As a part of ‘Kisan Bhagidari Prathmikta Hamari’ campaign, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme, organised One District One Product (ODOP)-based workshop on the processing and value addition of walnuts in Kishtwar district, Jammu and Kashmir.

The event was inaugurated by Ashok Kumar Sharma, Deputy Commissioner, Kishtwar. The ODOP workshop aimed to set the stage for all food-tech stakeholders to impart, discuss and acquaint the stakeholders with the new emerging trends in food processing and technological innovation in walnut processing in the Kishtwar district.

Speaking on the occasion, Vishesh Paul Mahajan, Director, Horticulture (Planning and Marketing) Jammu and Kashmir highlighted the importance of the micro food processing sector as the growth driver of the Indian economy and through the PMFME scheme the government’s efforts to encourage food processing in India.

The workshop witnessed the presence of industry speakers sharing their insights for micro-enterprises and farmers to pave the way in walnut-based products to scale to domestic and global levels.

Addressing the workshop, Dr Brij Paul, SMS (PP) Dept. of Horticulture, Kishtwar spoke about the relevance of the ODOP for the district. Speaking on the occasion Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar appealed to the orchardists and farmers to come forward and lay a proactive role in the implementation of rolled out schemes of the departments so that the income of these farmers is increased. Deputy Commissioner Kishtwar also informed that the district administration is working on the establishment of model ‘Mandi’ in the district. He further informed that 50 Kanals of land alongside the national highway in the district has been identified to establish the mandi which will provide a common platform for the display, sale and marketing of the product and also provide national-level access to farmers.

Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro food processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme is a centrally sponsored scheme that aims to enhance the competitiveness of existing individual micro-enterprises in the unorganised segment of the food processing industry and to promote the formalisation of the sector and provide support to farmer producer organisations (FPO), self-help groups, and producer cooperatives along their entire value chain. With an outlay of Rs. 10,000 crore over a period of five years from 2020-21 to 2024-25, the scheme envisions directly assisting the 200,000 micro food processing units by providing financial, technical, and business support for the upgradation of existing micro food processing enterprises.