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Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, Allied Industry, Live Stock

The initiative will help in focusing on attracting investments through investors meetings to foster partnerships with tuna-fishing nations and implementing training and capacity-building programs

The Department of Fisheries, under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has notified the Development of Tuna Cluster in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY).Over the past decade, flagship initiatives like Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY), Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF) and the Blue Revolution have proved themselves as transformative agenda with an unprecedented investment of Rs 38,572 crores since 2015 in terms of increasing its efforts on the adoption of production and processing fisheries cluster-based approach with an end-to-end value chain in fisheries and aquaculture.

The Andaman and Nicobar Islands offers huge potential for fisheries development, with around 6.0 lakh square km of Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) rich in under-exploited sea resources, particularly Tuna and Tuna like high valued species, estimated at 60,000 metric tons. Their proximity to Southeast Asian countries adds on to the geographical advantage in terms of efficient sea and air trade, while the pristine waters support sustainable fishing practices thus assisting in leveraging its marine resources for economic growth. The notification of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as a tuna cluster is expected to generate economies of scale, increase incomes, and accelerate organized growth in fisheries across the country. The initiative will help in focusing on attracting investments through investors meetings to foster partnerships with tuna-fishing nations and implementing training and capacity-building programs, along with exposure visits for the stakeholders to promote reduce costs, promote innovation, and support sustainable practices. . Additionally, the initiative would result in development of infrastructure for fish landing, processing and export connectivity that is essential for streamlining operations and enhancing India’s global competitiveness in the sector.

The Department of Fisheries has also envisaged a roadmap to focus on cluster development across key areas, including Pearl, Seaweed, and Ornamental Fisheries; Reservoir Fisheries; Fishing Harbours; Saline Water Aquaculture; Cold Water Fisheries; Sea Cage Culture; Freshwater and Brackish-Water Fisheries; Deep Sea and Oceanic Fisheries; Organic Fisheries; Wetland Fisheries, and other areas tailored to specific sectoral and regional needs. The Department of Fisheries has already identified  Hazaribagh District in Jharkhand for pearl culture, Madurai District in Tamil for ornamental fisheries and UT of Lakshadweep for seaweed.

The initiative will help in focusing on

Acquaculture, Agro Universities, India

 It aimed to address vulnerabilities and knowledge gaps in small-scale fish farming communities, promote climate-smart fish farming, and adopt climate-resilient technologies and infrastructure.

ICAR-Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute, Goa, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with The Energy and Resource Institute, a prominent non-profit research institute, to engage in collaborative research, extension, and capacity building in agriculture, fisheries, and allied sectors. The partnership aimed to address vulnerabilities and knowledge gaps in small-scale fish farming communities, promote climate-smart fish farming, and adopt climate-resilient technologies and infrastructure, and establish a knowledge-sharing platform along with market linkages.

Dr. Parveen Kumar, Director, ICAR-CCARI, emphasized the significance of collaboration in promoting holistic and sustainable development of coastal life by leveraging the combined expertise of both institutes.

Dr. Elroy Pereira, Associate Fellow, TERI, emphasized TERI’s commitment to provide all necessary support to the institute in facilitating research, capacity building, and extension activities in the relevant fields.

 It aimed to address vulnerabilities and knowledge

Acquaculture, Live Stock, World

COFI Sub-Committee on Fisheries Management is also set to discuss improvements in the methodology to assess the state and health of the world’s marine fisheries stocks

A new global fisheries management body began its inaugural meeting with key items on the agenda including best practices and approaches for the effective management of fisheries resources, and improvements in the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) methodology to estimate the state and health of the world’s marine fish stocks.

The fight against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing, the promotion of adaptive responses to the climate crisis, and the mainstreaming of biodiversity will also be on the agenda of the COFI Sub-Committee on Fisheries Management’s 15-18 January 2024 meeting, with a specific focus on small-scale fisheries.

Over 500 million people globally depend, at least partially, on fisheries for their livelihoods – nearly half of them women when considering the whole value chain. While 65 per cent of fish stocks were within biologically sustainable levels, 35 per cent were estimated to be at unsustainable levels – a proportion that has been increasing since the 1970s.

