February 27, 2014
Cargill India''s cattle feed plant in Punjab operational in a year
Cargill India''s INR70-crore (US$11.27-million) cattle feed plant in Punjab will be operational within one year, with production capacity of about 120,000 tonnes of cattle feed per year to be supplied to dairy farmers of Punjab and neighbouring Indian states.
The feed plant being set up on 8.5 acres, would provide training to more than 20,000 farmers annually on dairy farming, farm management and animal nutrition, he said.
Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said, "Cargill India''s latest investment with this environment friendly plant will put the state on a global map with other leading model dairy regions the world over.
"This initiative will equip local farmers with latest knowhow and help in implementing a reliable supply chain for dairy processing."
Terming the cattle feed unit a milestone in crop diversification plan, Badal said Cargill had been running its units in more than 37 countries across the globe and now the company had targeted Punjab as the next investment destination in the dairy sector.
"With the launching of Cargill unit in Punjab, its commitment for investment in Punjab will further give fillip to make state a ''Dairy Hub'' in India," he said, adding that the state has already the highest milk availability of 944 grams per persons across the country.
The deputy chief minister added that food processing major ITC was all set to start its operations in Punjab - the country''s biggest food processing unit at Kapurthala at a cost of INR700 crore (US$112.7 million).