also the R&D and innovation hub.

 

The Commerce & Industry Minister further added that India has been working on a number of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs). Citing the India-UAE FTA, Shri Goyal said the entire process was completed in just 88 days. He informed that India-Australia FTA is also in advanced stage of finalization.  FTAs with UK, Canada are also in the pipeline, even as GCC also wants to sign an FTA with India 'The world wants to work with us, we have to seize the initiative' the Minister added.

 

The Minister also spoke about the enhanced capital spending of Rs 10.5 lakh crores provided by the Budget 2022-23 to have a multiplier effect of 3-4 times, leading to enhanced demand and increased job opportunities benefitting all people.

Thirty-Nine (39) Towns have been recognized as Towns of Export Excellence (TEE) under the Foreign Trade Policy 2015-20 (extended up to 31.03.2022). The list of Towns of Export Excellence (TEE) and their details are at Annexure I.

 

Towns of Export Excellence (TEE) can avail benefits under Para 1.35 (b) of Foreign Trade Policy i.e.,

 

(i) Recognized associations of units in Towns of Export Excellence can avail financial assistance under Market Access Initiative (MAI) scheme, on priority basis, for export promotion projects for marketing, capacity building and technological services.

 

(ii) Common Service Providers in the Towns of Export Excellence are entitled for Authorisation under Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Scheme.

 

Details of benefits extended to the Towns of Export Excellence (TEE) by DGFT Regional offices is at Annexure II.

 

Towns producing goods of Rs. 750 Crore or more can be recognised as Towns of Export Excellence (TEE) based on potential for growth in exports. However, for Town of Export Excellence (TEE) in Handloom, Handicraft, Agriculture and Fisheries sector, the threshold limit is Rs.150 Crore. The notification of Towns of Export Excellence (TEE) is done in Appendix 1B of Foreign Trade Policy based on the proposals received from the Industry Association and in consultation with other stakeholders.

As non-basmati rice shipments clock a 52 per cent growth in the first nine months on robust purchases by countries such as China and Bangladesh, exporters are hopeful of exceeding the targeted 16 million tonnes (mt) for the current fiscal.

 

Non-basmati rice shipments crossed 12.53 mt in April-December 2021 as compared to 8.25 million tonnes in the same period last year. In value terms, the non-basmati rice shipments were up 46 per cent at $4.48 billion as compared to $3.07 billion in same period last year. In 2020-21, India’s non-basmati rice exports stood at 13.08 mt valued at $4.796 billion compared with 5.03 mt valued at $2.034 billion in the previous year.

 

'We were targetting 16 million tonnes for the current financial year. Going by the current trend, the shipments may touch 17 million tonnes,' BV Krishna Rao, President of The Rice Exporters Association, said.

 

Top buyers

 

Largest buyer this year, so far, Bangladesh has purchased a record 1.53 mt against a mere 13,811 tonnes in the same period last year. In value terms, the Bangladesh rice purchases were over $596 million ($13.47 million).

 

'Bangladesh, which has been an aggressive buyer since January last year, has slowed down purchases now. China’s purchases are seen topping a million tonnes. We feel China’s purchases will be more as long as the corn prices are high. China is buying brokens to meet the feed requirements,' Rao said.

 

China has imported about 9.05 lakh tonnes in April-December compared with 33,705 tonnes in the same period last year. In value terms, China’s rice buys from India has exceeded $275 million ( $10.29 million).

 

Similarly, other countries which have scaled up their purchases include Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Senegal, Somalia and Indonesia among others.

 

Vietnam has bought over half a million tonnes during April-Dec this year, more than eleven times that of the same period previous year. Vietnam imported 5.66 lakh tonnes valued at $187 million as compared to 48,581 tonnes valued at $15.4 million in the previous year.

 

Some markets like Nepal, Mozambique are stable, while several countries including Malaysia, Togo, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Russia and Iraq have scaled down their purchases.

