National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (
NAFED) is an apex organization of
marketing cooperatives for
agricultural produce in India, under
Ministry of Agriculture,
Government of India.
[1][2] It was founded in October 1958 to promote the trade of agricultural produce and forest resources across the nation.
[3] NAFED
is now one of the largest procurement as well as marketing agencies for
agricultural products in India. With its headquarters in New Delhi,
NAFED as four regional offices at Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata,
apart from 28 zonal offices in state capitals and important cities.
In 2008, it established,
National Spot Exchange, a
Commodities exchange as a joint venture of Financial Technologies (India) Ltd.
Objectives

To co-ordinate and promote the marketing and trading activities of its affiliated co-operative institutions;

To make arrangements for the supply of the agricultural inputs required by member institutions;

To promote inter-state and international trade in agricultural and other commodities; and

To act as an agent of the government for the purchase, sale, storage and distribution of agricultural products and inputs.
There
is no change in the membership of NAFED as no new member was admitted
during the year 2015-16 nor any member withdrew membership of NAFED,
therefore, the membership of NAFED as on 31.03.2016 stood at 847, which
is as under :
S No. |
Category of Members |
Total No. of Members
as on 31/03/2015 |
Total No. of Members
as on 31/03/2016 |
1. |
State Level Marketing Federations |
25 |
25 |
2. |
Apex Level Marketing Federations |
03 |
03 |
3. |
State Level Tribal and Commodity Federations |
24 |
24 |
4. |
Primary Marketing/ Processing Societies |
793 |
793 |
5. |
Government of India* |
00 |
00 |
6. |
NCCF & Other National Level Coop. Organisations |
02 |
02 |
|
Total
|
847
|
847
|
*Government has no equity participation in the share capital of Nafed.
The management of
NAFED vests in the Board of Directors, which includes Chairman and
Managing Director. The Board is supported by 2 standing committees -
Executive Committee and Business Committee. In addition, the Board can
also constitute two more committees/sub-committees as per the provision
of the MSCS Act/Rules and Bye-laws of NAFED.
Activities
The NAFED performs the following activities:
♦ Internal Trade
NAFED is engaged in interstate trade in agricultural commodities,
particularly foodgrains, pulses, oilseeds, cotton, jute, spices, fruits,
vegetables and eggs with a view to assuring better prices to the
producers.
♦ Foreign Trade- Export and Import of Agricultural Commodities
The NAFED exports agricultural commodities, particularly onions
(canalised), potatoes, ginger, garlic, nigerseed, sesamessed, gum,
deoiled cake of groundnut, soyabean and cottonseed, fresh and processed
fruits and vegetables, spices- black pepper, cardamom, turmeric,
cuminseed, coriander seed; cereals-rice, barley, bajra, jowar and ragi
and jute bags.
♦ Imports
The NAFED also arranges for the imports of pulses, fresh fruits, dry
fruits, nutmeg (jaiphal), wetdates and chicory seeds and inputs
particularly fertilizers and machinery as and when asked to do so by the
government.
♦ Price support operations
Government of India have designated NAFED as the nodal agency for
implementing the price support policy for oilseeds and coarse grains
during Seventh Five Year Plan period (1985-90). NAFED is being appointed
as the agency of the government to undertake support price purchases of
commodities like groundnut, soyabean, mustard seed, gram, tur, moong,
bajra, jowar, maize, barley, toria and sunflower seed.
♦ Production and Marketing of Agricultural Inputs
NAFED helps the farmers by supplying them agricultural machinery like
harvesting combines tractors, spare parts and such other inputs as
bio-fertilizers. NAFED also imports some of the machine and spare parts
from abroad to ensure timely availability of genuine spare parts at
reasonable prices.
♦ Promotional Activities
NAFED maintains expert staff, which conducts market studies, collects data and circulates the results among the members.
♦ Developing Co-operative Marketing of Tribal Produce
A separate cell to develop the marketing of product of the tribal areas
(minor forest products) having economic value has been set up with the
assistance of NAFED. NAFED arranges market intelligence, establishes
better system for auction of tribal produce and develops for other
commodities like chilgoza, gum, karya etc. Keeping in view the
importance of marketing of tribal produce, a separate Tribal
Co-operative Marketing Development Federation (TRIFED) has been set up.
♦ Setting of Scientific Storage System
NAFED has set up a cold storage alongwith an ice factory and a warehouse
in Delhi. It has set up an onion warehousing complex at Nagapattanam.
♦ Processing of Fruits and Vegetables
NAFED has set up a multi-commodity fruit and vegetables processing unit
at Delhi and at Vellore (Tamil Nadu). The basic purpose is to develop
the processing industry in co-operative sector in a major way so as to
make fruits and vegetable marketing and processing to the advantage of
the farmers.
NAFED also manufactures jute goods in joint venture with Konark Jute
Limited-promoted by Industrial Development Corporation of Orissa.