MoFPI order Specifies Millet Content in RTC/RTE Products

The Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) has released an order for the specification of millet content in the millet-based ready to cook (RTC)/ ready to eat (RTE) products under the Production Linked Incentives Scheme for food processing industry.

As per the MoFPI order, the ready to cook, ready to eat millet food products (except flour/atta) having minimum millet percentages as suggested by the ministry are eligible to be included under the scheme.

“It has now been decided to specify the levels of millet in various RTC/RTE food products permissible under the scheme,” states the issued order by Ministry of Food Processing Industries.

The order also asserted that the food products were categorized into three classes and percentage of millet incorporation in the product. The first category of products include breakfast cereals having finger, pearl, foxtail, little, kodo, barnyard and sorghum millets, for which the minimum incorporation level with individual millet is fixed at 25%, the second class includes pasta, noodles, spaghetti having finger, pearl, foxtail, little, kodo, and sorghum millet, wherein the minimum incorporation level with individual millets is fixed at 10% and third type considers the other ready to cook/ eat products with 20% allowed limit of minimum incorporation level of individual millet.

Recently, the guidelines of the scheme were released and applications for availing the incentives were invited. The last date for submission of application is 17th June, 5pm.

The Government of India has given approval to the PLI scheme for Food Processing for implementation for the FY 2021-22 to 2026-27 and set aside a corpus of Rs 10,900 crore for the same. The ministry states that the vision of the scheme was to assist the creation of global food manufacturing champions, thus supporting Indian brands of value-added food products in the global markets, amongst the others.