Israel- India intensifies partnership in Post-Harvest Management to improve quality of agri-products
India and Israel have a strategic partnership in the field of agriculture, at the core of which are the Centers of Excellence (CoE), under the Indo-Israel Agricultural Project. These centers are benefiting Indian farmers through demonstrating a value-chain aimed to increase quality, productivity and diversity of crops. The 22 CoEs across 9 Indian states are used as platforms to transfer Israeli technologies and know-how to Indian farmers. Within the Working Plan 2018-2020, Post-Harvest Management (PHM) is one of the key segments to be added to the value chain demonstrated in the CoEs. PHM refers to the stage of crop production immediately following harvest and it covers Cleaning, Grading, Sorting, Cooling and Packing.
Mr. Menashe Tamir, an Israeli-MASHAV expert on Post-Harvest Management, together with Mr. Dan Alluf- Counsellor, International Development Cooperation (MASHAV), conducted Field-visits at four Centers of Excellence in Rajasthan (Kota), Haryana (Karnal) and Punjab (Hoshiarpur and Kartarpur) from May 27 to June 3, to share expertise on PHM solutions and define models of implementations.
On the occasion of the visit, Ambassador of Israel in India, Mr. Daniel Carmon said, “These Centers of Excellence are an integral part of India and Israel’s growing partnership. The visit of Mr. Menashe Tamir provided hands-on experience in establishing Post-Harvest Management solutions for a large range of horticulture crops. This will benefit Indian farmers as well as Indian consumers.”
One of the highlights of the visit was a “Brainstorming on Implementation of Post-Harvest Management under the IIAP” conducted at the Indo-Israel CoE for Citrus- Khannaura, Hoshiarpur, on May 30.