Promotion of FPOs

What are Farmers Producers Organizations (FPOs)?
A Farmer Producer Organization is a legal entity formed by the primary producers like farmers, milk producers, fishermen, rural artisans etc. The main objective of a FPO is to ensure better income to its members through marketing of their produces as well as by providing them important services related to their agriculture. In a country like India where most of the farmers are small and marginal farmers, FPO has become more important to enable them to access to the national and global market as well as to access to various important services. In this regard, Govt. of India amended its companies act of 1956 to enable the farmers and primary producers also to form their business organizations under this act.

SVA, since its inception, has been working primarily with the small and marginal farmers immediately after the new act was formed in the year 2002-03. SVA has promoted one of the first FPOs at national level which was named as “Just Change India Producer Company Limited”. The objective was to federate various producer groups working in different states to collectively undertake marketing of their produces. However, subsequently SVA learned that Farmers Producer Organizations should be formed in small geographical areas and with a limited number of members or shareholders so that it can be managed more effectively. Hence, in the year 2011 the second FPO was registered in the name of “Odisha Producer Company Limited (OPCL)”. Even though it was registered taking members at state level, it confined its business activities mostly to Nuapada and Kalahandi districts of Western Odisha.

Promoting FPOs in collaboration with NABARD:

In the year 2014, when Govt. of India set up a Produce Fund under NABARD and decided to promote 2000 new FPOs the regional office of NABARD, Bhubaneswar requested SVA to become one of the Producer Organization Promoting Institution (POPI) and during 2014-15, SVA promoted 40 new FPOs spread over different districts. Since then SVA has been providing various trainings and hand holding support to these FPOs so as to work independently within a few years. After seeing the initial success of those FPOs, SVA with support from NABARD has promoted additional 16 FPOs in Kalahandi, Nuapada, Sambalpur and Deogarh districts.