On Tuesday, the Andhra Pradesh Food Processing Society (APFPS) and the State Bank of India (SBI) joined forces to enhance and facilitate the establishment of a minimum of 7,500 micro food processing units within the state. This collaborative agreement is set to be implemented during the current fiscal year, 2023-24, as part of the Prime Minister Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) scheme.

“This partnership with a financial powerhouse like SBI will provide a significant boost to micro food processing enterprises in the state,” said APFPS Chief Executive Sridhar Reddy in a press release, adding that maximum number of units will be covered. As part of this deal, SBI will offer collateral-free loans of up to INR 10 lakh to eligible beneficiaries, following the guidelines of the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) under the Agri Infrastructure Fund.

SBI has already sanctioned over 500 loans under the PMFME scheme in the previous fiscal, emerging as a major lending partner in this endeavour. It has also agreed to support promotion of food processing units through this collaboration with farmer producer organisations (FPO). Besides loans, the banking behemoth will provide necessary working capital loans for successful operation of supported enterprises. Streamlined loan processing with minimum documentation and processing time, attractive interest rates and others are some more benefits under this agreement.