 

Crop projections

 

As per the first advance estimates, India is expected to harvest a record 107.04 mt of rice, the main kharif cereal crop. Kharif planting of rice was at a record 411.46 lakh ha over the normal area of 395.66 lakh ha. However, in the ongoing rabi season, the rice acreage has seen a decline at 23.61 lakh ha as on January 21, over the normal area for the season of 42.5 lakh ha.

Exports of major agriculture and processed products, broadly divided under 27 categories by Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), are likely to perform better in the current fiscal than even previous year when there was record 23.8 per cent growth mainly due to low base effect, indicating $60 billion target is still achievable.

 

The APEDA-promoted products have nearly 50 per cent share in the country’s overall agricultural export of $41.25 billion (in 2020-21), whereas marine products are the second most contributor with 14 per cent share, followed by spices with 10 per cent share.

 

During April-November 2021-22, APEDA’s exports grew by 24.86 per cent to $15.16 billion from the corresponding period. Exports of marine products registered a growth of 35 per cent to $6.1 billion during April-December FY22 compared with $4.5 billion year-ago.

 

A maiden export policy for the farm sector was announced in 2018 with the target to double the agricultural exports to $ 60 billion by 2022-23.

 

Diverse products

 

'The very fact that the share of top 10 products in our basket have declined during eights months until November shows that the performance of other products have gone up. This is a good sign as it proves the potential of diverse products the country have and a little bit of extra focus will make a big difference in the next few years,' said M Angamuthu, chairman of APEDA.

 

In the current fiscal, the exports of top 10 products such as basmati and non-basmati rice, buffalo meat, groundnuts, processed fruits and vegetables, maize, fresh onions, juices and nuts have increased by 13.3 per cent to $11.16 billion (April-November) and having a share of 74 per cent, whereas the share of the top 10 products was 81 per cent in the year-ago period. But, the top 10 products in last fiscal grew by 31.4 per cent to $16.26 billion compared with the previous year.

 

On the high growth of agri products last year, Angamuthu said: 'The base was low as exports had dropped in 2019-20 to $16.7 billion from a level of over $19 billion. Besides, the demand also was quite high after the pandemic as there was real concern for food products, globally. It was a big challenge for us to sustain the growth momentum of last year and so far our efforts have been successful.' APEDA is positive for the remaining period of this fiscal, too, he said.

 

Commenting about performance of India's export in top 10 countries, Angamuthu said APEDA products to Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong, Iraq and Iran have recorded negative growth this year (April- November), from the year-ago period, while it is higher in remaining six countries – the US, the UAE, Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia. Agri exports to Bangladesh have increased over three times to $1.87 billion from $524.61 million. Shipments to the UAE, Indonesia and Malaysia have registered over 30 per cent growth during this period.

Many Kashmir farmers have been deterred from engaging in saffron cultivation as a result of the selling of cheaper and inferior Iranian saffron in the Indian capital market and throughout the world. Iranian saffron is up to 48% cheaper than Kashmiri saffron, and it controls 95% of the global market. 

 

Saffron Cultivation and Major regions 

 

Saffron is grown mostly in three districts: Pulwama, Srinagar, and Budgam, and covers 3,715 hectares. Pampore, a township in Pulwama district, yields the most saffron in the Region, with roughly 3,200 hectares of land underneath cultivation. Saffron is grown on 165 and 300 hectares in Srinagar and Budgam, respectively Kishtwar is the sole district in the Jammu region to grow the spice on 50 hectares. 

 

When the purple harvest arrives in fall, the flowers are plucked, the crimson red stigma is withdrawn, and the stigma is dried for days until it reduces to the size of a slender thread. Saffron stigmas weigh roughly 2 mg each, and each blossom has three stigmata?usually. 

