Industries that use agricultural products as raw materials are called Argo-based industries. These are consumer-oriented industries. Some examples of agro-based industries in India are the textile, sugar, vegetable oil, tea, coffee, and leather goods industries.
Agro Based Industries contribute significantly to the economy by creating jobs and generating income for rural areas. They increase the value of agricultural raw products by processing them into finished goods that have a longer shelf life and better marketability.
These industries are essential to ensure food security and reduce the waste of agricultural products. Agro Based Industries also play a crucial role in diversifying the economy as it provides a range of exportable products.
Examples of Agro Based Industries
There are many examples of agro-based industries:
- Sugar Industry
- Textile Industry
- Vegetable Oil Industry
- Tea Industry
- Coffee Industry
1. Sugar Industry
The sugar industry involves the production, processing, and marketing of sugars (mainly sucrose and fructose). Globally, most sugar comes from sugar cane (about 80%, mostly in the tropics) and sugar beets (about 20%, mostly in temperate climates like the US or Europe).
Sugar is used for soft drinks, sweetened drinks, ready meals, fast food, candy, confectionery, baked goods, and other sweetened foods. Sugar cane is used in the distillation of rum.
Sugar subsidies have pushed the market cost of sugar well below the cost of production. In 2018, three-quarters of world sugar production was not traded on the open market. The global market for sugar and sweeteners was approximately US$77.5 billion in 2012, with sugar accounting for nearly 85% and growing at a compound annual growth rate of 4.6%.
Around 185 million tons of sugar were produced worldwide in 2018, led by India with 35.9 million tons, followed by Brazil and Thailand. There are more than 123 sugar-producing countries, but only 30% of the products are traded on the international market.
2. Textile Industry
The textile industry is primarily concerned with the design, production, and distribution of textiles: yarn, fabric, and clothing. The raw material can be natural or synthetic using products of the chemical industry.
Up until the Industrial Revolution, fabrics and clothing were mainly made at home for personal use or on a small scale by individuals for resale. Only in the 18th century with inventions such as the flying shuttle in 1733, the spinning mill in 1764, and the loom in 1784 did mass production of fabrics begin and the textile industry was born.
James Watt’s improved steam engine in 1775, Eli Whitney’s cotton gin in 1792, and Elias Howe’s sewing machine in 1846 also contributed significantly to the success of the textile industry.
Today, the textile industry is an international phenomenon that includes all companies engaged in the manufacture, manufacture, and distribution of textiles. These include farms and producers, yarn and thread factories, natural and synthetic fabric factories, dye works, wholesalers, and clothing manufacturers, among others.
In addition, one must remember all the other industries whose success depends on textiles, such as companies that sell buttons, zippers, knitwear, sewing machines, looms, and curtain hardware.
3. Vegetable oil industry
The vegetable oil industry involves the extraction and processing of oils and fats from vegetable sources. Vegetable oils and fats are mainly used for human consumption but are also used in animal nutrition, for medicinal purposes, and for certain technical applications.
Vegetable oils are derived from seeds or other parts of fruits and are mixtures of triglycerides. Soybean oil, grapeseed oil, and cocoa butter are examples of seed oils, while olive oil, palm oil, and rice bran oil are examples of fats from other parts of fruits.
Vegetable oils are typically edible and are commonly used to improve texture, add flavor to a dish, and for cooking. Vegetable oils are increasingly being used as insulators in the electrical industry because they are non-toxic to the environment, are biodegradable if spilled, and have high flash and fire points.
The process of vegetable oil production includes purification, pressing, solvent extraction, refining, and packaging.
4. Tea Industry
The tea Industry means the growing, manufacturing, packing, and blending of tea. Tea is produced by both small farmers and estates, with the large corporate-owned estates producing large quantities of tea, typically more than 1,000 tons of tea per year.
Tea is one of the most important crops and plays an important role in rural development, poverty alleviation, and food security in exporting and developing countries.
5. Coffee industry
The coffee industry includes companies that grow, process, market and sell coffee, from the farmer to the retailer.
The industry is responsible for supporting the livelihoods of tens of millions of small producers in developing countries, and over 2.25 billion cups of coffee are consumed worldwide every day.
The coffee industry has a commodity chain that includes producers, intermediaries, exporters, importers, roasters, and retailers before it reaches the consumer.
Read Also: 10 Examples Of Rabi and Kharif Crops
Other Examples of agro-based industries
- Fruit-based processed food manufacturing industries (Jam, Jelly, Juice, Pickles, Syrup, Sauce,
- etc.)
- Fruit (Tomato, Mango, Guava, Sugarcane, Jackfruit, Litchi, Pineapple, Coconut, etc.),
- vegetable and lentils processing industries.
- Bread, biscuits, vermicelli, Chana Chur, noodles, etc. Production industries.
- Production of flour, Maida, and semolina.
- Processing of mushrooms and spirulina.
- Starch, glucose, dextrose, and other starch products manufacturing industries.
- Milk processing industries (milk pasteurization, powdered milk, ice cream, condensed milk,
- sweets, cheese, ghee, butter, chocolate, curd, etc.)
- Potato-based food manufacturing industries (potato chips, potato flakes, starch etc.)
- Spices manufacturing industries.
- Edible oil refining and hydrogenation industries.
- Salt processing industries.
- Processing and freezing prawns and other fish.
- Herbal and vestige medicine-producing industries.
- Unani, Ayurvedic, and Homeopathic medicine-producing industries.
- Manufacturing industries of feed for ducks, chickens, livestock, and fish.
- Seed processing and preservation.
- Jute goods (thread, fabric, bag, carpet, sandal shoes, etc.) producing industries.
- Silk fabrics and clothing manufacturing industries.
- Agro-based product processing machinery manufacturing industries.
- Rice, puffed rice, beaten rice, popped rice etc. processing industries.
- Aromatic rice processing industries.
- Tea processing industries.
- Coconut oil-producing industries (if copra collected from local coconuts is used).
- Rubber tape and lakkha processing industries.
- Cold storage (processing and preservation of edible and seed potatoes, fruits, vegetables etc.
- produced by farmers).
- Preparation of furniture made of wood, bamboo, and cane (except in cottage industries).
- Flower preservation and export enterprises.
- Meat processing industries.
- Production of organic and mixed fertilizer and guti urea etc.
- Production of bio-pesticide and neem pesticide.
- Beekeeping and honey-collecting enterprises.
- Rubber-based goods-producing industries.
- Manufacturing of particle board.
- Mustard oil manufacturing industries (if local mustard is used)
- Production of biogas and electricity (produced from paddy shell, poultry, and cattle wastes).
- Edible oil (rice bran) manufacturing industries.
- Poultry and dairy farming industries.