BHUBANESWAR: The State government has directed the departments of Agriculture and Farmers' Empowerment and Cooperation to work out a joint marketing framework with the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (NAFED) to assist farmers for sale of their produces.
The Agriculture department has been asked to identify cash crops for promotion outside the State in consultation with the SC and ST Development department. NAFED will be the channelising agency.
A high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary SC Mahapatra has decided to market different pulses, vegetables and fruits in collaboration with NAFED. Managing director of NAFED Sanjeev Chadha also discussed the possibility of promoting minor millets as super diet throughout the country.
The State has been producing a varieties of organic millets under Millet Mission. The government, which launched the mission in 30 blocks of seven districts in 2017, had expanded it to 76 blocks in 14 districts by 2020.
The people in 119 TSP blocks and 22 ITDAs are mostly accustomed with production of organic varieties which could be marketed under special brand. Organic cultivation clusters have also been created in the districts like Koraput, Rayagada and Kandhamala and this has been appreciated by NITI Aayog.