navigation search this article has multiple issues . please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . learn how and when to remove these template messages this article is an orphan as no other articles link to it . please introduce links to this page from related articles ; try the find link tool for suggestions . september 2013 this article needs additional citations for verification . please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . unsourced material may be challenged and removed . september 2013 learn how and when to remove this template message learn how and when to remove this template message vegetable and fruit promotion council keralam type company registered under section 25 of indian companies act 1956 government of kerala founded 2001 headquarters mythri bhavan near doordarsan kendra kakkanad kochi kerala india area served kerala products services services x y z website www.vfpck.org vegetable and fruit promotion council keralam vfpck is an iso 9001 2000 certified company registered under section 25 of indian companies act 1956 and has been established to bring about overall development of fruit and vegetable sector in kerala . established in 2001 as the successor organization of kerala horticulture development programme khdp vfpck is managed by a result oriented multidisciplinary team of professionals . needless to say khdp funded by european union was one of the most successful agricultural development projects ever undertaken in the country . khdp could effectively introduce several agricultural developmental policies and redress long standing problems that plagued the agricultural sector . the self help groups shgs conceptualised by the council form the base units for all the interventions like extension rural credit group marketing participatory technology development ptd value additions and exports . contents 1 about the company 2 board of directors 3 vision 4 mission 5 objective 6 self help groups 6.1 features of vfpck self help groups 6.2 master farmers 6.3 office less extension 6.4 group marketing 6.5 participatory credit 6.6 participatory technology development 7 achievements 8 gallery 9 references 10 external links about the company edit vfpck is a company with majority stake of farmers and the government and financial institutions as the other major shareholders . self help groups of farmers constitutes 50 % of shares government of kerala has 30 % and other related institutions hold 20 % of vfpck s shares . board of directors edit the director board with 11 members is chaired by the minister for agriculture government of kerala and acts as the governing body of the council . the board members include senior government officials like agricultural production commissioner secretary finance chief executive officer of vfpck four persons including a woman to be elected from the shgs and one representative each from participating banks national agency in horticulture and european union . 1 vision edit to mould vfpck as a centre of excellence in the domain of horticulture mission edit to introduce and implement schemes in the field of horticulture which will benefit the farmers and to create attitudinal change towards farming activities among all class of people . objective edit the primary objective of the council is to improve the livelihood of vegetable and fruit farmers by empowering them to carry on vegetable and fruit production value addition and marketing as a profitable venture in a sustainable way . it also aims to continue the successful activities initiated by kerala horticulture development programme . self help groups edit self help groups shgs are the backbone of vfpck . shgs are groups of farmers with identified common objectives tasks group identities and neighbourhood . it is a system where all members work together to address problems and utilize opportunities through participatory action after co operative decision making for the overall development of members . the council is moulding the shgs as the basic local institutional units for introducing innovative interventions in horticulture . at present council have nearly 5800 shgs and about 111000 farmers . features of vfpck self help groups edit the council aims to attain the objectives through the principle of self help participation and prosperity . major innovative concepts developed and implemented by vfpck are as follows voluntary group of 15 20 commercial fruit and vegetable cultivators . formed based on neighbourhood principle . function observing a set of mutually agreed norms . have regular meetings discussions and common decisions . shg is a basic platform for increased social interaction collective bargaining quality input sourcing advanced production technology and production planning micro finance . development of farmer market . problem solving . total empowerment of farmers . master farmers edit unlike the traditional system of agricultural extension in vfpck the dissemination of information is routed through master farmers . three farmer leaders called master farmers mfs are selected in each shg and are trained for leading each group . they lead farmers in the areas of production credit and marketing . shg membership enables farmers access to credit training and to technical advice from the council staff but benefits have gone beyond production related aspects . office less extension edit the extension approach of vfpck is unique with features like office less extension frequent