NCEL, APEDA Ink Pact to Boost Cooperative-Led Agri Exports

National Co-operative Exports Limited (NCEL) and the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding to forge a strategic partnership aimed at elevating India's cooperative-led agricultural exports.

The MoU was signed in the presence of Dr Ashish Kumar Bhutani, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation, and underscores the government's commitment to synergise the strengths of the Ministry of Cooperation and the Ministry of Commerce and Industry. Abhishek Dev, Chairman, APEDA, and Unupom Kausik, Managing Director, NCEL, signed the agreement on behalf of their organisations.

Speaking on the occasion, Bhutani said aligning NCEL's network with APEDA's export facilitation will enhance value realisation for farmers, bolster rural livelihoods, and strengthen India's position in international markets in line with the objectives of the newly launched National Cooperation Policy, according to an official statement.

The partnership will focus on capacity building and training, quality compliance for export, infrastructure support and revival, participation in international trade fairs, international branding and market positioning, market intelligence and data analytics, and commodity-specific export strategy formulation.

Through this MoU, cooperative societies will gain insights into global quality standards, food safety, and export documentation through structured training programmes and workshops.

APEDA's export facilitation efforts will be integrated with NCEL's outreach network to streamline compliance for fruits, vegetables, spices, processed foods, cereals, and animal products.

Pankaj Kumar Bansal, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation, said the MoU empowers NCEL with APEDA's technical expertise and policy support, enabling its members to achieve export excellence, access new markets, and secure premium value for their produce.

The partnership will leverage NCEL's role as the national umbrella organisation for cooperative exports and APEDA's mandate to facilitate market development and export promotion to drive export readiness, branding, infrastructure augmentation, and capacity building across India's cooperative sector.