To boost income of the farmers and facilitate large-scale employment, the Uttar Pradesh government has decided to set up 7,500 food processing units in the next one year.

“On the occasion of Amrit Mahotsav of Independence, we have decided to set up at least 7,500 food processing industries this year under the Prime Minister's Micro Food Industries Upgradation Scheme”, Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya disclosed here on Thursday.

He said the officers of the Horticulture and Food Processing department had been directed to make all necessary arrangements in this regard.

“There is immense employment potential in the food processing industries and to make the people employable and self-reliant, the establishment of food processing industries should be encouraged more and more, so that more and more people may get employment,” Maurya said, adding that at least 100 units would be set up in each district.

It may be mentioned that Maruya, while camping in the model villages in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s parliamentary constituency Varanasi, had issued instructions to identify the potential beneficiaries by conducting a survey in the field of food processing and to benefit them from the departmental schemes.

He asked the officials to create a cold chain so that the products of the farmers were not spoiled. He also directed officials to prepare an action plan for fruit and vegetable processing to reduce the post-harvest losses of farmers.

Maurya asked the officials to work closely with the Cooperative department to encourage Parag brand marketing of processed food products.

With the objective of attracting and encouraging unemployed youth, girls, farmers, entrepreneurs to the unlimited opportunities in the food processing sector, Maurya directed the Horticulture and Food Processing department officials to organise exhibitions and seminars at the district level every month.

He said that entrepreneurs who were being selected for distribution of grants under the Uttar Pradesh Food Processing Industries Policy-2017 in the year 2022-23, should be invited to Lucknow.

He said that a target had been set to invest Rs 20,000 crore in next five years in the field of food processing to make UP a 1 trillion dollar economy.