143 applicants selected for Rs.10,900cr PLI scheme
International food groups from Belgium, France, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Singapore led the US$10.88 billion foreign direct investment in the Indian food processing sector between April 2000 and November 2021, says an update given to the Rajya Sabha on 11 Feb 2022.
The heavyweight FPI investors included B.S.A. International of Belgium, Cadbury Schweppes Mauritius Ltd, Unilever plc from the United Kingdom; Orkla Asia Pacific Pte Ltd of Singapore, Dannone Asia Pacific Ltd, Singapore, Roquette Freres, France, Relay B.V. of the Netherlands and Pepsico Panimex Inc, Minister of State for Food Processing Industries, Prahlad Singh Patel said in a written reply to the house.
Also, an Rs.10,900 crore Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Food Processing Industry (PLISFPI) has been formulated by the Ministry as part of “AatmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan” for enhancing India’s manufacturing capabilities and enhancing exports, he said.
The scheme has three broad components:
The first component relates to incentivizing manufacturing of four major food product segments viz. Ready to Cook/ Ready to Eat (RTC/ RTE) including millet-based foods, Processed Fruits & Vegetables, Marine Products and Mozzarella Cheese.
The second component is intended for incentivizing Innovative/ Organic products of SMEs across all the above four food product segments including Free Range – Eggs, Poultry Meat and Egg Products.
The third component relates to support for branding and marketing abroad to incentivize the emergence of strong Indian brands.
The scheme guidelines were notified on 2 May 2021 followed by EoI on the same day.
Sixty applicants under Category-I, 12 applicants under Category-II and 71 applicants under Category-III have been selected recently for the scheme. fiinews.com
