Ludhiana, Sep 26 (IANS): Union Food Processing Industry Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal Friday said that processed products should not be limited to elite sections only but should be in the reach of the common man as well.

Badal said that food wastage played a very important role in inflation.

"Due to wastage, market availability declines and it directly leads to inflation. So if we control wastage by taking help of food processing industry, we can control inflation. I am going to Ahmedabad tomorrow (Saturday) where we would study the model adopted by Amul," she said.

Addressing participants during a day-long national seminar on "Augmenting Processing and Shelf-Life of Perishable Food Products", organised by the National Productivity Council (NPC), at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) here Friday, Badal stressed the need to check wastage in agriculture sector, which is estimated at over Rs.44,000 crore and will also help in curbing inflation.

"Wastage can be reduced primarily if the farmers take advantage of food processing industry. Food processed is food saved. The saved food should be processed and made available at affordable prices to the common man," she said.

She said that the Indian Institute of Crop Processing Technology (IICPT) would be opening two centres in Bathinda and Ludhiana where all kinds of crops would be processed.

Badal said that her ministry would concentrate on creating primary collection centres close to the food production areas to bring in efficiency in food processing and reduce wastages.

She said that according to a study conducted by Central Institute of Post Harvest Engineering and Technology (CIPHET) in 2010, 18 percent of the total produce gets wasted. "To achieve efficiency, the ministry would create an enabling environment including creating refrigeration facilities at all levels," she said.

The minister said that farmers can themselves set up small food processing units to process their own produce at their home itself.

"My aim is that we come up with such a scheme where a farmer and his family, especially youth, would be involved in all stages, right from sowing to processing to marketing of a particular product. And we are already working on it so that our farmers can become self reliant," she added.