Apeda to set up pest control plant in Saharanpur

To meet global standards in pest control and contain chemical residues in fruits and vegetables, the UP State Agriculture Marketing Board, with financial assistance from the Agriculture and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), will set up a vapour heat treatment plant in Saharanpur, the mango belt of Western UP.

The plant, with a 5-tonne capacity, is targeted to be commissioned before the next mango season of 2008. Besides the plant, there will be scope for material handling, and pre-cooling and cold storage will be built. This facility will also be available to fruit and vegetable exporters of UP.

The plant will control the oriental fruit fly, a pest in fruits and vegetables. It will cost Rs 5 crore, to be funded by APEDA. An MoU was signed by KS Mani, chairman of APEDA, and RK Tewari, director of the board, here yesterday.

The plant will promote the export of fruits and vegetables, particularly to Japan and other countries. It will be set up on the premises of the mango pack house at Saharanpur. The plant will conform to food security standards of the European Union, the US, Japan and Canada.

Tewari said the commissioning of the plant would pave the way for the export of vegetables and fruits like mangoes in large quantities. "Though UP is a large producer of mangoes, our share in the export market is negligible," Tewari said.

In 2006, 2 tonnes of the Nawab brand of mangoes was exported to Japan and 175 tonnes of the Taj brand to Sri Lanka. During the current season the agriculture marketing board has set a target of exporting 2,000 tonnes of potatoes to Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Singapore, Malaysia and Kuwait.

"Though the production of fruits and vegetables in UP is very high, the state has a very small share in the export market," Mani said, adding "without addressing the issues of pre- and post-harvesting and packing, it would be difficult for the state to gain entry in the export market".