Automation may help 'misthi' sales, exports grow

The Rs 12,000 crore Bengali sweetmeat market is feeling the rumbles of change in the form of need for greater automation, patenting of select signature recipes and greater research to increase shelf life of products.

The efforts are expected to lead to higher exports and stronger domestic sales.

RK Paul, honourary general secretary of the Paschimbanga Mistanna Byabasayee Samity, the umbrella organisation by sweetmeat shop owners, said that the Indian sweetmeat market is estimated at Rs 20,000 crore according to periodic researches undertaken by the organisation.

The business in West Bengal is worth Rs 12,000 crore and is growing below 10 per cent annually.

"For the industry to meet the demands of West Bengal as well as the other state markets the industry should grow at 20 per cent per annum," said Paul.

Surprisingly, the partial automation would not lead to job losses because the sweetmeat industry, contrary to perceptions, already suffers from shortage of skilled labour.

Machines would provide a way out, permitting the automation of routine tasks and permitting a quantum rise in production, Paul stated.

Only three states in north-eastern India "" Tripura, Assam and Meghalaya - manufactured limited quantities of sweetmeat in the region.

Production in the other five states was low and so was a huge latent market, said Paul.

The industry provides direct employment to 60,000 people in West Bengal while the number of people indirectly employed in industry was between 12-15 lakh.

They worked in allied industry like milk, sugar, packaging and dry fruits.

Though the Kolkata market accounted for almost half the state sweetmeat market, the two major ingredients of milk and sweetener were sourced from outside, Paul pointed out.

Organisations like Hindusthan Sweets, an ISO 9001:2000 certified unit, have already patented signature items like herbal sweets and were working with a university on development of a new version of herbal sweets which would be more suited for the export market.

The West Bengal government had submitted a list of patentable items in the state to the Centre under a directive being issued some time back.

Out of the 82 items unique to the state, around 40 were indigenous sweetmeat recipes, Paul said.

Owing to lack of awareness and procedural complexities, a lot of the sweetmeat companies had not applied for either ISO certification or think of patents for which they can now apply to the state government.

An advisory committee has also been formed with the department of food processing of the government of India, Jadavpur University, Calcutta University, Bengal Engineering and Science University and the West Bengal University of Fisheries Sciences to organise seminars and training workshops for the sector.

The Samity itself was arranging research projects at university-based food technology and chemical departments.

Paul, also the managing partner with Hindusthan Sweets, said there appeared to be demand for herbal sweets in the French market.

His company was in close contact with consultants to increase the shelf-life of the traditional Bengali milk and rice sweet preparation 'payesh' to export it to Indonesia.

Investors were willing to invest Rs 5 crore for the product, he claimed.

The recent German food processing delegation to the city had also provided contact details of potential investors in projects, said Paul.