Andhra signs UAE food-processing pact, with a INR 100 crore first project in Chittoor

Andhra Pradesh has signed a memorandum of understanding with the UAE Food Cluster to draw Emirati investment into food processing and horticulture exports, with Dubai-based Flour Masters International committing INR 100 crore for the first unit, a food-processing facility at Gangadhara Nellore in Chittoor district.

The pact, traced to Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s pitch at Davos in January, is the state’s latest effort to turn investment MoUs into on-ground projects and to push its horticulture beyond raw produce into value-added exports. For now the concrete commitment is modest and singular: one INR 100 crore plant, a likely test case for larger Emirati projects to follow. The MoU itself is a statement of intent.

The agreement, signed at the state Secretariat with Naidu and UAE economy and tourism minister Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri present, envisages value chains for mangoes, bananas and cocoa, crops in which the state has export strengths, alongside a business forum attended by more than 30 UAE and Indian firms. The company says that they export to about 25 countries, and plan to use the unit as an export base.