Food industry to invest ₹7,218 cr in TS

HYDERABAD: Telangana received investment commitments worth over ₹7,218 crore at the Food Conclave 2023, with a potential to generate 58,458 job opportunities, minister K.T. Rama Rao said on Saturday, at the day-long event held at HICC.

Over 100 agri-food industry leaders took part in the conclave, with discussions centring on investment in ‘production agriculture’ and policymaking to build production and growth.

Rama Rao said, “The government identifies food processing as a core thrust area. Over the past five years, the state has added more than ₹ 7,000 crore worth of fixed capital base to food processing capacities. We are building special food processing zones that will collectively bring more than 10,000 acres under fresh food processing capacities. Furthermore, at the end of the conclave, the state received more than ₹ 7,000 crore investment commitments in aqua, dairy, agro-processing and allied sectors.”

The minister also launched the ‘Innovation in Food Processing’ challenge, inviting start-ups and innovators across Telangana and India to build solutions to enhance local food processing. Rama Rao said that the event was an opportunity to make the country a one-stop destination for securing the food needs of the rest of the world.

The inaugural panel discussion, ‘Envisioning India’s decade in the agri-food sector,’ featured Dr Ramesh Chand, NITI Aayog member; Dr R.S. Sodhi, president of Indian Dairy Association; Dr Vijay Gupta, World Food Prize Laureate, formerly of the ADG WorldFish Centre; and Shiva Kumar S., CEO of ITC on climate change, improving supply chain and enhancing food processing.

Thematic tracks, on agriculture (green), edible oil (yellow), dairy (white), meat and poultry (pink) and aquaculture (blue) were a part of the event.

Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav and principal secretary Jayesh Ranjan were in attendance.