A Report on FPO Training in Bankers Institute of Rural Development (BIRD) Mangaluru Date: 27-01-2020 to 29-01-2020

A Report on FPO Training in Bankers Institute of Rural Development (BIRD)  Mangaluru Date: 27-01-2020 to 29-01-2020

On 27-01-2020 to 29-01-2020 MITHRA Foundation and their Farmer producer Organization (FPOs) members are participated on the training program that related on linking and trading on commodity exchange and financing of FPO, total 13 members are participated on that training program, MITHRA Foundation have 4 FPOs supported by NABARD. The hospitality and accommodation in BIRD Mangaluru was very good.

 On 1^st day session:

1^st day session with registration and entry level questions and other information about FPOs like No.of shareholders, business turnover on average, commodities handling by FPO, activities of FPO like input sales, purchase sales, loan/ purpose, Joint Liability Groups (JLG), Self Help Groups(SHGs)  promotion, value addition/ processing units or processing centers and any other activities. Loan availed by FPO or not, if availed mentioned which year, bank, purpose of the loan and how much amount. Name of the Promoting of Producer Institutions (POPI)/ NGOs, area of operations, FPO linked with APMC/ e-NAM and last availed NABARD support. Basic questions are there after that introduction session was started, on that training program different type of NGOs and FPOs from different sates in India, all are share their FPO status, what type of commodities are they processing etc., DGM sir taking the session to explain about linking and trading on commodity exchange through e-NAM, National Commodity Exchange (NCDEX) and warehouse contraction and their subsidies. Warehouse/ godown construction parameters, locations are taking place in that period. Every FPO person share their knowledge and current position and their requirements for going front in business line.

On NCDEX session what type of commodities are in NCDEX, how we can sell/buy our commodities, Auction and bidding of the commodities, terms, conditions and their polices are discussed, one more point raise by the participants is storage of crop until they get best price through NCDEX, they gave some storage space for the farmers in some charge bases until they good price for their crops, that was very useful session for the FPOs, because they all deal with their local commodity crops and they have knowledge about local mandi, e-NAM prices for the commodities, by that they can bidding / auction their commodities in NCDEX.

National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange Limited (NCDEX) is a professionally managed on-line multi commodity exchange. The shareholders of NCDEX comprises of large national level institutions, large public sector bank and companies.

Current Shareholders: Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE), Canara Bank, Punjab National Bank (PNB), CRISIL Limited, Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited (IFFCO), Shree Renuka Sugars Limited, Jaypee Capital Services Limited, Build India Capital Advisors LLP, Oman India Joint Investment Fund, IDFC Private Equity Fund III, Star Agriwarehousing and Collateral Management Limited and shareholding by individuals.

NCDEX offers a bouquet of benefits, which are currently in short supply in the commodity markets. The shareholders of NCDEX are prominent players in their respective fields and bring with them institutional building experience, trust, nationwide reach, technology and risk managementskills

NCDEX is a public limited company incorporated on April 23, 2003 under the Companies Act, 1956. It obtained its Certificate for Commencement of Business on May 9, 2003. It commenced its operations on December 15, 2003. Corporate Identity No. isU51909MH2003PLC140116.

NCDEX is a nation-level, technology driven de-mutualized on-line commodity exchange with an independent Board of Directors and professional management - both not having any vested interest in commodity markets. It is committed to provide a world-class commodity exchange platform for market participants to trade in a wide spectrum of commodity derivatives driven by best global practices, professionalism and transparency.

NCDEX is regulated by Securities and Exchange Board of India. NCDEX is subjected to various laws of the land like the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act, 1956, Companies Act, Stamp Act, Contract Act and various other legislations.

NCDEX headquarters are located in Mumbai and offers facilities to its members from the centers located throughout India. As of March 31, 2019, the Exchange offered futures contracts in 19 agricultural commodities and options contracts in 5 agricultural commodities.

NCDEX session Structure of commodity exchanges in India Ministry of Finance (Departments of Economic Affairs) to Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to National Exchanges to Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), NCDEX, Indian Commodity Exchange (ICEX), National Stock Exchange (NSE), Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Participants in derivatives market are farmers/ FPOs, producers/ sellers, exporters/ importers, traders, Govt. agencies, retail customers, business persons etc., Agri commodity derivatives- trading on exchange are oil seeds (soybean, RM seed, Castor), oils( refined soya oil, crude product oil), Grains & pulses (wheat, paddy, barley, maize, bajra, Chana), Spices (coriander, jeera, turmeric, coriander), Fibers(cotton, jute) and other products are in bidding / auction session.

Benefits of Trade on future market:

Risk transfer platform from actual users to traders / speculators that helps hedges concentrate on core activity, long term price signals help to farmers to decide cropping pattern, corporate managers to take investment/ capital expenditure decisions for cover sales and raw materials risk and cost of capital reduced. A good investment options are Arbitrage opportunities, these are brief details on NCDEX.

