India’s first private Agri mandi in 100-acre with world-class infrastructure
A 100-acre market space with world-class infrastructure, banking, storage, processing, and packaging services all under one roof, offline and online trading options, legalising field trade, and giving farmers ownership. These are some of the things that the Sahyadri Farmer Producer Company has planned for the private agriculture market they are setting up (FPC).
The FPC has gotten the first licence in the country to open a private agricultural market in Dindori, in the Nashik district. Over the next three months, the market will be built at a cost of ₹25 crores.
‘We are making sure that our mandi in Nashik has infrastructure on par with the best in the world so that farmers can have a say in trades. Places for auctions and storage are being set up. About 90% of the infrastructure is already in place. We can store up to 4,000 tonnes of grapes and raisins. preparing to store another 20,000 tonnes The CEO of Sahyadri FPC, Vilas Shinde, told that the company is focusing on horticultural goods.
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Trading online and offline
Most trade in horticulture happens in the fields, and farmers often complain that traders don’t pay them in full.
‘Now, all of the steps in these trades will be written down. Our market is also a place where farmers can store their crops. APMCs (agricultural produce market committees) have set up monopolies in the past. ‘There won’t be a monopoly here because the farmers own the market,’ Shinde said.
Sahyadri FPC has made a special program for trading online. ‘We want to give all of our members a full ecosystem. Our farmers have access to a huge domestic market, but there is no way for them to sell their goods. ‘The marketing system we have now is not enough,’ Shinde said.
Farmers in Nashik say that grapes are never traded at APMCs, and Sahyadri FPC gives them a chance to bring their crops to its market. Farmers have been complaining that a few groups control the raisin markets in Tasgaon and Pimpalgaon, making it hard for them to get a better price elsewhere. Now, they hope that the Sahyadri APMC will help them find a better answer.
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Trying to beat the quality
‘Competition will happen in private markets. Farmers will be better off. Traditional APMCs will have to work hard to keep up with the FPC market. FPCs are made up of people who grow the same crop and will focus on getting their produce into the system. Shinde said, ‘Competition is a must if you want to make the market system better.’
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