The COFI Sub-Committee on Fisheries Management’s main functions are to provide technical and policy guidance on fisheries management, identify global challenges and opportunities, and promote collective solutions to ensure the environmental, economic and social sustainability of a sector crucial for global food security and nutrition.

“Improving global fisheries management remains crucial to restore ecosystems to a healthy and productive state and to protect the long-term supply of aquatic foods,” said QU Dongyu FAO Director-General in his address to the opening of the meeting’s virtual plenary session. “This improvement also includes eliminating illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing and on addressing the impacts of the climate crisis, and biodiversity degradation that are also heavily impacting aquatic and coastal ecosystems and dependent communities”.

The Director-General noted that the Sub-Committee on Fisheries Management will guide FAO’s Blue Transformation roadmap and its core objective of ensuring that global fisheries resources – including lakes, rivers and seas – are efficiently and effectively managed.

COFI Sub-Committee on Fisheries Management is also

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, Live Stock

This accounts for 8 per cent of global production, contributing about 1.09 per cent to the country’s Gross Value Added (GVA) and over 6.724 per cent to the agricultural GVA

India has achieved a record fish production of 175.45 lakh tonnes in FY 2022-23, making it the third-largest fish-producing country in the world. This accounts for 8 per cent of global production, contributing about 1.09 per cent to the country’s Gross Value Added (GVA) and over 6.724 per cent to the agricultural GVA. The sector has immense growth potential and requires focused attention through policy and financial support to ensure sustainable, responsible, inclusive and equitable development.

The government has announced a new sub-scheme called the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Kisan Samridhi Sah-Yojana (PM-MKSSY, 2023-24). This is a central sector sub-scheme under PMMSY with a targeted investment of INR 6,000 crore. The scheme has been introduced to enable activities for fishermen, fish vendors and micro & small enterprises. PM-MKSSY aims to focus on the gradual formalization of the unorganized fisheries sector, including digital inclusion, and facilitating access to institutional financing, especially working capital. It also aims to provide one-time incentives to beneficiaries for opting for aquaculture insurance, incentivizing fisheries and aquaculture microenterprises for fisheries sector value-chain efficiencies, incentivizing micro and small enterprises for the establishment of supply chains of safe fish products to consumers, and providing additional incentives to the applicants for creating and maintaining jobs for women in the fisheries sector.

The fisheries sector plays an important role in the Indian economy. It contributes to the national income, exports, food and nutritional security as well as employment generation. The fisheries sector is recognised as the ‘Sunrise Sector’ and is instrumental in sustaining the livelihoods of around 30 million people in India, particularly that of the marginalised and vulnerable communities.

This accounts for 8 per cent of

Acquaculture, Live Stock, World

The opening of the hatchery contributes to realising the goals of Timor-Leste’s National Aquaculture Development Strategy (2012-2030), which includes increasing annual farmed fish production to 12,000 tons by 2030 and supporting an increase in annual fish consumption to 12 kg per year.

The fourth private genetically improved farmed tilapia (GIFT) hatchery has opened on the south coast of Timor-Leste, marking another step in the country’s aquaculture development.

The hatchery was inaugurated by Marcus da Cruz, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries, and Forestry and Philip Hewitt, New Zealand Ambassador to Timor-Leste.

“The Colocau GIFT hatchery is expected to produce more than five million GIFT monosex GIFT fingerlings per year, which will be supplied to local fish farmers in Manufahi and nearby municipalities,” said Hewitt at the event.

“This will have great advantages for the aquaculture sector, enabling fish farmers to produce more farmed tilapia, thereby making it easier for consumers to access fresh fish in the future. This will help combat malnutrition among children in Timor-Leste.”

The Colocau GIFT hatchery was established in partnership with the Same Construction business, the hatchery owner, as part of the Partnership for Aquaculture Development in Timor-Leste Phase 2 (PADTL2) project (2020-2024).

