BHUBANESWAR: Odisha’s struggle with food supply crisis due to acute shortage of cold storages could soon find a much-needed help with an Indonesian company, Zenyam, offering to establish a chain of such facilities in the State.
The company with interests in mining and hospitality in Indonesia has submitted a proposal to the State Government to set up cold storages in different districts as part of its diversification and off-shore expansion plans.
Making the move for its first venture in India, Zenyam has proposed to invest in putting up ultra-modern solar-powered cold storages throughout the State. It would use latest technology of pre-fabricated structures and chilling units that would enable establishment of the facilities and making them operational in less than three months. The facilities would generate their own power through solar panelled roofs and sun facing walls.
Another unique point of the project is that the units can be operated remotely through a centrally stationed control room. The chief operator can operate the entire chain through his smart phone, thus cutting down the risk of operational failures and ensuring protection of stored goods.
“We call the facilities Eco-Cold Storage. The company to be instituted in Odisha for this venture will be Zenyam Agro Technologies Pvt Ltd,” founder and president director Victor Asher has proposed in the letter of intent submitted to the State MSME Department.
The company has given its interest to set up around 20 units in Odisha in a bid to help save post-harvest losses, estimated to be around `8000 crore every year, MSME Department sources said.
Odisha has a dire need of cold storages, lack of which has resulted in frequent scarcity of essential food items and vegetables like potato and onions. The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has assessed the gap in cold storage capacity to be a whopping around 2 lakh tonnes. As per record, there are 102 registered cold storages in the State but hardly 10 are operational.
Zenyam has also evinced interest in setting up a 5000 tonne per annum button mushroom cultivation and processing unit in the State. Using state-of-the-art technology from Holland, the fully integrated unit would require 15 acre land to produce fresh and canned white button mushroom. It will generate direct employment for 250 people while providing indirect employment to around 400 families along its site, MSME officials said.