How does PMKSY support a new food-processing capex project?

PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana) is an umbrella scheme covering Mega Food Parks, Cold Chain, Agro-Processing Clusters, Food Processing Units, Operation Greens, and Backward/Forward Linkages. As of mid-2024, 41 Mega Food Parks, 399 Cold Chain projects, and 588 Food Processing Units had been approved. We scope where your project fits in the scheme stack, pre-audit eligibility, and sequence grant drawdown with bank-format TEV.

What does FSSAI compliance actually require for a processing plant?

FSSAI Central Licence via FoSCoS for plants above the revenue threshold, HACCP plans, labelling compliance against annual July-1 updates, and product-specific approvals for novel foods. Routine import clearance on FoSCoS runs 7–10 working days with clean documentation. We own the audit readiness and pre-submission compliance layer.

Is retail, foodservice, or quick-commerce the right channel in 2026?

All three, sequenced. Most successful processing brands build HoReCa and modern trade first for volume and margin, layer in quick-commerce for velocity and brand, and use traditional trade to reach tier-3 geographies. The correct mix depends on category, unit economics, and cold-chain footprint — which is what we model in a channel engagement.

Do you help with both capex projects and operating-brand scaling?

Yes. Capex work is typically a bank-format TEV, plant sizing, and PMKSY grant orchestration. Brand work is channel architecture, shelf economics, and the unit-economics stress tests that investor boards actually read. The same partners handle both, because the problems compound.

№03Industries

Agri consulting for food processing in India.

Primary and secondary processing, cold chain, packaging, and HoReCa — scoped around PMKSY infrastructure and FSSAI compliance.

Discuss a project Bank-format TEV

The sector today.

India’s food processing industry is projected to reach USD 535 billion by 2025–26 and more than double again by FY35. The scale is real, but so is the gap between headline market size and operating reality: processing levels for perishable commodities still trail other major agri economies by a wide margin, cold chain is concentrated in metro-adjacent corridors, and working capital cycles routinely strand cashflow in the middle of the chain.

The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY), launched in May 2017, is the umbrella infrastructure programme that shapes the sector. As of mid-2024, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries had approved 41 Mega Food Parks, 399 Cold Chain projects, 76 Agro-Processing Clusters, 588 Food Processing Units, 61 Backward/Forward Linkages projects, and 52 Operation Greens interventions — with ₹22,778 crore in committed investment across 1,646 projects since inception. The FY25–26 budget allocation of ₹729 crore (roughly USD 85 million) is meaningful if your capex plan maps cleanly onto the scheme sub-components.

Regulatory compliance runs through FSSAI via the FoSCoS portal — licensing, product approval for novel foods, and labelling rule updates that roll in every July 1. Import clearance on a well-documented consignment runs 7–10 working days. Export-oriented projects layer APEDA, phyto-sanitary requirements, and corridor-specific certifications. The consulting problem is never one regulator — it is the calendar across all of them aligned to a commercial launch date that doesn’t slip.

PMKSY scorecard · as of mid-2024

41: Mega Food Parks
399: Cold Chain projects
588: Processing Units
76: Agro-Processing Clusters
52: Operation Greens
₹22,778 Cr: Cumulative investment

Challenges we solve

Six recurring problems.

PMKSY grant orchestration: Mapping a capex project onto Mega Food Park / Cold Chain / Operation Greens eligibility and sequencing grant drawdown with bank finance.
FSSAI compliance + labelling calendar: FoSCoS licensing, HACCP readiness, and the July-1 annual labelling refresh — planned against SKU launches, not after them.
Cold-chain economics: Facility siting, route planning, dwell-time management, and the IRR case for cold storage and refrigerated transport capex.
Raw-material procurement design: FPO tie-ups, contract farming, grade/reject logic at collection, and working-capital structuring for seasonal commodities.
Retail / HoReCa / quick-commerce channel mix: Modern trade margins, traditional trade depth, and quick-commerce velocity — built into a coherent channel plan, not layered ad hoc.
Export-readiness into GCC / EU / SE Asia: APEDA registration, phyto compliance, HS-code optimisation, and on-ground buyer discovery in the target corridor.

Sub-segments we serve

Where the brief usually lands.

Primary Processing
Secondary & Value-Added
Cold Chain & Storage
Packaging
Ready-to-Eat & Frozen
HoReCa & Institutional

How we help

Services most commonly bundled into a food-processing engagement.

Strategic Consulting

Growth strategy and investor decks for processing ventures; PMKSY-aligned capex planning.

Explore the service Regulatory & Compliance

FSSAI product approval, FoSCoS licensing, labelling compliance, and import clearances.

Explore the service Due Diligence & TEV

Bank-format TEV for food-processing capex — plant sizing, cash flow, and lender covenants.

Explore the service Supply Chain Optimization

Cold-chain economics, post-harvest shrinkage redesign, primary-processing integration.

Explore the service

Talent we place here

Roles where operating depth decides outcomes.

Talent Acquisition

Plant Head: Processing plant P&L, throughput, safety, and capex ownership.
Head of Operations & Supply Chain: Multi-plant operations, warehousing, inbound-outbound logistics, S&OP.
Head of Quality & Food Safety: FSSAI / HACCP / BRC / ISO 22000, audit readiness, corrective-action systems.
R&D Head — NPD: New product development, sensory, shelf-life, and cost-of-goods engineering.
Head of Sales — Retail / HoReCa: Modern trade, traditional trade, quick-commerce, and HoReCa channel architecture.

Frequently asked

Clear answers before the call.

: PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana) is an umbrella scheme covering Mega Food Parks, Cold Chain, Agro-Processing Clusters, Food Processing Units, Operation Greens, and Backward/Forward Linkages. As of mid-2024, 41 Mega Food Parks, 399 Cold Chain projects, and 588 Food Processing Units had been approved. We scope where your project fits in the scheme stack, pre-audit eligibility, and sequence grant drawdown with bank-format TEV.
: FSSAI Central Licence via FoSCoS for plants above the revenue threshold, HACCP plans, labelling compliance against annual July-1 updates, and product-specific approvals for novel foods. Routine import clearance on FoSCoS runs 7–10 working days with clean documentation. We own the audit readiness and pre-submission compliance layer.
: All three, sequenced. Most successful processing brands build HoReCa and modern trade first for volume and margin, layer in quick-commerce for velocity and brand, and use traditional trade to reach tier-3 geographies. The correct mix depends on category, unit economics, and cold-chain footprint — which is what we model in a channel engagement.
: Yes. Capex work is typically a bank-format TEV, plant sizing, and PMKSY grant orchestration. Brand work is channel architecture, shelf economics, and the unit-economics stress tests that investor boards actually read. The same partners handle both, because the problems compound.