Latest news with #FPO
The Hindu
9 hours ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Odisha's women farmers export mangoes to Italy, reaping global rewards
Jyotirmayee Pradhan, a woman farmer from Odisha's Dhenkanal district, has scarcely travelled beyond her home State, let alone boarded a flight to Italy. Yet, this summer, her mangoes have journeyed farther than she ever has. Demand for the fruit has been so consistent that new orders arrive even before the previous consignments are unpacked. Together with a cohort of women farmers, Ms. Pradhan has mastered the practice of harvesting mangoes without a blemish, sorting them by size, and packaging them to meet the standards of international markets. From the orchards of central Odisha to cities across Europe, the mango export initiative led by women farmers has emerged as a story of quiet resilience and enterprise. Ms. Pradhan is a board member of the Baladevju Women Farmers Producer Company Limited, a women-led Farmer Producer Organisation (FPO) with over 1,000 shareholders. The FPO has achieved a turnover of ₹1 crore by exporting mangoes to Dubai. Promoted by consulting firm Grant Thornton Bharat and supported by HDFC Bank's Parivartan under the STREE (Social and Transformative Rural Economic Empowerment) programme, the FPO has begun exporting Amrapali mangoes to European countries. As of Wednesday, the FPO has shipped five consignments amounting to 10 tonnes of mangoes to Italy. By the end of the mango season in June, it plans to export over 50 tonnes. The initiative is benefiting more than 100 women mango orchard owners. Grant Thornton Bharat, in association with the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), has engaged with over 33 FPOs across eight districts in Odisha. These collaborations have focused on addressing challenges in post-harvest management through capacity-building exercises. A turning point for the initiative was a training session on post-harvest handling of fruits, specifically tailored for women farmers. Support from government agencies followed, including assistance for constructing cold storage facilities, procurement of plastic crates, transportation from field to aggregation points, and storage rent subsidies. Aid was also extended towards value addition and processing. 'The collaboration has helped us set free from the compulsion of leasing out our orchards to local dealers, which had been limiting our income. By adopting proper methods of mango plucking and packaging in line with international and European standards, we have connected with global buyers and secured higher returns for our local produce,' Padmini Sahoo, another member of the Baladevju Women Farmers Producer Company Limited, said. Dhenkanal district, with 9.34 hectares under mango cultivation, primarily of varieties such as Amrapali, Lengada, and Keshari, holds significant export potential.
Time of India
a day ago
- Business
- Time of India
Don't just produce, also process and market the crop: UP's Agri minister tells farmers
1 2 Lucknow: Agriculture minister Surya Pratap Shahi participated in the farmer-scientist dialogue in village Saraiya Dastam (Arol) of Bilhaur block of Kanpur on Tuesday under the Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan. He exhorted the farmers to form a farmer producer organization and get more profit by producing, processing and marketing the crop. To get more profit from FPO, register on FPO Shakti Portal, he said. Shahi asked farmers to use new species, multi-layer agriculture and discuss this subject with agricultural scientists. Shahi distributed tractor keys, minikits of improved species of seeds and certificates to the beneficiaries of Custom Hiring Centre/Farm Machinery Bank and suggested to the farmers that the govt is providing subsidy under various schemes on PM Kusum Yojana, Dhaincha seeds, gypsum, farm ponds, drip and sprinkler irrigation, agricultural equipment etc. "Take advantage of this and reduce the cost of your farming," he said. Majhawan MLA Suchishmita Maurya took part in the campaign in village Mohanpur Bhaurakh development block Pahadi of Mirzapur district. Officials suggested farmers to earn more profit by adopting organic and natural farming, soil health management, production of Sri Anna, processing with new technology and marketing on the basis of demand for profitable production in the situation of climate change.
Hans India
6 days ago
- Business
- Hans India
Farmers Urged to Join FPOs for Better Income and Sustainable Agriculture in Aija Seminar.
