Govt maintained onion buffer stock of 2.5 LMT in FY 2022-23

New Delhi [India], July 27 (ANI): With the aim to stabilize onion prices, the government maintained a buffer stock of 2.5 Lakh Metric Ton (LMT) in financial year 2022-23, said Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Union Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in a written reply to Lok Sabha.
Owing to the perishable nature of the crop, and the gap between rabi and kharif crops, onion prices often rise during the months of September to December.
“The onion production in financial year 2020-21 as per the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare was 266.41 Lakh Metric Ton, and onion consumption in 2020-21 as per market intelligence report was 160.50 LMT,” said the official statement today.
Loss of onions in the post-harvest season is often a result of loss of moisture content, fungal infection, decay loss, and sprouting loss.
In order to combat the post-harvest loss of onions, the Department of Consumer Affairs launched a Hackathon challenge, inviting innovative ideas for post-harvest storage of onions. This challenge is open to the scientific community and researchers amongst others.
“There are four verticals of the challenge namely, improvements in the designs of storage structures, pre-harvesting stage, primary processing and valorization; value addition and utilisation of onion waste,” stated the Minister.
Evaluation of ideas and technology situations will take place at three stages. They will include evaluations of the candidate’s ideation, proof-of-concept, product stage and field implementation.
Agriculture Universities and the Central Universities have been notified about the Hackathon, with the request to spread the challenge to ensure maximum participation. (ANI)