farm and home visits and mass awareness programmes like campaigns and demonstrations . the extension officers of vfpck are regularly visiting the farmers fields as per fixed schedule and give necessary technical advice and other leadership support . group marketing edit the council has developed a unique group marketing concept which is production center oriented and farmer participatory . a group of 7 to 15 neighbouring shgs will constitute a field centre fc wherein the shg farmers bring their produce to a common place for marketing . traders are coming to the field centers and this will increase the bargaining power of the farmers . to give additional support for bargaining the vfpck market information centre mic make available the daily market prices of banana and all other vegetables collected from different markets in kerala and even outside . vfpck provides account books and platform weighing scale to field centers initially . after evaluating the performance at different stages fcs are elevated to swasraya karshaka samithis sks and are provided with various other supports like additional platform weighing scale furniture telephone major expense reimbursement for a year land and building . some of these markets have achieved an annual turnover of more than one crore . participatory credit edit the credit package of vfpck is unique and has given due importance for easy access sufficient and timely credit to farmers . this innovative credit package was designed in such a manner so as to extend credit support to leased land farmers too . a mou was signed between vfpck and 11 banks in the state for disbursement of credit to farmers . the shg assess the credit worthiness and credit requirements of its members through a participatory credit planning session . participatory technology development edit the council is trying out the concept of participatory technology development ptd a novel methodology for technology development and refinement with farmer participation . the experimental capacities of the farmers are enhanced through this participatory approach and farmers learn to solve their problems by themselves . achievements edit they set up household gardens at nominal rates . 2 promoted the concept of shgs among horticultural farmers for their economic stability and better farming decisions . formed around 8025 shgs thereby bringing under more than 1.55 lakhs commercial fruits and vegetables farmers under its roof in kerala . in that 452 shgs are run by women . equipped shgs to ascertain financial needs and prudent use of funds . facilitated farmers as farmer trainers and equipped them for farm research . conducted more than 9966 farmer trainings and around 3264 master farmer trainings . around 2870 participatory technology development trials were conducted . produced processed and marketed 318.615 mt of quality vegetable seeds and around 9.8 lakhs tissue culture banana seedlings of high purity and varietals preferences to cater to the requirements of south india . promoted production centre oriented farmer markets ensuring better producer share of consumer rupee and collective bargaining power of farmers . vfpck have initiated 274 farmer markets through which 121000 mt produces were sold for the year 2011 12 for a total value of rs . 187.74 crores . provided land and building worth rs . 10 12 lakhs each for 110 skss developed a data bank of daily market prices and arrivals for the last 12 years of 40 varieties of vegetables and banana from 16 centers in kerala and 4 from other states for market oriented production of vegetables and fruits and improved marketing decisions . the farmer friendly credit package of vfpck enhanced fruits and vegetable production . a total amount rs . 586.41 crores was dispersed to farmers as easy farm credit and an interest subsidy for of rs . 116.87 lakhs was also given . unique insurance packages were developed for covering the crops and social security of farmers . 5917 farmers were covered under crop insurance and 426 farmers under social security scheme annually . a fruit processing unit was established where 56 mts of banana chips was produced and marketed under the brand name vefco frys . explored the export possibility of fresh fruits and vegetables and other value added products into global market . exported 500 mt of produces to middle east countries . launched agri school programme to induce aptitude towards agriculture among school children . 762 schools were participated in this programme . an urban household farming venture called haritha nagari was introduced with an aim oft promoting organic vegetable cultivation and the same was set up in 7861 households . equipped a team of professionally qualified and experienced extension personnel for successful interventions . new venture cut vegetables ready to cook chopped and wrapped vegetables . the unit was launched in quick succession in the district of thiruvananthapuram sooner it will be introduced in kochi and kozhikkode gallery edit this section is empty . you can help by adding to it . september 2013 references edit http www.vfpck.org docs main.asp id profile http www.hindu.com 2011 05 06 stories 2011050659890200.htm external links edit wikimedia commons has media related to vegetable and fruit promotion council keralam . http www.vfpck.org retrieved from https en.wikipedia.org w index.php title vegetable and fruit promotion council keralam & oldid 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