| India has tremendous potential to become the | | | | abroad.Annually, there is usually a large amount of |
| primary source of agricultural products, more | | | | such agricultural produce that is waste away. If there |
| specifically food products in the world. It has about | | | | were cold storage systems, efficient cold chain, |
| 53% of arable land - land available for cultivation of | | | | logistics and distribution companies, it could have been |
| crops as compared to a measly average of about | | | | possible to process these primary products into |
| 11% for the rest of the world. It has some feathers | | | | newer, secondary products and resold to consumers |
| in it's cap as the second highest fruit and vegetable | | | | locally and internationally. A strategy needs to be |
| producer in the world, 6th largest producer of fish | | | | carved out for the growth of this industry and a lot |
| and such like but still doesn't make up to the top 10 | | | | of investment action is yet to see some real action. |
| food exporting countries.If it weren't for some | | | | Investment in cold storage, cold chain distribution, |
| severe infrastructure and technology issues, there is | | | | installation of food processing plants across the |
| actually stopping for this gigantic food bowl. With | | | | country, applied research on harvesting technologies |
| large tracts of arable land, inexpensive labour and | | | | an a rapid development of the food retail industry |
| high-quality produce tumbling out of the barns, there | | | | are all necessary steps that would ensure an organic |
| is a potential so huge that sometimes, the scope and | | | | growth in this sector. |
| scale is almost unbelievable. | | | | What is Cold Chain? |
| However, if one had to point out at one single single | | | | A cold chain is basically a logistics system, which helps |
| reason as to why the Indian agricultural industry is | | | | in maintaining and providing a series of facilities for |
| such a laggard when pitted against the global | | | | ensuring ideal storage conditions for the persihables |
| standards, it could be the pathetic state of the | | | | from the point of origin to the point of sale. A well |
| logistics, distribution and and an inefficient supply | | | | developed and efficiently organized cold chain |
| chain. India faces an acute problem of large amounts | | | | reduces wastage, spoilage and helps keeps the |
| of food wasted away due to the lack of a proper | | | | perishables intact thereby helping to maintain the |
| cold storage, cold chain and frozen food distribution | | | | quality of the harvested food products ultimately |
| system. If only this was in place, huge amounts of | | | | making the whole system cost effective to the |
| food could have been processed into some kind of | | | | farmers and that which ensures top-notch quality to |
| value added foods and sold both locally and | | | | the end user. |