Potato value chain India strengthened as Banas Dairy and BBSSL join hands to produce certified seed potatoes, promote contract farming, and empower farmers under Sahakar se Samriddhi.
Banas Dairy & BBSSL Join Hands to Strengthen India’s Potato Value Chain
Banas Dairy and Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) have signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 10 November 2025 in New Delhi, marking a major step toward strengthening India’s potato value chain.
Transforming Agriculture Through a Seed-to-Market Model
Under this MoU, Banas Dairy and BBSSL plan to build a comprehensive “seed-to-market” value chain for potatoes.The collaboration envisions:
- Production of certified, disease-free seed potatoes
- Use of scientific cultivation methods
- Adoption of contract farming to stabilize farmers’ income
- Development of strong market linkages, so farmers can directly access buyers and reduce waste.
By combining cooperative strength with high-end technology, the initiative aims to boost productivity, reduce crop losses, and raise farmer incomes
Role of Key Partners
Banas Dairy
Part of the Amul cooperative network, Banas Dairy is one of Asia’s largest dairy cooperatives. Under its “Beyond Dairy” strategy, it is diversifying into high-value agriculture. Banas will bring:
- Technical know-how for seed production
- State-of-the-art tissue culture and aeroponic facilities – advanced systems to grow clean and healthy seeds.
- Market access and supply chain support to ensure farmers get good returns.
BBSSL (Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited)
BBSSL will leverage Banas Dairy’s advanced infrastructure to produce high-quality seed potatoes. Their role includes: ensuring seed certification, quality control, and distributing seed to farmers through a cooperative network.
Aligning with Government Vision: “Sahakar se Samriddhi”
This partnership strongly reflects the Government of India’s Sahakar se Samriddhi initiative, which promotes cooperation among cooperatives to drive rural prosperity. the Ministry of Cooperation sees this as a model for modernizing agricultural value chains via cooperative institutions.
Dr. Ashish Kumar Bhutani, Secretary at the Ministry of Cooperation, has called this collaboration a “milestone” in farmer empowerment and building resilient rural economies.Meanwhile, Sangram Chaudhary, MD of Banas Dairy, emphasized the cooperative’s drive to extend beyond dairy into other high-potential agribusinesses. Chetan Joshi, MD of BBSSL, stressed that this effort also promotes self-reliance in seed potato production, reducing dependency on seed imports.
Potential Impact on Potato Farmers
- Access to Quality Seeds: Farmers will be able to access certified, disease-free seed potatoes, which can significantly increase yield.
- Better Farming Practices: Through scientific farming training, farmers can adopt modern cultivation techniques, improving efficiency.
- Stable Income: Contract farming ensures that farmers have guaranteed buyers and better price stability.
- Reduced Waste: With better market linkages, crop losses due to inefficiencies in storage and supply chain may decrease.
- Scalable Model: This cooperative-led “seed-to-market” framework could become a model for other crops and regions.
Why This News Is Important
Empowering Farmers & Strengthening Rural Economy
This MoU is a concrete step toward empowering potato farmers by ensuring they get high-quality, disease-free seed potatoes. By improving input quality and market access, the initiative can boost productivity and profits, which is critical for uplifting rural incomes.
Promoting Cooperative-Led Agricultural Innovation
It showcases how cooperatives — like Banas Dairy — are expanding beyond their traditional dairy business into agri-value chain activities. This diversification strengthens the cooperative model and helps bring scientific farming techniques to small and marginal farmers.
Aligning with Government Policy Goals
The partnership is closely aligned with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Sahakar se Samriddhi” vision, which promotes cooperation among cooperatives. It also supports the Ministry of Cooperation’s goal of modernizing agri-value chains through collaborative institutions.
Building Resilience & Self-Reliance
By promoting local production of certified seed potatoes, the collaboration reduces dependence on imported seeds. This improves self-reliance in a key agricultural input, strengthening food security.
