Vegfed signs Rs100-crore deals to boost Bihar vegetable market

Patna: In a major push to strengthen Bihar’s agricultural economy and provide better market opportunities for vegetable growers, the Bihar State Vegetable Processing and Marketing Cooperative Federation Limited (Vegfed) organised a state-level buyer-seller conference in Patna on Monday. The event was inaugurated by cooperative minister Ramkripal Yadav.Addressing the gathering, the minister said the ‘Har Thali Mein Bihari Tarkari’ campaign aimed to connect Bihar’s farmers with national and international markets. He said the state govt was committed to increasing farmers’ income by linking them with modern marketing systems, food processing facilities and major corporate buyers.Ramkripal said Bihar’s economic progress depended on the prosperity of farmers and stressed the importance of market-oriented farming for rural empowerment.Cooperative department secretary Dharmendra Singh said Vegfed was helping farmers secure fair prices by directly connecting them with markets through Primary Vegetable Producer Cooperative Societies (PVCS).He said the federation was already supplying vegetables to major organisations such as Hindustan Unilever and Mother Dairy.During the conference, MoUs and work orders worth nearly Rs 100 crore were signed between companies and vegetable producer groups, raising hopes for stronger procurement, processing and marketing networks across Bihar.The programme was attended by registrar Rajneesh Kumar Singh, managing director Gagan and other senior officials of the cooperative department, along with representatives of vegetable unions and PVCS organisations.