Farmers Urged to Join FPOs for Better Income and Sustainable Agriculture in Aija An awareness seminar on Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) was organized at the Aija Farmers' Association Office under the aegis of the Aija Mandal Farmers' Association. The event aimed to educate rural farmers about the benefits and functioning of FPOs in strengthening agriculture and increasing farmers' incomes. Former BJP Jogulamba Gadwal District President S. Ramachandra Reddy and Aija Town BJP President Kampati Bhagat Reddy attended the program and addressed the gathering. Speaking on the occasion, Ramachandra Reddy emphasized that the central government, under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, had launched the PM-Kisan FPO Scheme in 2020 with the vision to double farmers' income by organizing them into productive and self-sustaining groups. He explained that the central government is encouraging the formation of FPOs — collective organizations of farmers — with the goal of increasing productivity and improving marketing access for agricultural and allied sector produce. The government offers financial support to these FPOs, empowering them to operate as independent business entities. Examples of FPO activities include: Supplying inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, and agrochemicals Renting out agricultural machinery like tillers, sprinkler sets, and harvesters Providing services related to storage, transport, and logistics for farm produce Ramachandra Reddy urged farmers to understand that unity is strength. Individual farmers often face challenges alone, but as a group, they can overcome many of these issues collectively and achieve success. He encouraged the establishment of more FPOs, especially in rural and tribal areas, where farmers can register under MACS (Mutually Aided Cooperative Societies) or as Farmer Producer Companies. It was noted during the event that over 10,000 FPOs have already been established across India, with around 600 in Telangana and a similar number in Andhra Pradesh. Incentives for FPO Members: Farmers who become FPO members are eligible to receive free saplings of mango and sweet lime (up to 4 acres per member). This benefit has encouraged many to come forward and join the movement. The Central Sustainable Agriculture (CSA) center has also called upon farmers to take the initiative in forming their own local FPOs. Farmers were advised to visit the FPO office located behind the Guest House in Aija to register. Membership costs ₹1,100, and if a member later decides to opt out, ₹1,000 will be refunded. The seminar witnessed enthusiastic participation from local farmers. Prominent among those who attended were Aija FPO CEO Vineeth, Rangu Venkatesh, Lakshman Goud, Rangu Krishna, Kalyan, Narsimhulu, Advocate Venkatesh, Raghu, Bhimesh, Nagaraju, along with many other farmers from nearby villages. The event served as a motivating and informative platform, aiming to empower the rural farming community to build a sustainable and cooperative future through FPOs.
Time of India
24-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Amrapali mangoes from Dhenkanal exported to Europe
1 2 3 Bhubaneswar: Around 10 metric tonnes of Amrapali mangoes from Dhenkanal were exported to European markets, including UK and Italy, last week. With over 100 women mango farmers trained on export standards, the development is poised to transform local livelihood options through global trade, official sources said. "Five metric tonnes of Amrapali mangoes were shipped from Dhenkanal to England in the last three days. Odisha's fruits and vegetables exports are gaining global momentum. New destinations — Rome, Venice, Birmingham — and products such as jackfruit, drumstick, wood apple and ice apple are growing the export basket," said Arabinda Padhee, secretary, agriculture and farmers' empowerment department. The capacity-building programme by the Agriculture and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), in association with consulting firm Grant Thornton Bharat, helped the farmer producer organisations (FPO)s in addressing post-harvest challenges and enhancing export readiness. "More than 33 FPOs across eight districts in Odisha have benefited, with support extended to over 100 women farmers on best practices, including sorting, grading, cleaning, packaging and storing to maintain international export quality," said Sambit Sasmal, an agri-export consultant. State govt also provided interventions like subsidies for coolers and plastic crates, transit and storage rent assistance, and support for value addition, branding and marketing. "The knowledge has freed us from depending on local dealers who offered low prices. Now we pluck and package as per international standards and connect directly with global buyers," said Jyotirmayee Pradhan, a mango farmer from Dhenkanal. The woman farmers said they get around 10 times more price from exporting mangoes to global markets compared to the price locally. Dhenkanal alone has 9.34 hectares of mango cultivation, and its potential for premium quality exports is being tapped under the initiative. Last year, mangoes from a local FPO were exported to Dubai. This year, around 50 tonnes are expected to be exported to global markets by June. "The export opportunity has increased our earnings 10-fold. Odisha's women mango farmers are no longer just cultivators but are emerging as key players in international agri markets," said Pradhan, joined by Padmini Sahoo, a board member of FPO, during the recent export consignment dispatch.
Time of India
21-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Govt forms spl body for boosting agri enterprises
Lucknow: After announcing the launch of ' Mukhyamantri Krishak Samriddhi Yojana ' to boost the income of small and marginal farmers in the state, the Yogi Adityanath govt lent an additional push to yet another of its ambitious ' Self-reliant Farmer Related Development Scheme ' by constituting a dedicated State Level Project Management Unit (SLPMU) for the purpose. The SLPMU will serve as the nerve centre for all planning, coordination, monitoring and evaluation activities associated with the scheme, according to a recent communique sent by the state govt to the agricultural directorate. Aimed at strengthening grassroots-level agricultural enterprises , the scheme is designed to bolster the functioning and sustainability of farmer producer organisations (FPOs) through institutional support in the ongoing 2025-26 fiscal. The operation of the scheme will be supervised by a CEO, who will exercise administrative control over various implementation mechanisms. This applies in the case of FPO Cell, which has been constituted specifically for this purpose. The CEO will be the primary authority ensuring that all decisions and policy directives are translated into actions. The FPO Cell will be a specialised unit and serve as the core body for supporting, guiding and handholding the FPOs across state. To operationalise this cell, the govt has sanctioned the appointment of expert professionals and support staff. These professionals will bring in expertise in areas like agricultural value chains, FPO formation and governance, business planning and financial management, market linkages and agri-logistics and policy implementation and MIS reporting. Support staff will be deployed to assist with field coordination, data management, documentation, communications and logistical arrangements. Their presence will ensure the seamless execution of routine operations and field-level interventions, a senior official said. The team and support personnel will have defined roles. The team will be responsible for conducting training programmes for FPO members to enhance managerial and business skills. It will also provide end-to-end support for business planning, besides tracking progress against targets.
