Agristo Masa's Rs 750 crore investment in UP plant to further empower farmers, boost income: Manpreet Singh Chadha

New Delhi, March 2 (IANS) Agristo Masa Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between Masa Global Food Pvt Ltd (part of Wave Group) and IMSTO NV, Belgium (holding company of Agristo NV, Belgium), on Sunday, announced a fresh investment of Rs 750 crore in its Uttar Pradesh plant, turbocharging the agricultural landscape and taking the total investment to over Rs 1,000 crore. 

Agristo Masa’s Bijnor plant has transformed the lives of farmers in western Uttar Pradesh by increasing their income levels by 50 per cent over the past three years.

Ensuring a holistic development of the region, around 2,500 farmers are expected to benefit from this expansion.

This is in addition to the 500 farmers in the region who have been provided sustainable livelihood opportunities through the plant’s interventions, the companies said in a statement.

Since its inception in July 2022, productivity in potato cultivation has also gone up from 17 tonnes per hectare to 32 tonnes per hectare, one of the highest in the country.

“Our aim is to empower the farmers and diversify their cash crop beyond sugarcane. We have helped these farmers to double the potatoes' output with the help of new technologies. Their income has increased by 50 per cent over the last 3 years,” said Manpreet Singh Chadha, Chairman, Wave Group, which owns a 50 per cent stake in the joint venture.

The plant, which caters to both domestic and export markets with North America, Middle East, Southeast Asia and Japan being the key geographies, had earlier entailed investment to the tune of Rs 250 crore for a potato flakes facility.

The additional investment of Rs 750 crore will be made to install a new production line of french fries.

Kristof Wallays, Director, International Expansion, Innovation, and Sustainability of Agristo, said the Bijnor plant is a testament to how results can be achieved when vision and technical expertise are combined.

“Partnering with Masa Global Food has allowed us to contribute in a meaningful manner to the rapidly evolving Indian agriculture and food processing sectors and ensure the development of all stakeholders. Next to the expertise of Indian farmers, we can rely on the expertise of several other Belgian companies such as Vyncke through their Indian venture forbesvyncke and AVR, specialised in harvesting machines,” Wallays said.

The Minister-President of the Government of Belgium's Flanders, Matthias Diependaele, noted how the plant is a sign of strong relations between the Flanders region and India, and demonstrates Belgium’s commitment to participate in the India growth story.

“Flanders is known for setting the stage for groundbreaking innovations. The Indian facility of Agristo Masa is equipped with cutting-edge Flemish technology,” said Diependaele, adding that this expansion will further scale the production and deepen the collaboration with local farmers.