This paper provides a detailed analysis of food processing industry in India, its
S&T capability, skills and employment opportunities. Food processing industry is slowly
and steadily becoming one of the major industries of our economy. Its share in GDP is on
continuous rise, with a CAGR of 8.40 per cent, from 2005-06 to 2009-10. Ther0e has
been a continuous increase in the total plan outlay amount from INR 650 crore in 10th
Plan; to INR 15077 crore in proposed outlay for 12th Plan. The sector is growing, but it
is yet to compete in the world market. India’s share in world export is meagre with
1.17 per cent. There is a wide gap between productivity and processing of items. The
factors which have been used to study food processing industry are S&T capability of
sector, its employment generation capacity and skills needed in the sector. The S&T
capability segment venture into the changing trend of technology, difference between
conventional and modern technology, the areas in which India is lagging behind. The
employment generation capacity highlights growth and size of the industry and skills
about the kind of human resources involved in the industry, the level of technology
used in the sector. The employment generation capacity of the sector is huge, but the
industry is not working at its potential. The labour force is highly unskilled, with 80 per
cent of them having educational level below 10th standard. The impact of a variety of
policies and programmes undertaken by government to develop food processing
sector has not been very encouraging. The state needs to strengthen its efforts in S&T
capability, infrastructure support and skill set in order to develop food processing
industry.