The project is funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and led by WorldFish in partnership with the Timor-Leste Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry and Fisheries (MALFF).

The Timor-Leste Government is committed to scaling aquaculture to enhance the livelihoods nutrition and food security of rural households, explained Marcus da Cruz at the event.

The Colocau GIFT hatchery is the fourth of its kind to be set up by the PADTL2 project. The other hatcheries are spread across the country’s west, east and centre-Leohitu (Bobonaro municipality), Parlamento (Lautem municipality), and Hera (Dili municipality).

These efforts are critical to realising the goals of the National Aquaculture Development Strategy (2012-2030), including increasing annual farmed fish production to 12,000 tons by 2030 and supporting an increase in annual fish consumption to 12 kg per year.

The opening of the hatchery contributes to

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, India, Live Stock

The delegation also discussed various issues and opportunities for cooperation in the aquaculture and fisheries sector

A high-level delegation led by Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, along with Dr L. Murugan, Minister of State, Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Neetu Kumari Prasad, Joint Secretary, Department of Fisheries and other senior officers is on a visit to Norway for strengthening the bilateral cooperation between India and Norway in the field of fisheries and aquaculture. After attending the Opening Ceremony of the Aqua Nor 2023 trade show at Trondheim Spektrum, Klostergata, which is one of the world’s largest trade shows for aquaculture technology and innovation, the delegation visited AquaGen, a research-oriented breeding company that develops, manufactures, delivers genetic starter material and fertilised eggs to the global aquaculture industry. Parshottam Rupala, and Dr. L. Murugan, discussed opportunities for joint collaboration with Knut Roflo, CEO, AquaGen.  

Parshottam Rupala and Dr. L. Murugan interacted with the Indian participants at the exhibition, who displayed their products and services related to aquaculture and fisheries. Parshottam Rupala appreciated the efforts of the Indian exhibitors in promoting the quality and diversity of Indian aquaculture and fisheries products in the global market. The delegation also discussed various issues and opportunities for cooperation in the aquaculture and fisheries sector.

The delegation also discussed various issues and

AgroPolicy, Dairy, Live Stock

The 2-day long symposium was aimed to foster insightful discussions and deliberations on the transformation to more efficient and sustainable agri-food systems, with a particular focus on the livestock sector.

Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying inaugurated an International Symposium on Sustainable Livestock Transformation at NDDB, Anand. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying (DAHD), Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Govt of India; National Dairy Development Board (NDDB); Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations have jointly organised a 2-day Symposium under the Agriculture Working Group (AWG) of G20.

The 2-day long symposium was aimed to foster insightful discussions and deliberations on the transformation to more efficient and sustainable agri-food systems, with a particular focus on the livestock sector. Distinguished experts, policymakers, and stakeholders from the G20 who participated in the event exchanged knowledge, shared experiences, and explored innovative approaches to ensure the sustainability of the livestock sector.

The symposium was highlighted as a milestone event, driving transformative change in the livestock sector and fostering collaborations for a sustainable future.

The event also witnessed a panel discussion with experts from WOAH- (World Organization for Animal Health), WHO- (World Health Organization), FAO-(Food and Agriculture Organization), IDF-(International Dairy Federation), NDDB-(National Dairy Development Board), and the Department. A technical tour of Amul Dairy & Chocolate Plant, and Mujkuva DCS, where delegates from the G20 countries have given insights into the processing systems, milk collection, and biogas and solar cooperatives of the country.

Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary (DAHD), Govt of India; Dr Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB; Dr Abhijit Mitra, Animal Husbandry Commissioner (AHC), Govt of India; Tiensin Thanawat, Director, Animal Production and Health Division, Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO); Caroline Emond, Director General, International Dairy Federation (IDF); Dr Ailan Li, Assistant Director General, Healthier Population Division, WHO and other eminent dignitaries graced the occasion. A total of 28 foreign participants from FAO, Kenya Dairy Board, Canada, USA, France, Russia, UK, Australia, Mauritius, Brazil, The Netherlands etc participated.

