Two-day Agribusiness fest in association with FPO in Chennai

CHENNAI: With an aim to empower farmers and enhance their market opportunities, the state Agriculture department has organised a two-day AgriBusiness Festival in association with Farmer Producer Organisations (FPO).

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday inaugurated a two-day AgriBusiness festival including the grand exhibition and seminar at the Chennai Trade Centre, Nandambakkam.

Explaining the festival, C Samayamoorthy, the state agriculture production commissioner and secretary said that the AgriBusiness festival 2023 is a rare opportunity for farmers and agribusiness men.

"The primary objective of the Agribusiness festival is to promote the welfare of farmers. We have more than 100 exhibition halls here which were installed by various farmers and agribusiness firms. Through this the farmers got an opportunity to explore the latest technologies, innovations and farming practices. With access to improved machinery and equipment, farmers can increase their productivity and efficiency, leading to higher profits, " he added.

Farmers and farming industries have exhibited their products in 176 halls in the agribusiness festival. In the 86 halls, agriculture products of 188 farmer producer organisations are kept for sale and demo. And in 90 halls, products of TNAU, NABARD, APEDA are displayed for sale and demo. Officials and experts of the agri department have participated in the various seminars and given various tips for the farmers and students.

On Saturday, the first session was held on topics such as managing farmers' enterprises, financial assistance and schemes for farmers' enterprises, post-harvest agriculture and value addition, export market, digital market opportunities and pathways of successful farmers' enterprises. On Sunday, the second session will be held on the topic of agriculture-related buyer and seller discussion.

Geographical Indications tag for 15 products

The Tamil Nadu Agriculture department would apply for Geographical Indications (GI) tag for 15 various products.

Arasampatti Thennai, Aandarkulam Kaththiri, Karuppugauni arisi, Krishnagiri panneer roja, Kottimulai kaththiri, Sathur Vellari, Sengal thuvarai, Vilathikulam Milagai, Javvadhumalai saamai, Veeramangudi achuvellam, Virudunagar adhalaikkaai, Moolanur Murungai, Madurai Sengarumbu, Peravoorani Thennai and Thindivanam panippayaru are to get GI tags in the future.

Officials from the agriculture department said that the department has decided to get GI tags for these 15 products. It will apply for the tag soon. Already the government has got the GI tag for 16 products and the government has already applied for another 16 products. We hope that we will get more GI tags to save our future and identity.

Machines that will make easy your job

In the agribusiness festival, various agricultural mechanical firms have displayed their products.

Particularly, the Linga Agri Trading and Machinery of Coimbatore which have set-up various units for the Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU), Agriculture Engineering department, TNAMB and ISRO have displayed their various new tools for farmers and farming entrepreneurs.

"We have coconut husk processing plant, virgin coconut oil processing unit, coconut oil processing unit, animal feed processing unit, millet and grains processing unit, vegetable and fruit processing unit and solid waste management unit which has machines such as de-sheller, extractor, centri-fugation, milk pasteurizer, homo-genizer, pulverizer, mixing tank, vacuum tray dryer, copra cutter, copra separator, balancing machine, oil expeller, filter press, clarifier and tank, micro filter, packaging machine, hammer mill, ribbon blender, pelleting machine, screw conveyor, storage tank, boiler, de-stone, roaster, de-husker, pulverizer, de-huller, vegetable cutter, vegetable washer, onion peeler, organic shredding, plastic shredding, bio-mining trommel, screener, plastic bailing, dust removal and hydraulic-powered tree pruning, " said K Karuppusamy, Technical Director of Linga Agri Trading and Machinery.

The two-day sessions will equip farmers and agri students with the necessary knowledge and skills to overcome challenges and enhance the growth of their agribusiness and here we get the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals, foster collaboration and learn from each other's experiences, said C Hema, an agri student from Coimbatore.