 

Because of the increased percentage of crocin, a carotenoid pigment that gives saffron its color and medicinal benefits, Kashmiri saffron is of a better grade. It contains 8.72 percent crocin, contrasted to 6.82 percent in the Iranian variant, giving it a deeper color and more medicinal value. 

 

National Saffron Mission and increase in production 

 

The last time Kashmir produced 15 metric tonnes of saffron annually was in 1996 when the average yield was 2.80 kg per hectare and the farmed area was 5,707 hectares. 

 

Saffron output fell by 35% (10.40MT) till?2010, as the planted area reduced to just 3,715 hectares. The Ministry of Agriculture launched the Rs 400.11 crore National Saffron Mission after realizing that the world's most expensive spice was becoming extinct in Kashmir. While the mission was unable to revive the farmland, the government was successful in expanding saffron production in Kashmir. 

 

GI Tagging and Timely Rainfall 

 

According to the Trade Promotion Council of India, India was the fourth-largest importer of Iranian saffron before 2020, with $18.30 million in saffron imported from Iran. The Iranian variety, which sold for Rs 1 lakh per kg, influenced the price of high-quality Kashmiri saffron, which dropped from Rs 2-3 lakh in 2007 to Rs 1 lakh per kg. 

 

Many Kashmir farmers have been deterred from engaging in saffron cultivation as a result of the invasion of cheap Iranian saffron into Indian and international markets. To conserve high-quality Kashmiri saffron, the Geographical Indication Registry approved GI tagging on the saffron with GI number 635 in 2020. The majority of producers had increased yield last year, because of?favorable weather conditions. 'Even the borewells created under the National Saffron Mission were not utilized.' In August, September, and October, saffron requires rainfall, which the valley received on time. 

 

The majority of producers had increased yield last year, because of?favorable weather conditions. 'Even the borewells created under the National Saffron Mission were not utilized.' In August, September, and October, saffron requires rainfall, which the valley received on time. 

 

The Pandemic Worry 

 

The National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) has granted accreditation to the India International Kashmir Saffron Trading Centre (IIKSTC) in Pampore, providing saffron exports a much-needed boost. 

 

Farmers are especially concerned about lower demand for saffron as a result of the pandemic, despite the increased output. The epidemic, according to the growers, has resulted in losses in the previous two years. According to Abdul Gani, a saffron producer, 'there was a lockout and many of our growers didn't get orders for saffron.' 

 

The National Centre for Organic Farming (NCOF), under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, is the nodal organisation for organic farming in the country. NCOF implements the National Project on Organic Farming (NPOF), to promote production, certification and marketing of organic products. The National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP), introduced by the Department of Commerce, is aimed at regulation and promotion of organic production for exports.

 

The promotion of exports of organic products is a continuous process. The Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), an autonomous organisation under the administrative control of Department of Commerce, has been mandated with implementation of NPOP and export promotion of organic products.

 

APEDA provides assistance to the exporters of organic products under various components of its export promotion scheme. APEDA also undertakes various activities to promote exports of organic products viz. addition of new products under NPOP, making efforts to get NPOP standards recognized by the importing countries, promoting ‘India Organic’ brand through participation in international trade fairs and exhibitions, organising Buyer-Seller Meets (BSMs), organising capacity building and outreach programmes.

 

India’s exports of organic products amounted to $1.04 billion during 2020-21. Organic foodgrains are being exported from the country mainly under the category Cereal & Millets. During 2020-21, 59908 MT of organic products under the category ‘Cereal & Millets’, worth $76 million, have been exported from India under the National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP).

 

Government of India has been promoting Organic farming in the country, including in Bundelkhand and Uttarakhand, through dedicated schemes namely Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) and Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER), since 2015-16, to cater to the needs of domestic and export markets respectively.

 

Marketing and branding have been integral part of organic farming schemes. Assistance of Rs 6800 under PKVY and Rs 5000 under MOVCDNER is provided for marketing, branding and trade. Brand ‘Organic Uttarakhand’ has been developed under PKVY for State of Uttarakhand.

