Taking the produce from farm to fork
- 1. INTERVIEW14 CARGOTALK OCTOBER 2015 Taking the produce from farm to fork QGive us an overview of your business model.Tell us about the services you offer. Incorporated in 2000 by Gian Chand Arora, IG International (IGI) is a marketer and distributor of high quality fresh fruit across India. The company handles an annual volume of over 1500 refrigerated containers from 20 countries and distributes these through its 27 wholesale outlets across India.IG International imports fresh fruits such as apples, cherries, kiwis, oranges, plums, pears and sweet tamarind, to name a few. Along with imports, we have an interest in exports, third party logistics and temperature controlled ware- housing also.We are primarily export- ing potatoes and grapes to Russia, Europe and South East Asia. The company also has a subsidiary by the name of IG Supply Chain. QCould you please tell us more about your subsidiary IGI Supply Chain? IG Supply Chain is a wholly owned subsidiary of IGIPL and caters to the business of third party logistics and temperature controlled ware- housing.The company is among the top five players in the temperature controlled warehousing sector. The subsidiary has a present capacity of 25,000 pallets and has facilities in Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Jaipur and Amravati. QWhat hurdles do you face in the import and export of perishables? How do you contribute to smoother and easier functioning? Well, when it comes to obsta- cles, I would like to focus on the lack of infrastructure development, a fragmented distribution system, obsolete technology, low product quality and a lack of trained per- sonnel to name a few. We leverage the infrastruc- ture to make use of the physical channels already in place for the delivery of other products. We believe in creating our own net- work or to work with several small and sometimes unreliable players to make our product travel through all the channels and reach our customers. This needs skills and IG excels in it.We have the distrib- utor warehouse much closer to the customer. Technology is the something we are handicapped without. We consider modern techniques and do not hesitate to trust new mech- anisms to smoothen the process if it does make a huge difference. QWould you like to comment on India's current cold chain sector scenario? If you have to name three requirements for the betterment of the cold chain industry, what would these be? India ranks first in the world in the production of fruits and second in that of vegetables accounting for 10 and 15 per cent, respectively, of the total global production. Despite this, the per capita fruit and veg- etable availability of fruit is low due to post-harvest losses and those losses can account for almost one-third (25-30 per cent) of the total production.The quality of the prod- ucts also diminishes by the time they reach the end con- sumers. The prime reason for this huge wastage and inferior produce is the lack of infrastructure–the cold chain arrange- ment, from the source of produce to the end point of sale where the perishable goods can be stored after harvest. Requirements for betterment would, firstly, be a robust cold chain. To benefit from a larger production capacity and pass it on to consumers in the form of reduced prices as well as to producers in terms of reduced wastage is the need of the day. Secondly, it would be the use of the latest technology to reduce the time consumed in taking the produce from farm to fork. QCurrently, you are exporting potatoes and table grapes to Russia, Europe and South East Asia. Are you planning to increase the number of countries and export commodities? If yes, please elaborate. The number of countries is dependent on a protocol. The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) is trying to get the protocol to other countries for exports of potatoes and grapes. As soon as more countries open to up to grapes and potatoes we will consider adding more countries for exports. QHow much growth (in terms of percentage) has your company registered in 2014-15 and what are your expectations for this financial year? We have registered a growth of 20 to 30 per cent in 2014-15 and this year we expect to grow at around 10–15 per cent. CT BUREAU Tarun Arora, Director, IG International talks about his company, the opportunities available in the Indian cold chain sector, the constraints in the import and export of perishables and how these can be removed. He emphasises that technology is equally important. Tarun Arora Director IG International IG has a fleet of 75 refrigerated trucks and 15 trailers.