The Scheme of Mega Food Park aims at providing a mechanism to link agricultural production to the market by bringing together farmers, processors and retailers so as to ensure maximizing value addition, minimizing wastage, increasing farmers income and creating employment opportunities particularly in rural sector. The Mega Food Park Scheme is based on “Cluster” approach and envisages creation of state of art support infrastructure in a well-defined agri / horticultural zone for setting up of modern food processing units in the industrial plots provided in the park with well-established supply chain. Mega food park typically consist of supply chain infrastructure including collection centers, primary processing centers, central processing centers, cold chain and around 25-30 fully developed plots for entrepreneurs to set up food processing units.

1. Objective

The Mega Food Park Scheme aims to:

• Link agricultural production to the market.

• Facilitate value addition and minimize post-harvest losses.

• Increase farmers’ income.

• Generate employment, particularly in rural areas.

2. Key Features

• Based on a “Cluster” approach.

• Focuses on integrated value chains – from farm to fork.

• Brings together farmers, processors, and retailers into one ecosystem.

3. Infrastructure Components

A typical Mega Food Park includes:

A. Collection Centers (CC)

• Located near farms.

• Used for aggregating raw produce.

• Facilities for weighing, sorting, grading.

B. Primary Processing Centers (PPC)

• For preliminary processing such as:

  • Cleaning, grading, waxing, packaging.

  • Minimal processing to preserve freshness.

C. Central Processing Center (CPC)

• Core of the park with:

  • Advanced food processing infrastructure.

  • Quality control labs, R&D, warehousing, and packaging facilities.

  • Effluent treatment and cold storage.

D. Cold Chain Infrastructure

• Refrigerated transport.

• Cold storage at multiple levels (farm, PPC, CPC).

E. Plots for Entrepreneurs

• 25–30 fully developed plots available for setting up food processing units.

4. Eligible Entities

• SPVs (Special Purpose Vehicles) – typically a consortium of private players.

• State Government entities, cooperatives, and PSUs are also eligible.

5. Financial Assistance

• Grant-in-aid: 50% of eligible project cost (excluding land), up to Rs. 50 crore.

• For North Eastern and hilly states: up to 75% of eligible cost.

6. Benefits of Mega Food Parks

• Reduces wastage of perishable produce.

• Enables value addition at the farm level.

• Boosts investment in food processing.

• Creates direct and indirect employment.

• Improves logistics and cold chain infrastructure.

• Empowers farmers through better price realization.

7. Governance

• Implemented by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI), Government of India.

8. Examples of Operational Mega Food Parks

• Srini Mega Food Park, Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh.

• North East Mega Food Park, Nalbari, Assam.

• Punjab Agro Mega Food Park, Fazilka, Punjab.

9. Challenges

• High initial capital requirement.

• Land acquisition and clearances.

• Need for strong backward (farmer) and forward (market) linkages.

10. Conclusion

The Mega Food Park Scheme is a transformative initiative that builds an efficient and integrated agri-business ecosystem. It fosters rural development, industrial growth, and sustainable agriculture by bridging the gap between producers and the market.

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