The 28th edition of Gulfood is slated to take place at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) between February 13 and 17, 2022, with a focus on eight sectors and new introductions such as Zero Waste.

 

The five-day dazzler offers solutions to optimise production, plant, process and profile and it is said to be the world’s leading business, industry and networking place for global food and beverage.

 

The theme for 2022 will be connect, create and the future for better.

 

Being the premier event for the food and beverage processing industry in the Middle-East and North Africa (MENA), it will connect visitors with about 4000+ global solution providers and suppliers from 120 countries, showcasing the latest F&B business improvement tools.

 

Highlights of the event:

 

New feature launches: Gulfood Zero Waste

 

Giving further details, one of the organisers, said, 'This 2022, amid pandemic, restaurants going sustainable and that’s why we are launching Gulfood Zero Waste as a city wide campaign and during the show where one of our partners, Waste Lab will collect food waste on the last day of Gulfood - will be collected from exhibitors as well as live-cooking stations to be used for compost production.'

 

Revamping Tastes of the World to Gulfood Top

 

Launching Gulfood YouthX

 

Launching Gulfood E-commerce

 

Focussing on Women Leaders: Gulfood Women Leaders

 

Focussing on start-ups with a dedicated feature: Gulfood Global Changemakers:

 

Bringing back: Gulfood StrEAT – Last it was held in 2020 / pre-pandemic

 

Gulfood is the most important event of the year for food professionals looking to source the latest products, gauge market developments and connect with global suppliers.

 

Explore new markets

 

Open conversations with over 5,000 suppliers from 198 countries around the world and discover new market opportunities from across the globe.

 

Increase profits

 

Source from one of the widest range of global F&B products, at the most competitive prices for your business.

 

Join in discussion with the experts on the future of F&B

Learn about new and sustainable forms of producing and consuming food.

Also, the Food for Future Summit brought by Gulfood, will be happening directly after Gulfood on Feb 23 and 24, 2022 @Expo Dubai 2020, Dubai Exhibition Centre, according to the organiser.

 

The show floor

 

A sector-wise floor plan makes it easier to navigate the show and maximise time at the event. Hence, the show floor is segmented across 8 food & beverage sectors, which lets find products and suppliers of choice easily and quickly!

 

1.    Beverage: Soft drinks, hot drinks, waters and fresh beverages

 

Exciting trends in the global beverage industry and there has been a shift in demand for functional beverages, which were previously associated with sports enthusiasts.

Increasingly, what companies term ‘lifestyle consumers’ are also entering the category. Kerry Taste and Nutrition defines this consumer group as inclusive of healthy agers, vegans and vegetarians, and millennial women.

 

'These beverages were previously targeted towards a niche audience but are now widely available across multiple channels,' Kerry noted, pointing to growing distribution across supermarkets, health stores, foodservice and online.

 

Demand for products that are plant-based is also on the rise. There are functional innovation opportunities for smoothies and ‘plant-based super drinks’.

 

2. Dairy: Milk, yoghurt, butters and cheeses

 

The dairy-free ‘milk’ category is often the first category where a consumer enters the world of dairy alternatives.

 

Consumption of evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk continues to grow and is expected to register an average annual growth of 2% from 2019 to 2024. This growth comes from Latin America, the Middle East, and to a lesser extent from Asia.

 

The global dairy alternatives market generated $13.0 billion in 2018, and forecasts that the segment will reach $35.8 billion by 2026, registering a compound annual growth rate of 13.6% between 2019 and 2026

 

Consumers with allergies to dairy products and consumers who follow a vegan lifestyle are helping to drive demand of plant-based products.

 

3. Fats & Oils: Nut & plant-based edible oils, animal fats & ghee

 

Most consumers (68%) across the world closely monitor the type and amount of fat and oil in their packaged food, according to a recent global study from Cargill.