Model for Future Agri Initiatives
If successful, this “seed-to-market” pipeline for potatoes could be replicated for other crops. The cooperative-led model could become a blueprint for sustainable and integrated agricultural development in India.
Historical Context
Origins of Banas Dairy
- Banas Dairy, also known as Banaskantha District Cooperative Milk Federation, was founded in 1969.
- It is part of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation, and over time it has become Asia’s largest milk-producer cooperative.
- Historically, Banas Dairy’s operations were focused purely on milk, but with its “Beyond Dairy” strategy, it is now diversifying into agricultural value chains.
Rise of BBSSL
- Bharatiya Beej Sahakari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) is a cooperative seed organisation. While detailed founding history is less publicly documented, its role in seed production and cooperative seed distribution makes it a key actor in the Indian agri-seed sector.
- The cooperative model for seed production has been promoted by the Ministry of Cooperation to reduce dependency on private or foreign seed suppliers.
Policy Push: “Sahakar se Samriddhi”
- The slogan “Sahakar se Samriddhi”, which means “Prosperity through Cooperation,” is central to the current government’s thrust on empowering cooperatives.
- Under this vision, cooperatives are being encouraged to diversify and collaborate, not just within their traditional domains (like dairy) but also in new agribusiness areas, thereby boosting farmer incomes and strengthening rural economies.
Agricultural Value Chain Innovation
- The idea of a “seed-to-market” value chain is relatively new in many cooperative-led projects in India. By encompassing seed production, scientific cultivation, contract farming, and market linkage, this MoU represents an integrated model.
- Use of tissue culture and aeroponic technology in seed potato production is also modern and tech-driven — these methods allow for disease-free, high-yield seeds.
- Over time, such cooperative-based, technology-enabled value chains might become mainstream and could be replicated for other important crops across India.
Key Takeaways from This News
| S. No. | Key Takeaway |
|---|---|
| 1 | MoU Signed: Banas Dairy and BBSSL signed a MoU on 10 November 2025 to build a “seed-to-market” value chain for potatoes. |
| 2 | Quality Seeds: The collaboration will enable the production of certified, disease-free seed potatoes using advanced technologies. |
| 3 | Modern Farming Techniques: The project promotes scientific cultivation practices and contract farming to stabilize farmer income. |
| 4 | Cooperative Infrastructure: Banas Dairy will provide tissue culture & aeroponic facilities, while BBSSL handles seed distribution. |
| 5 | Policy Alignment: The partnership aligns with the Government’s “Sahakar se Samriddhi” vision, promoting cooperation among cooperatives and self-reliance in agriculture. |
FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the main objective of the Banas Dairy and BBSSL partnership?
The main objective is to build a “seed-to-market” potato value chain, ensuring the production of high-quality, disease-free seed potatoes and improving market access for farmers.
2. When was the MoU between Banas Dairy and BBSSL signed?
The MoU was signed on 10 November 2025 in New Delhi.
3. What technologies are being used for seed potato production?
Advanced tissue culture and aeroponic techniques will be used to produce certified, disease-free seed potatoes.
4. How does the partnership benefit farmers?
Farmers will gain access to quality seeds, scientific farming practices, contract farming with assured buyers, reduced crop losses, and higher income stability.
5. How does this initiative align with government policies?
It aligns with the Government of India’s “Sahakar se Samriddhi” vision, promoting cooperative-led agricultural development, farmer empowerment, and self-reliance.
6. What is the role of Banas Dairy in the partnership?
Banas Dairy provides technical expertise, infrastructure for seed production, and market linkage support for farmers.
7. What is the role of BBSSL in this collaboration?
BBSSL ensures seed certification, quality control, and distribution of seed potatoes to farmers through the cooperative network.
8. Can this model be replicated for other crops?
Yes, the cooperative-led “seed-to-market” value chain model can be scaled and adapted for other high-value crops.
Some Important Current Affairs Links