2^nd day Session:

2^nd day session starts with previous day review and exposure visit to Pingaara Horticulture Farmers Producer Company Ltd., Vittal, and Pingaara FPO was promoted by Horticulture Department, they focused on Jack fruit, Banana value addition, Seedless dates and Areca related products. Main products of that FPO is Jack pap pad, Banana Halwa, banana chips, seedless dates, honey and related products are manufacturing and packing at one place, all the products prepared in hygiene manner, they maintained solar dyer also, and Pingaara FPO CEO was actively performed to grow thing, they taking a support from SFAC, by that they maintain own vehicle for products delivery to the shops/ direct customers/ retail shops, online buyers etc.,  agriculture machinery, and also maintained what type of machinery was required for value addition process like packing machinery, weighing machines, storage containers, raw material storage small ware house are maintained, that FPO maintained Rental Building for their activities. Participants are asking few questions related their stock management, marketing strategies, book maintained by the FPO, no.of shareholders, women farmers etc.

After that all the participants are going to Pingaara CEO Farm house visiting, that was very interesting and atmosphere was very pleasant, on that Farm house he maintained dairy unit, by that dairy unit bio-gas prepared, goat raring/ farming, small pond also maintained, paddy farming for house purpose, Areca trees, black pepper trees, banana trees, Betel trees (Thamalapaku) and major attractive on that Farm house is vanilla tress, by products of that tress are vanilla essence and used in vanilla ice cream preparation. Rain water harvesting technique also implemented there, solar dyer also maintained for Areca and other products.

Pingaara CEO was explained each and every point about their Farm house, and their crops, they maintained drip irrigation process to water the plants, after completion of Farm house visiting, we all going to ancient someswara beach that was located nearly to that Farm house.

3^rd day session:  

3^rd day session starts with previous days review and DGM sir gave a task to all participants, the task is what Pingaara mistakes is, to sustain, marketing strategies, participants side suggestions to sustain that FPO, after they divided into groups, one group explained about draw backs, next group gave marketing strategies, another group is how to implement their production and value addition process etc.

Each group gave prepared their topics and gave presentations on selected topic, there every team think that Pingaara FPO member, they gave their suggestions to improve their FPO, on that session MITHRA Foundation members explained about a few draw backs and marketing strategies to sustain the Pingaara FPO, on marketing part MITHRA Foundation General Sectary explain about The 5 P's of Marketing – Product, Price, Promotion, Place, and People – are key marketing elements used to position a business strategically. Here not only FPO any business we can do with these 5Ps concept that is right people for right product at right place. Those 5Ps are placed a major role in any business activity by that we can easily know about our business is sustained or not, the 5 P's of Strategy. They stand for Plan, Pattern, Position, Perspective and Ploy. These five components allow an organization to implement a more effective strategy. A strategy is aimed at the future, concerns the long term and involves different facets of any organization

1. Product

This is quite literally what you are selling, whether it’s bespoke furniture or a cleaning service. You need to establish your product and know it well. Define its purpose and what role it fulfils within your target market. Ask questions like “what furniture pieces are popular at the moment and who will buy them?” or “How many people don’t have time to clean their homes and which areas are they living in?”

Once you’ve established your product/service you need to understand its benefits and what makes it different from your competitors. Don’t forget to consider the overall function of your product as well as its name, branding, appearance and packaging. This will help you when putting together your marketing strategy.

2. Price

When pricing your products, there are a few considerations to make. Look at things like the cost of production and transport, as well as your position in the market and your competitor’s prices. The price element also includes any promotional offers you might run, discounts and free samples. Ensure that your profit margins are adequate and cover any additional expenses you may have, like advertising and delivery costs.

3. Place

Where are your customers going to find your product? Online, or at a storefront? Or will you supply your products to a distributor like a supermarket to display the product for you? It’s important to consider your audience to ensure that you are showcasing your product/service in a place where they can find you. Since this is the means by which your product will get to your audience you need to make sure the channels of distribution are easily accessible.

4. People

People are the key to a thriving business, whether it’s your staff or the customers buying your product. Richard Branson said: “Customers do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.” This is not to say you should ignore your customers entirely. Rather, hire staff that you know will be capable of taking care of your customers to keep them happy. Your staff are your ambassadors that present an appearance and attitude to the customer, so ensure they are willing to lift up your brand. It’s also important to know your customers in order to deliver quality customer service.

5. Promotion

This is probably the most important P of them all: you’re marketing and sales. Once you have outlined the previous 4 P‘s, you need to let people know about your product/service. Define your promotional strategy and decide what PR activities you’ll take part in, what type of advertising will work and if you’ll commit to any sponsorships. Don’t forget to consider the costs and work them into your mark-up price.

Marketing strategy is so important, yet so many new businesses overlook it entirely. The 5 P’s of marketing are an important concept for businesses to use in order to clearly identify their core structure and positioning in the market. A business that fails to outline these elements cannot hope to perform at an optimum level and achieve success.

After the task session completion BIRD management was present a certificate to each and every participants on linking and trading on commodity exchange and financing of FPO and last they our feedback about 3days training session.

Conclusion:

3 days session going on good manner, BIRD staff explain each and every point in transparent manner, we learned a lot of things there that was related to commodity exchange, how we can enter into NCEDX market and their policies, warehouse management, one more interesting thing is field visit to Pingaara FPO and that FPO CEO Farm house, Pingaara FPO activities and drawbacks are observed and there value addition processing, agricultural equipment’s maintains all these points are noticed there.

PHOTOS