 

Some 93% were aware of omega-3s, which is an important nutrient with many health benefits some consumers don’t get through their typical diet. In most countries, an organic certification on a label is more impactful on purchasing decisions versus a non-GMO verification.

Studies confirm that consumers track what goes into their bodies by closely reading labels of packaged foods, with fat and oil type as strong purchase consideration factors.

 

4. Health, Wellness & Free-From: Organic, vegan, gluten-free, sugar-free, enriched & fortified foods

Covid-19 accelerated the shift in healthy trends that is here to stay.  

There is a new understanding of what and how to eat and how these foods have a significant effect on their stamina, strength and immunity to fight off viruses and other health abnormalities.

There is a shift to more wholesome carbs from whole grains, ancient grains. Consumers are also expecting more plant based and plant forward.

 

'The time has come to think beyond hummus and falafel, and even chickpea pasta. Rich in fibre and plant-based protein, chickpeas are the new cauliflower — popping up in products like chickpea tofu, chickpea flour and even chickpea cereal,' said Whole Foods.

 

Plant-based innovation has hit the jerky category with brands utilising a variety of meat-free ingredients from mushrooms to jackfruit dried at the peak freshness to preserve nutrients and flavours.

 

More attention will be given to foods that contain Vitamin C and supplements to boost immunity

 

Consumers are branching out from the ubiquitous olive oil and trying new varieties of cooking oils such as walnut oil, pumpkin seed oil, and sunflower seed oil.

 

Coconut and buckwheat flour are already big news, but next year it’s predicted we’ll see a rise in fruit and vegetable flours, such as bananas and cauliflower.

 

5. Meat & Poultry: Halal, Grass and Corn-fed, Free-range

Fresh meat and poultry sales rose 8.1% this year, equating to an extra ($540.96 million).

The first half of 2020 saw an increase in at-home meals which resulted in 48% of consumers buying more meat.

Nearly two-thirds of consumers said their knowledge about meat and cooking meat has improved since March. Innovations will pay off as consumers experiment due to meat shortages.

The lockdown drew consumers towards online shopping, however 52% of consumers confirm that they would return to their pre-pandemic meat shopping habits.

 

As the purchase of meats increased, meat-eaters and flexitarians became comfortable buying other meat cuts when their preferred cuts were not available. While it became clear that plant-based substitutes were popular among the vegetarians.

 

 The fresh meat category was helped by the 'halo effect' of lockdown, which resulted in consumers wanting more comfort food. That trend has put meat firmly at the centre of the dinner table.

 

6. Power Brands: One-stop-shop for multiple product categories

 

PepsiCo, Eat Just, Givaudan and DuPont are confident that the plant-based trend is going to be more than just a passing fad, driven by consumer  health and wellness demands as well as sustainability concerns.

 

'One of the challenges for the plant-based industry is to get consumers to move from ‘try it once’ to ‘regular part of my diet’. Consumers are not looking to avoid meat or dairy; they are looking for a great eating experience while caring for a better planet and a better health – we need to widen the food space here to provide more versatile food menu and options,' stated Michelle Lee, Asia Pacific regional marketing leader, DuPont, while talking about power brands.

 

Boom of Private Label Brands

The boom of private label brands picked up during the lockdown. Consumers were less picky about which brand they were consuming because of the rushes of products at the start of stay-at-home orders.

Beyond availability, the reasons for the consumer loyalty shift include value and convenience. People are looking for deals as money gets tight and they are trying to get their shopping done in as few places as possible.

 

7. Pulses, Grains Cereals: Beans, Rice, Cereals & Flour

 

The global pulse ingredients market is expected to grow from US$16.2 billion in 2017 to US$24.3 billion by 2025 at a CAGR of 5.2% during the forecast period from 2018-2025.

 

Snacks produced through wholegrain lentil flour have been found to meet consumer acceptability with respect to the textural and structure aspects.