Union Minister commended NDDB for organising the symposium and emphasised the role of technology in the livestock sector. He said that the Symposium deliberations will help disseminate various innovations in the livestock sector for sustainable transformation.

Alka Upadhyaya, Secretary, DAHD said that sustainable transformation in the livestock sector becomes more relevant considering the quantum of farmers and other stakeholders associated with the sector, its role in providing livelihoods & food security and the prominence of smallholder production systems.

In his welcome address, Dr Meenesh Shah, Chairman, NDDB said that we are looking forward to engaged deliberations amongst experts for making the livestock sector more sustainable and move towards a more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable livestock sector for – ‘Better Production, Better Nutrition, Better Environment and Better Life.’ This symposium will definitely give all of us a good platform to mutually learn from each other, chalk out a strategy and plan to address some of the contemporary challenges that both the developing and developed countries of the world are facing today in the livestock sector, including One Health, climate change and sustainability.

The 2-day long symposium was aimed to

Acquaculture, Acts & Schemes – Centre, AgroPolicy, India, Live Stock

Projects of value Rs. 14659.12 Crores have been approved by the Government till March

Under the flagship Pradhan Mantri MatsyaSampada Yojana(PMMSY) seven major field studies are being carried out by the autonomous body, National Productivity Council (NPC). While speaking at an occasion held at NPC headquarters in New Delhi, to launch these interventions under PMMSY, ParshottamRupala Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying said, “PMMSY has proved to be transformative in boosting the contribution of the fisheries sector to the country’s GDP. Innovative and proactive measures by the Government of India along with stakeholders are bringing about a new blue revolution. The new field studies by NPC would help the Department further strengthen its mechanisms of delivery.”

Union Minister informed that the major field studies would be undertaken in seven areas such as Best practices in the fish marketing system of Andhra Pradesh and dissemination through workshop; Agro-climatic zone-specific mapping of innovative fishing Practices for enhancing Production and Productivity in the Upper Gangetic Plain Region; Design improvement in storage containers used in the supply chain for inland and marine fishes by vendors; Improvement in fish marketing infrastructure of Ghazipur and Howrah fish markets; Evaluation of RAS and Biofloc technologies and their dissemination through workshop; Strengthen monitoring mechanism of implementation of PMMSY and Assessment of post-harvest losses in inland and marine fisheries and to suggest measures to minimise these losses. NPC would complete the field studies in about nine months.

Rupala further added that “while aiming at enhancing production and productivity, the PMMSY offers a wide range of activities for the benefit of fishers, fish farmers, youth, women, entrepreneurs etc. The Scheme has facilitated cluster development, economies of scale, enhanced competitiveness of the fisheries sector, generation of higher incomes to the stakeholders, etc. While accelerating growth and expansion of the sector in an organised manner, the PMMSY has created a conducive environment for the development of entrepreneurship and encouraged private sector participation”.

Union Minister said that the Govt. has provided financial assistance under PMMSY to individuals and groups engaged in the fishing industry and to build critical infrastructure and supply chains to support the industry and PMMSY has received overwhelming responses from states/UTs and projects of value Rs. 14659.12 Crores have been approved by the Govt till March.

Projects of value Rs. 14659.12 Crores have

Acquaculture, Environment, People, R&D, Sustainability, World

International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture closes with many concrete results

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) marked the close of a global year-long campaign focused on small-scale artisanal fishers, fish farmers and fish workers, underlining the need to keep the momentum going.

With over 260 events held in 68 countries, the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture 2022 (IYAFA), “celebrated the millions of people working in small-scale artisanal fisheries and aquaculture – including some 45 million women small-scale fishers – who produce 40 per cent of all the fish we eat,” QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General said at the closing ceremony, adding: “They are stewards of valuable ecosystems, and of longstanding traditions and cultures.”

Mainly carried out by families, sometimes with a handful of workers, small-scale artisanal fisheries and aquaculture (or fish and seafood farming) add up to a massive subsector. Small-scale fisheries provide livelihoods for nearly half a billion people globally – 95 per cent of them operating in the global south.

