Monday, September 19 2005 14:33 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: A new integrated agriculture-business package which would lay guidelines for both ready to eat food and cook food items besides providing impetus to the processed business on fruits, vegetables, milk, meat and poultry products, would be brought before the Cabinet soon, Food Processing Minister Subodh Kant Sahai said.

"The Ministry of food processing will soon bring an integrated agriculture-business package before the Cabinet," Sahai said at an CII seminar here.

He said the package would adopt a comprehensive approach to the whole issue of agriculture-business, complementing the growth initiatives for food processing industries.

"The proposed agriculture-business package would outline future roadmap for ready to eat and ready to cook food industries," the minister said.

The package would address issues related to supply chain management in food processing sector, including growth issues pertaining to warehousing and cold chain. The draft relating to this integrated package has already been circulated to related ministries.

"Once we receive feedbacks on the proposed package from various related ministries, we would take the package to the Cabinet for approval," Sahai said.

"This process, in all probability, would take a month or so," the minister added.

A N P Sinha, Joint Secretary of Food Processing industries, said proposed agriculture-business package was another initiative to provide growth impetus to the food processing sector, besides food safety and standards bill 2005.