Patna: Better market opportunities for women agri-entrepreneurs and Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs) in Bihar for paddy, wheat, maize and makhana were discussed at a workshop organised by Jeevika on Friday.Discussions covered demand-based cultivation, aggregation, grading, procurement, quality standards, packaging, logistics and financial services. The workshop aimed to strengthen market access, improve price realisation and create sustainable market opportunities for agricultural entrepreneurs and FPCs.The workshop was attended by agriculture entrepreneurs (AEs), FPCs, institutional buyers, exporters, retailers and state- and district-level teams of Jeevika.Jeevika CEO Himanshu Sharma said connecting its network of AEs and FPCs with markets was important for strengthening the rural economy and promoting Lakhpati Didis. He said Jeevika has more than 70 Producer Companies and over 5,000 women Agriculture Entrepreneurs.Jeevika additional CEO Ananya Singh said agriculture entrepreneurs were no longer limited to production and were playing an active role across the agricultural value chain. Bringing AEs and FPCs together with institutional buyers could reduce the role of intermediaries and strengthen direct market linkages, she said.Gates Foundation, one of the organising partners, stressed the need to strengthen the entire agricultural value chain. Its representative, Anjani Kumar Singh, cited access to inputs, technology, training, finance and advisory services, alongside aggregation, grading, value addition, processing and logistics.The workshop also discussed potential partnerships between AEs, FPCs and market stakeholders to develop structured and long-term market linkages for agricultural produce in Bihar.
