Plant-based food sector seeks sop for growth

Bengaluru, March 16

The recently shaped Plant Based mostly Food items Industry Affiliation (PBFIA) has urgedthe Authorities to establish centres of excellence (CoEs), accelerators to assistance innovation, and supply tax incentives to produce the country’s plant-based foodstuff ecosystem.

A delegation of the PBFIA just lately achieved Minister of State for Food Processing Prahlad Singh Patel and prompt many methods these kinds of as tie-ups with universities, tax incentives for investors and business owners, reduction in GST rates, infrastructural aid for food items processing and chilly chains, among the other initiatives, to assist the nascent but fast expanding plant-primarily based food items sector.

PBFIA also preferred a joint undertaking force to coordinate amongst government ministries, departments, and businesses.

Sanjay Sethi, PBFIA’s Govt Director, who led the delegation, sought the minister’s direction and support to convert the plant-based mostly foods sector into a significant marketplace catering to equally domestic and world-wide markets. The world plant-primarily based foods market is predicted to contact $77.8 billion in 2025.

Sustainability targets

The plant-dependent food items business gives a main chance to deal with local climate alter, foods insecurity and malnutrition, and community overall health danger (which include pandemics and antimicrobial resistance), and assistance India meet the UN Sustainable Progress Plans, PBFIA claimed in a statement.

The PBFIA delegation provided Varun Deshpande, MD, Excellent Food stuff Institute India Kartik Dixit, Founder, Evo Food items Prateek Ghai, Founder, B Veg Meals Pradeep Rao, Founder, Advanced Food items Amit Bajaj, Founder, Vezley Meals and Palak Mehta, CEO, Vegan 1st Media.

Sethi stated the minister questioned PBFIA to hold a particular assembly with the ministry to examine issues these kinds of as chilly chain logistics and day by day parcel functions between important metropolitan areas. More, the minister required PBFIA’s support to organise two situations — one particular for Indian stakeholders in the plant-based mostly ecosystem, and the other with worldwide gamers incorporated — to talk about the challenges faced by the field.

Deshpande of Very good Meals Institute reported his organisation’s proposal for funding CoE at the National Institute of Food stuff Technological innovation Entrepreneurship and Management (NIFTEM) experienced been nicely received by the minister.

Released on


March 16, 2022