The Escorts Kubota Advanced Farming Institute (EKAFI), Kurukshetra, Haryana, in collaboration with the Agriculture Skill Council of India (ASCI) and EKL CSR Foundation, organized a capacity-building training programme for Farmer-Producer Organizations (FPOs) from Punjab and Haryana. The training was aimed at strengthening the managerial, marketing, and entrepreneurial capabilities of FPO members to enhance their sustainability and market competitiveness.
During the programme, Dr Ramandeep Singh, Professor Business Management.
Director, School of Business Studies, Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), delivered an insightful session on marketing linkages for FPOs and Agripreneurial advances. He emphasized the importance of developing strong market connections to ensure better price realization, reduced dependency on intermediaries, and improved income for farmer members. His talk also highlighted the need for collective marketing, value addition, branding, and direct market access as key strategies for strengthening FPO operations. Dr Singh also elaborated on the role of NIDHI–TBI (DST, GoI), in promoting collective bargaining among FPOs. He explained how NIDHI-TBI supported innovation-driven agribusinesses by encouraging the concepts of product development, market development, and agripreneurship. The initiative played a crucial role in nurturing farmer-led enterprises, facilitating access to technology, mentorship, and business incubation support, there by empowering FPOs to function as sustainable agribusiness entities, he observed.
Overall, the training programme provided valuable insights into market-oriented approaches and institutional support mechanisms, reinforcing the role of collaboration, innovation, and entrepreneurship in strengthening Farmer-Producer Organizations.