The northeastern region of India comprises eight states, namely, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim. The north east hill alone accounts for 65 percent of the total land area, while the Brahmaputra valley and the Meghalaya plateau cover 22 percent and 13 percent of the area respectively. The region offers a great opportunity for the cultivation of a wide variety of horticultural crops such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, tubers and spices because of fertile soil, topography and suitable agro climatic conditions.

The food processing industry which has been growing at an average rate of seven percent is likely to register a growth rate of ten percent in the near future. The ministry of food and processing industries has also published a Mission 2015 document which also highlights the increase of processed food industries in the near future. With the large section of retail industry getting organized, food retail has been receiving a lot of attention. At present only one percent of food retail in India flows through the organized retail channel. However, this situation is expected to change with the changing life style such as the increasing number of nuclear and dual income families, changing consumer tests and increasing disposable incomes. As the food processing industries are growing which are also in a great demand for the packaged food products.

At present almost sixty percent of packaging of material is consumed for fresh and processed food products. The total six of the Indian packaging industry is seventy two thousand crore per annum, which is growing at the rate of fifteen percent per annum. This clearly indicates that there is a great investment opportunity in food processing as well as packaging industry in India and of course in the northeastern region. Keeping in view of the previously stated background, the Indian Institute of Packaging in association with North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation (NERAMAC) organized a three day National Packaging Exhibition, INDPACK 2012, which was probably the first of its kind in this particular region. About 60 exhibitors across the country participated in this exhibition which showcased the latest developments of packaging materials and machinery for the benefit of local entrepreneurs, said the IIP director.

Guwahati, the gateway of the north east region made history by way of hosting the mega event i.e. National Packaging Exhibition under the banner of INDPACK 2012 with the theme ‘Packaging for Progress’ which was held from the 15th to the 17th of March 2012. The exhibition was organized by the Institute of Packaging, an autonomous body in the field of packaging technology which is working under the administrative control of Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India in association with NERAMAC, which is a public sector undertaking under the ministry of development for Northeastern Region (DoNER), Government of India. The head office of the Institute is located at Mumbai and its branches are situated at Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad. The registered office of NERAMAC is located at Guwahati and it has got retail outlets for selling the processed food products which are locally available. Coinciding with this the Indian Institute of packaging and NERAMAC also jointly organized a one day National conference on Packaging of farm fresh produce and ethnic processed food products on March 16th.

D N Singh