Parliament Question: Food Processing Industry Hub

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 871 ANSWERED ON 23RD JULY, 2026 FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY HUB

871. SHRI CHANDAN CHAUHAN:

Will the Minister of FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has assessed the potential of developing Bijnor, a leading district in agriculture and sugarcane production with excellent road and rail connectivity, as a Food Processing Industry Hub and if so, the details thereof;

(b) whether the Government is considering establishing a special Food Processing Zone/Mega Food Park in Bijnor to enhance value addition, storage and export of sugarcane, potato, fruits and other agricultural products and if so, the details thereof;

(c) whether there is a proposal to develop cold chain, warehouse, testing laboratories, packaging and processing infrastructure for this purpose and if so, the details thereof; and

(d) the details of the proposed action plan, financial provisions and the timeline thereof? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRIES (SHRI RAVNEET SINGH)

(a) : In order to promote and ensure overall development of the food processing sector, Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) incentivizes entrepreneurs to establish related Industries through its two Central Sector Schemes namely Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana (PMKSY) and Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Food Processing Industry

(PLISFPI) and a centrally sponsored scheme namely PM Formalization of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme across the country including Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh.

In order to promote local industries, One District One Product (ODOP) approach under PMFME Scheme has been adopted to reap the benefit of scale in terms of procurement of inputs, availing common services and marketing of products. It provides the framework for value chain development and alignment of support infrastructure. Under PMFME Scheme, Jaggery has been identified as ODOP for Bijnor district. As on 30.06.2026, 290 micro food processing enterprises have been approved in Bijnor district, out of which 82 micro food processing enterprises are related to jaggery processing.

(b) to (d) : MoFPI was implementing Mega Food Park (MFP) Scheme, a component scheme under PMKSY. The implementation of MFP scheme has been discontinued with effect from

01.04.2021. However, under various component schemes of PMKSY, MoFPI providesfinancial assistance for creation of cold chain facilities, processing infrastructure, packaging and quality testing laboratories across the country including Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh.

MoFPI does not set up food processing units on its own. However, it provides financial assistance in the form of grants-in-aid to eligible entrepreneurs for establishing related infrastructure, through its schemes as per related scheme guidelines across the country including Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh. These schemes are demand driven and intended to support food processing infrastructure and value addition.

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