Yet the workforce includes some of the communities most vulnerable to environmental degradation, biodiversity loss, climate impacts and economic shocks, as they contribute to the management of aquatic resources in the world’s oceans, rivers and lakes.  

To raise awareness of their role, the FAO-led campaign, supported by a wide array of partners, helped forge and strengthen partnerships among small-scale artisanal fisheries and aquaculture workers and other stakeholders. Examples of this are the Ibero-American Network for Small-Scale Artisanal Fishing (RIPAPE) and the Maghreb and North African Platform for Artisanal Fishery.

An important body of new research carried out during IYAFA 2022 has added to our knowledge about sustainable small-scale fisheries, including the recently launched Illuminating Hidden Harvests report, by FAO, Duke University and World Fish, which investigates the contributions of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development.

The IYAFA 2022 Final Report highlights the significant number of declarations, calls to action and statements made by partners, at national, regional and global levels, as well as provide recommendations to further support the subsector. These include the areas of environmental, social and economic sustainability, governance, gender equality and equity, food security and nutrition, resilience and youth participation.

All these recommendations are aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals and FAO’s aspiration of the 4 Betters – Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life, leaving no one behind. This is supported by FAO’s Blue Transformation vision to change the way the world manages, uses and conserves its aquatic resources to end hunger and poverty.

Although IYAFA 2022 is ending, “it should not be the end, but a new beginning where we continue to amplify the voices of small-scale artisanal fishers and support the development of inclusive small-scale artisanal fisheries and aquaculture national plans and strategies,” the FAO Director-General said.

International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture

Acquaculture, Agrotech, Company News, Europe

The fish farm cleaning system can work on both land-based and traditional net pen operations

Probotic a Norway-based aquatech company has secured a patent for an autonomous fish farm cleaning system that can work on both land-based and traditional net pen operations.

Probotic’s autonomous cleaning vessel for cleaning an aquatic organism containing a structure of an aquatic organism breeding farm comprises a body, a cleaning system provided at least partially outside of the body, a propulsion system for moving the vessel relative to the structure, and a navigation system for controlling the propulsion system. The navigation system comprises a route planner, an orientation sensor for measuring a parameter representative of the current orientation of the vessel, and a depth sensor for measuring a parameter representative of the current depth of the vessel. A central processing unit controls the propulsion system based on information from the orientation sensor, the depth sensor, and the route planner. The central processing unit is configured to control the propulsion system to keep the vessel in physical contact with the structure.

 “We are thrilled to have received this new patent in Norway. It is a testament to our team’s hard work and dedication and a major step forward in our efforts to revolutionise the aquaculture industry. This patent is just part of the beginning for Probotic, and we have many more exciting developments and news in the pipeline,” said Mikkel Pedersen, CEO of Probotic,

Probotic’s innovative system combines advanced robotics and artificial intelligence to clean fish pens autonomously and efficiently. The company has conducted real-world tests of the system during the last eight months in partnership with Ballangen Sjøfarm. It has made significant improvements to ensure the system can withstand harsh conditions over time.

The fish farm cleaning system can work

Acquaculture, Bamboo industry, Dairy, India, Interaction

One day conferences will bring together policy makers, industry, agripreneurs, and experts from all over India to deliberate on the key issues leading to the formulation of recommendations.

13th Agrovision, Central India’s largest agricultural event which will be held at PDKV Ground Dabha, in Nagpur from November 25 to 28, will focus on Future Farming – feed, food, and fuel-integrated technology via research.

The 13th Agrovision will hold conferences on the important current topics in agriculture industry such as Dairy Development in Vidarbha, Fisheries opportunities and challenges in Vidarbha and bamboo cultivation and income opportunities.

One-day conferences will be held during Agrovision on current issues of importance related to agriculture. The basic objective of the conference is to bring together policy makers, industry, agripreneurs, and experts from all over India to deliberate on the key issues leading to the formulation of recommendations. It provides an insight over the entire process which is beneficial for the businessmen, agri professionals and entrepreneurs.

