NEW DELHI, 09 January 2025: Mr. Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, today while addressing the launch of ‘8th edition of National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP)’ organised by APEDA and FICCI as event partner, said that India has the potential to triple exports of organic produce to Rs 20,000 in the next three years as more and more farmers enter organic farming. “The Indian farmers must slowly migrate to organic farming and increase both domestic production and capture the international market. Currently, the export of organic produce is around Rs 5,000-Rs 6,000 crore which can reach Rs 20,000 crore in the next 3 years.”
He further added that the Ministry of Cooperation; Agriculture ministry along with the Ministry of Commerce & Industry are jointly working to advance organic farming by supporting the farmers and FPOs via skill development and training, export facilitation, marketing, packaging etc. “The global demand for organic products is around Rs 1 lakh crore and with increased promotion and production, this demand may reach to Rs 10 lakh crore. India has the largest number of organic farmers globally and ranks second in terms of area under organic cultivation. With some additional efforts, I am confident that we can become the global leader in organic farming significantly enhancing farmers’ income and promoting Indian organic produce to the international market,” noted Mr Goyal.
The Minister also unveiled a dedicated NPOP portal which will provide more visibility and ease of operations for organic stakeholders. He also launched TraceNet 2.0 the upgraded traceability platform of NPOP for seamless operations and enhanced tools for regulatory oversight.
During the event, the first five registration certificates generated on TraceNet 2.0 were distributed by the Minister to organic operators.
The redesigned APEDA portal was also showcased with enhanced user experience and information for the benefit of Agri & processed food stakeholders. The redesigned Agri exchange portal was launched that will enable more user-friendly data analysis and generation of reports & data of Agricultural exports, accessible to general public.
Mr. Rajesh Agrawal, Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce & Chairman, National Accreditation Body (NAB) under NPOP said, “The launch of the upgraded NPOP portal is an important milestone in India’s organic farming. It will give a boost to production and exports by providing stability and transparency. This edition is mindful of the global requirements as well as strengthening Indian farmers. Under this edition, the conversion timeframe from non-organic to organic can be reduced under special circumstances. The edition has the provision of migrating farmers from one production group to another, as well and changing service provider. NPOP has enabling provision for buying entire organic produce so that farmers get the right compensation for their produce. These measures will play a key role in Hon’ble Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi resolution of India becoming the organic food basket of the world.”
Mr. Jitin Prasada, Hon’ble Minister of State for Commerce & Industry; Mr. Krishan Pal Gurjar, Hon’ble Minister of State for Cooperation; Mr. Murlidhar Mohol, Hon’ble Minister of State for Cooperation; Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation; Mr. Rajesh Agrawal, Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce & Chairman, National Accreditation Body (NAB) under NPOP were also present during the event.
Mr. Abhishek Dev, Chairman, APEDA delivered the vote of thanks.
