The National Co-operative Exports Limited (NCEL) and the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) have come into a planned partnership to encourage cooperative-led agricultural exports from India. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed in the presence of Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation. The agreement underlines the government’s commitment to align the powers of the Ministry of Cooperation with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry to authorize Indian farmers on the global stage.
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The MoU was formally signed by Shri Abhishek Dev, Chairman of APEDA, and Shri Unupom Kausik, Managing Director of NCEL.
Empowering Farmers and Rural Livelihoods
Dr. Bhutani emphasized that aligning NCEL's vast cooperative network with APEDA's export facility will help farmers get better returns for their produce, enhance rural livelihoods, and strengthen India's trade presence. He also highlighted that this collaboration align with the objectives of the newly launched National Cooperation Policy.
The partnership will focus on training, capacity forming, export compliance, international branding, market positioning, and commodity-specific strategies. Farmers and cooperatives will also receive systematic guidance on global quality standards, food safety, and export documentation to fulfill international market expectations.
Strengthening India’s Global Export Ecosystem
Shri Pankaj Kumar Bansal, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation highlighted that this MoU will enable NCEL members with technical expertise and policy support from APEDA. This will allow cooperatives to access new markets, achieve export excellence, and control premium prices for their agricultural produce.
The collaboration also involves contribution in global trade fairs, infrastructure growth, market intelligence, and data analytics. Leveraging APEDA’s export promotion expertise and NCEL’s role as the national umbrella organization for cooperative exports, the partnership plans to build a strong and competitive cooperative export environment.
The MoU between NCEL and APEDA is a significant step towards making Indian cooperatives globally competitive. It ensures to enable farmers, reinforce rural economies and enhance India's agricultural impact in international marketplaces.
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