These conferences will also assist farmers, particularly those who, in addition to farming, have allied business such as dairy, processing and fishing to grasp the perspective of the panel of experts and leverage them to develop their enterprises.

One day conferences will bring together policy

Animal Health

First India Animal Health Summit 2022 was held at NASC Complex, New Delhi on July 6, 2022

Parshottam Rupala, Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying said that there is need to strengthen the cooperative movement in the livestock sector. While inaugurating first India Animal Health Summit 2022, he called for greater use of Ayurveda for ensuring better animal health.

First India Animal Health Summit 2022 was held at NASC Complex, New Delhi on July 6, 2022, understanding the significance of animal health towards the broader objective of the country’s food and nutrition security, rural incomes and prosperity and overall economic development.

Rupala was the chief guest at the inaugural function of ‘India Animal Health Summit 2022’ organised by Indian Chamber of Food and Agriculture (ICFA) and the Agriculture Today Group. He said that by ensuring good animal health, veterinarians are playing a very significant role.

Speaking on the occasion, Atul Chaturvedi, Secretary, Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying said that animal health is a very major component of One Health and there is need to ensure even more respect for veterinarians in the community at large. He said that the department is taking initiatives to address animal pandemic preparedness.

The two-day event will host a plethora of panel discussions ranging from topics such as Animal Health policy initiatives to Business environment & investment opportunities in the Animal Health sector.

First India Animal Health Summit 2022 was held at NASC

Acquaculture, AgroPolicy, Live Stock, Start ups

Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Minister of state for Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying emphasised the importance of adopting the advanced breeding technologies and its implementation at the ground level

Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying is organising awareness programme on entrepreneurship schemes and other beneficiary-oriented flagship programmes of the Department. It is being done through Common Service Centres network by holding 8000 village level camps across the country. The is being organised from April 25 to 28 April 2022. Each day one lakh farmers will be joining through Common Service Centres across the country. 

Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Minister of state for Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying addressed the farmers connected recently through camps and informed that realigned National Livestock Mission (NLM) and Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM) schemes now have a component of breeder farm entrepreneurs and fodder entrepreneurs. One lakh farmer from Northern Eastern region states, Bihar, Odisha West Bengal participated, NLM will help in creating rural entrepreneurship and help in creating better livelihood opportunity for unemployed youth and livestock farmers in the cattle, dairy, poultry, sheep, goat, piggery, feed and fodder sector paving the way towards Atmanirbhar Bharat. 

Secretary (DoF & DAHD I/c), Jatindra Nath Swain briefed the farmers about Pradhan Mantri Mantsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and Fisheries & Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF). He added that flagship schemes of Department of Fisheries can be availed by fishers and fish farmers from every corner of the country. He also mentioned that, in order to create the forward and backward linkage for the produce available at the unorganised sector and for connecting it with organised sector, these entrepreneurship schemes of the Ministry would help in development of entrepreneurship. 

Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Minister of state for

AgroPolicy, Live Stock

The minister also released two manuals on export of value-added meat products and pork & pork products

The Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, Parshottam Rupala, to boost exports of value-added meat products has called on stakeholders to work towards creation of region-specific animal disease free zones in the country.

Rupala, while inaugurating the National Business Meet on promoting exports of value-added meat products organised by APEDA in New Delhi on March 25, 2022, said that even in case of single outbreak of disease amongst poultry bird, the entire country is referred as ‘disease affected’.

“All the stakeholders must take small steps and work to declare small regions- a few districts at a time, as disease free,” said Rupala, while referring to the model of Sikkim being declared as an organic state and its produce command a premium in the market.

The minister also released two manuals on export of value-added meat products and pork & pork products.

Rupala also recommended to the livestock industry to leverage the schemes of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Anima; Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund and the National Livestock Mission for setting up animal farms for their rearing in order to produce good quality meat and thereby quality value-added products.

Dr M Angamuthu, Chairman, APEDA, said, “India is the largest exporter of frozen and bovine meat while achieving significant growth in export of organic honey and fish produce.”

The minister also released two manuals on export