 

The rising number of people following animal-free diets is one potential driver of the boom the pulse industry is experiencing.

 

Asia-Pacific is the largest market for cereals and grains seeds and is expected to remain dominant during the forecast period.

 

During the lockdown this year, consumers started baking more which resulted in all-purpose flour going out of stock. A huge influx of consumers started experimenting with alternative flours such as nut flours.

 

The Covid-19 outbreak has led to greater demand for eat-at-home products like breakfast cereals and snack bars. Uncertainty about how long social-distancing will last has led many consumers to stock up on long-lasting cereal products like breakfast cereals, granola bars and other cereal bars.

Many people due to changing lifestyle prefer cereal bars as an alternative to the less-healthy snacks which provide a rapid source of energy.

 

8. World Food: 120 Country Pavilions Niche & Speciality Products

 

UAE currently imports 90% of its food, and has set a target to be the world’s most food secure nation by 2051.

 

Al Mheiri affirmed that the world needs to build more flexible and sustainable food systems to be able to face challenges such as those created by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, noting that strengthening international community relations is a key pillar to supporting global food security by creating a strong network for food trade.

 

46% of consumers believe restaurant-branded products are a convenient way to attain the restaurant experience and flavours at home.

 

Traditional hospitality is getting edged out, particularly with Covid-19 giving consumers more time to stay at home and sharpen their own culinary prowess. Increased home cooking is driving the use of convenient meal kits/starters and more sophisticated ingredients, resulting in new food experiences.

 

Conference    

 

Gulfood Inspire

In Inspire, one can learn and debate the topics and trends that matter for 2022 and beyond. Create new networks across the value chain and benchmark the latest technologies at the largest annual F&B gathering in the world’

Gulfood Inspire conference features five packed days of compelling and essential content for the F&B community.

 

Over 200 speakers including F&B business leaders, ministers, policymakers, retail heads, technologists, agriculturists, analysts & futurists.

The proposed new legislation to govern Special Economic Zones (SEZs) is likely to allow domestic suppliers to operate within such zones as the government works to remove their export focus and make them compliant with World Trade Organization norms, officials said.

 

At present, companies selling products in domestic markets cannot operate in SEZs.

 

Officials said the sales and procurement transactions done by SEZ units in domestic tariff area (DTA), which are done through a separate mechanism, will also be integrated with the customs' e-filing portal.

 

'The idea is to take the export focus away from SEZs and make them WTO-compliant,' one of the officials said.

 

Consultations are on to allow DTA units to operate in SEZs and be allowed to sell in the domestic market, the person said, adding that SEZ developers are keen as many have vacant space and don't want to denotify their land because of non-usage.

 

At present, about 20,000 hectares of SEZ land and about 10 crore sq feet of built-up area is vacant in SEZs.

 

However, the revenue department has raised concerns at the difficulty in monitoring the activities of DTA units in SEZs.

 

'There are concerns about maintaining the sanctity of SEZs if the domestic activities are done within the same area,' a second official said.

 

The consultations are also looking at inclusion of states' IT parks and industrial parks in SEZs.

 

At present, SEZs have demarcated areas even in industrial zones. The geographical separation is a subject of deliberations, officials said.

 

Commerce secretary BVR Subrahmanyam on Wednesday said SEZs will manufacture both for international and domestic markets, and that a single-window clearance system and world-class infrastructure will be key points in the new legislation.

 

'There is a need to move beyond the SEZ Act,' Subrahmanyam said in a media interaction. 'Finance minister talked of development of enterprise and service hubs (Desh), which is nothing but SEZ 2.0.' The SEZ Act will be recast to bring this system into place and in the next few months, the contours of the new law will be ready.

 

The government is thinking to have states also bring their estates onto this system so that the single-window clearance is for both the Centre and states, he said. 'To do that, we may put states on the approval bodies at the state or regional level.'

 

Currently, SEZs account for 20% of India's mechanise exports.