India needs domestic food processing machinery capabilities to reduce imports: Official
New Delhi, May 29 (PTI) India must build domestic capabilities in food processing machinery to reduce its heavy dependence on imports, even as the country leverages its agricultural strength to emerge as a global leader in food processing, a senior government official said on Thursday.
"Despite our success in production and exports, we remain heavily dependent on imported food processing machinery. It is crucial that the industry and government work together to build domestic capabilities and improve quality and scale," said Devesh Deval, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, at the National Conference on Food Tech organised by ASSOCHAM.
Deval emphasised that India's agricultural prowess must now translate into global leadership in food processing through advanced technology integration.
"We welcome inputs from stakeholders and are open to facilitating broader consultations to identify concrete, actionable steps. What matters is taking timely and measurable action to strengthen every link in the food processing value chain," he added.
The conference saw the launch of a dedicated national stakeholder consultation portal by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to gather inputs for more inclusive and implementable food regulations.
Alka Rao, Advisor (Science & Standards & Regulations), FSSAI, stressed that food regulation and technology must evolve collaboratively. She underlined the importance of creating structured, accessible databases and ensuring responsible use of technology, particularly artificial intelligence, with due caution regarding bias and data gaps.
"FSSAI is already taking concrete steps to integrate technology in regulatory processes," Rao said, calling for collective action from government, industry, experts and small and medium enterprises to build data-driven, tech-enabled food safety systems.
Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) Secretary Sudhanshu highlighted both the potential and challenges in India's food processing sector. While India's diverse agro-climatic conditions enable production of a wide variety of crops, the sector faces critical issues such as pesticide residue, perishability and lack of advanced processing and packaging technologies.
Citing successful traceability systems in grapes, organic produce and millets developed in response to global market concerns, he stressed the importance of leveraging next-generation technologies like AI, Internet of Things and advanced packaging solutions to enhance food safety and export readiness.
Vivek Chandra, Chairman, Food Processing and Value Addition Council, ASSOCHAM, said the future of food security depends not just on production but on how food is processed, preserved, packaged and distributed. Against the backdrop of climate change and supply chain disruptions, he highlighted the critical role of next-generation technologies in driving efficiency, safety and sustainability.
A joint knowledge report by ASSOCHAM and PwC was unveiled at the conference.
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