Gujarat opens first mega food park in Surat

Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurated the first Mega Food Park in Gujarat on Monday. Promoted by Gujarat Agro Infrastructure Mega Food Park Pvt Ltd, thr park is located at Village Shah and Vasravi in Taluka Mangrol in Surat.

The food park has been set up in 70.15 acres of land and costs Rs 117.87 crore. The Gujarat Agro Mega Food Park will benefit the people of Surat and people from nearby districts of Navsari, Tapi, Narmada and Bharuch. Another Mega Food Park has also been sanctioned by the ministry in Mehsana District of the state.

Speaking on the occasion, Badal said the Mega Food Park will leverage an additional investment of about Rs 250 crore in 25-30 food processing units and generate an annual turnover of about Rs 450-500 crore.

The Park will also provide direct and indirect employment to 5,000 people and benefit about 25,000 farmers in the CPC and PPC catchment areas.

“The modern infrastructure for food processing created at the park will benefit the farmers, growers, processors and consumers of Gujarat and adjoining areas immensely and prove to be a big boost to the growth of the food processing sector in the state of Gujarat,” she added.

The food park was inaugurated in the presence of Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti, Minister of State for Food Processing Industries; Shri Vijay Rupani, Chief Minister of Gujarat; and Smt Darshana Vikram Jardosh, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha, Surat. 

The government is implementing the scheme in the country with an aim to give a major boost to the food processing sector by adding value and reducing food wastage at each stage of the supply chain with a particular focus on perishables. It also aims to be a major contributor to doubling the farmers’ income and contribute to the government’s ‘Make In India’ initiative.

Under this scheme, the government of India will also provide financial assistance of up to Rs 50 crore per project.