Centre plans to promote 250 new farmer-producer bodies in FY 2020-21

The Union Cabinet last week sanctioned Rs 6,868 crore for the new FPO scheme

The Centre plans to promote 250 new farmer-producer organisations (FPOs) in the next financial year (2020-21). This is towards meeting its target of creating 10,000 new FPOs in the next five years, said Neelkamal Darbari, managing director of Small Farmers Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC). The consortium is one of the nodal agencies to promote FPOs. 

According to the new guidelines issued by the government, FPOs will have to have a minimum 300 members, down from the existing requirement of 1,000. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will kick-start the scheme at an event in Chitrakoot (Uttar Pradesh) on Saturday. 

Currently, the country has