AGRO AND FOOD PROCESSING INDUSTRY

    Food Processing Industry is a major thrust area in the State of Manipur as it plays a significant supportive role in the diversification and commercialization with value addition of agro-horticultural and forest products. Blessed with suitable agro-climatic conditions, Manipur abounds in varieties of raw material resources for Food Processing Industries. The State has tremendous potential for further development of Food Processing Industry based on locally available materials.

Raw Material Resources :

(a)  Agricultural Resources :

The existing area under cultivation of different crops in Manipur is 2,85,000 hectares as against the available potential  area of 3,25,500 hectares. Rice, wheat, maize, oil seeds, potato and sugar cane etc. are the main cash crops in the State. Among these crops, cultivation of the paddy is the largest both in the plains and hills, and cover 82% of the total cultivated area. Besides the numerous varieties of local rice which are all unique in taste, two being highly specific to the State with distinctive scent and flavour are most preferred for pudding preparation Chakhao-Poireiton (dark violet) and Chakhao (white).

(b)  Horticultural Resources :

Manipur has vast potential for commercial plantation of fruits like pineapple, passion fruit, lemon, line, orange, banana, amla, olive, etc.. Out of the potential area of 2,77,000 hectares identified for plantation of fruits and vegetables, only 24,000 hectares are covered so far under different crops plantation. Vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, tomato, etc. and spices like chilli, ginger, turmeric, etc. are in huge production.

Successful Food Processing Industrial Units

        Popular Brand Names   : 

·         MAGFRUIT, RATNA, SANA, MANIFRU, LIKLA, HEIRANG,
 CHANDANI, WAIFRUIT.

        Advantages  :

·         Suitable Agro-climatic conditions for production of good quality fruits and vegetables

·         Link with Myanmar and other S-E Asian countries

Potential areas for Export

·         Pineapple fresh packed, pulp, juice, slices, tit-bit, toffee and concentrate.

·         Passion fruits fresh packed, juice and concentrate

·         Bamboo shoots fresh in brine/canned, dry, fermented bamboo shoot.

·         Mushrooms Canned and dry

·         Lemon juice and concentrate

·         Orange juice and concentrate

·         Ginger Oil, oleoresin and ginger lime (RTS)

·         Other fruit and vegetables Jam, Jelly, Pickles, Ketchup, Sauce, Dry, etc.

Pineapple :

Pineapples are available for almost 8 months a year in Manipur. The present pineapple cultivated area is about 10,000 hectares with an annual yield of 70,000 MT. Both the two most-sought-after varieties of  pineapple, viz. Kew (big size) and Queen (small size) are produced in commercial scale. packed toffee, whereas the Queen variety is most suitable for preparation  of juice, pulp and squash. The 8-month availability of pineapples in Manipur makes the State highly advantageous for processing and export, the most striking specially being of the Kew variety for its tantalizing taste and flavour. There are huge demands of the products in the outside the Country.

Passion Fruit :

Passion fruit, both as fresh and in processed form like juice and concentrates, has excellent market world-wide because of its unique taste and flavour. Production of passion fruits is very limited in the world. Besides Equador, Brazil, Columbia, Australia, etc., India is one of the few producers of passion fruit in the world. Due to the specific agro-climatic condition required, the growth of passion fruit is limited even within India. The main growing region for passion fruits in India is the North-Eastern Region Mizoram, Manipur and Nagaland.

      In Manipur, passion fruit grows naturally. Large scale cultivation and farming has started recently. Both yellow and purple varieties are available in Manipur. Cultivation in large scales is now in the Senapati, Tamenglong, Chandel Churachandpur, Ukhrul, Thoubal and Bishnupur districts. The fruits can be harvested throughout the year depending upon the time of plantation. APENDA has set up one model organic farming project for passion fruit at Mao of Senapati  Districts by transferring the existing farm in about 10 hectares through one NGO, namely "Good Samaritan Social Service".

Bamboo Shoot :

Bamboo shoot production units may be taken up extensively as it has potentials for bamboo cultivation and marketing  of processed bamboo shoot, products (orient food) in the local as well as international markets in the countries like Japan, China, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong and UK.

Bamboo shoot products :

·         Canned Bamboo Shoots :

1.      In Brine

2.      In curried vegetable

3.      In syrups

·         Bamboo Shoot Candies

·         Bamboo Shoot Chutneys

·         Bamboo Shoot Sweet Pickles

·         Fermented Bamboo Shoots (locally named as Soibum and Soidon)

·         Bamboo Shoot power.

Mushroom :

A new thrust area is cultivation and processing of Mushroom. There is vast scope for commercial cultivation of mushrooms in the State  which offers ideal weather conditions for mushroom cultivation throughout the year. Apart from the indigenous species, other suitable varieties of mushrooms for cultivation in the State are : Agaricus bisporus (Button mushrooms), Agaricus bitorquis, Pleuratus flabellatus, Pleurutus Sajor-Caju, Pleuratus Ostreatus.

Ginger :

Manipur produces large quantities of ginger suitable for processing of dry ginger, oil and oleoresin. A ready to serve drinks (RTS) general known as ginger lime - ginger and lime mixed (1:3) - has a good potential and demand in Manipur and the outside.

Manipur Traditional Liquor :

Manipur's traditional liquor generally called "Yu" is known for its quality comparable with any other best quality hard alcoholic drinks like Vodka. This local alcohol is manufactured by distillation of fermented rice in a traditional method with other ingredients mixed during the fermentation. There is a good scope for setting up distilleries for "Yu" and packaging them attractively for a wider outside market.