New Delhi, India: India’s ministry of agriculture has asked Fresh and Healthy Enterprises (FHEL) to investigate setting up new long-term cold storage facilities for onions, oranges, and kinnows.
FHEL is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Container Corporation of India (Concor) and currently operates a 12,000 tonne cold storage facility at Rai near Delhi.
There are currently no facilities capable of storing onions for more than six months in the country.
Tenders to provide a feasibility study into establishing the cold storage sites have gone out to five consultancy firms, according to a report by the Hindu Business Lin.
According to the article, the government believes improved storage facilities will enable it to exert more control over the price of food staples, such as onions. In the past onion shortages, and the consequent price rise, have sparked political instability.
