MoU to help promote millets and value-added millet products in international markets
In a move to harness the export potential of millets to the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCCs), the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) which works under the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Lulu Hypermarket LLC.
APEDA aims to promote millet products and value-added products around the world in association with Lulu Group, which is an international retail hypermarket chain that operates stores and shopping malls across Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, India and the Far East.
As per the agreement, the Lulu Group will facilitate promotional activities for millet products and enable the country to display millets and its value-added products, ready to eat products in international retail chains by sourcing it from Farmer Producer Organisations, Farmer Producer Companies, women entrepreneurs and startups.
APEDA will facilitate manufacturers to send various samples of millet products to Lulu Hypermarkets, which will be showcased at its various stores. APEDA, in association with Lulu Group, will also provide assistance in the labelling of the products in accordance with the requirement of different importing countries.
As a part of its series of events for the promotion of the International Year of Millets (IYoM) 2023, APEDA is organising export promotion activities for millets in 16 International Trade Fairs, including Gulfood 2023.
India has exported millets worth $ 46.05 million from April-November 2022-23 and the UAE is the major importing country of Indian millets. The signing of the MoU will facilitate APEDA’s strategy to promote the export of millets and its value-added products in West Asian countries to achieve the overall set target of USD 100 million for the export of millets and its value-added products by 2025.
The MoU was signed between Dr Tarun Bajaj, Director of APEDA and Salim VI, the Chief Operating Officer of LuLu Group in presence of APEDA Chairman Dr M Angamuthu, Consul General of India Dr Aman Puri and M.A. Yusuff Ali, the Chairman & Managing Director of Luu Group.
Speaking on the occasion, APEDA Chairman M Angamuthu said, “It’s a good opportunity to boost our exports as India has very distinctive traditional varieties of millets which are loved by health-conscious people. The export of millets will help in increasing the income of farmers.”
APEDA has also planned to organise millet promotional activities in South Africa, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Sydney, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States of America by facilitating the participation of different stakeholders from India in some of the significant food shows, Buyer Seller Meets and Road Shows.
