• The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has launched the BHARATI initiative, a flagship programme designed to support 100 agri-food and agri-tech startups with the goal of accelerating innovation, boosting exports, and strengthening India’s global presence in agricultural products.
• BHARATI, which stands for Bharat’s Hub for Agritech, Resilience, Advancement and Incubation for Export Enablement, is envisioned as part of APEDA’s broader plan to achieve $50 billion in agri-food exports for its scheduled products by 2030.
• The initiative seeks to create a collaborative ecosystem for startups engaged in high-value sectors such as GI-tagged agri-products, organic foods, superfoods, livestock products, AYUSH-linked innovations, and novel processed foods.
• It also aims to attract technology-driven enterprises working in advanced areas like AI-based quality control, blockchain-enabled traceability, IoT-driven cold chains, and agri-fintech. By addressing critical challenges of product development, perishability, wastage, logistics, and quality assurance, the programme is designed to make Indian agri-food products more competitive in global markets.
• BHARATI will include a nationwide awareness campaign, with an open application process through APEDA’s website to select 100 startups.
• The shortlisted startups will participate in a three-month acceleration programme focusing on product development, export readiness, compliance, and market access. APEDA will collaborate with state agricultural boards, agricultural universities, IITs, NITs, industry bodies, and accelerators to strengthen the initiative.
• The pilot cohort will serve as a model for scaling BHARATI into an annual programme, positioning it as a long-term catalyst for innovation-led export growth in India’s agriculture and food processing sector.