Implementation of National Mission on Food Processing on the card
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, October 16 2011:
Under a special policy of the Ministry of Food Processing, National Mission on Food Processing would be launched very soon with the main objective of bringing about development in the production, preparation and processing of foods, Principal Secretary of Commerce and Industries, Government of Manipur O Nabakishore has announced today.
He was speaking at the inaugural function of the World Food Day observance, which would go on for two days, at the training hall of Food Processing Training Centre, Porompat here today.
The observance is being held under the theme of 'Food prices from crisis to stability' .
Speaking as Chief Guest of the observance function organized under the aegis of Association of Food Scientists and Technologists, Manipur Chapter, Nabakishore pointed out that earlier entrepreneurs working in food processing sector have to take permission from the Ministry and the benefits extended to them were limited.
As a result, development in food processing section has remained slow.
All these shortcomings would be overcome with the launch of National Mission on Food Processing from the next fiscal year.
On the line of the National Mission, respective State Governments too have to set up State Mission on Food Processing with the Commerce and Industries Minister concerned as chairman and the Ministry would be sanctioning Rs 2.50 crores each for the purpose, Nabakishore explained.
Maintaining that food processing movement is still new in India as well, Nabakishore observed that Manipur has great scope for development in the field of food processing and the people would reap the benefit surely.
Senior Scientist of Central Food Technological Resources Institute Ng Iboyaima, who was Guest of Honour of the function, pointed out that on an average 65 percent of the monthly income of a person is spend on food and of the remaining 20 percent is spend on medical if care is not taken about our food habits.
Thus, longevity of human lives depends on our food habit to a large extent.
Former Vice Chancellor of Manipur University Dr H Tombi presided over the function which was also attended by Director of Commerce and Industries V Tualthang, Deputy Director S Joykumar and former Director Dhiraj Yumnam as guests of honour.
On the first day of the observance today, a seminar was also organized and a booklet titled 'Recipe of traditional foods of Manipur' was released.