In a letter to Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, FIPPI has demanded to identify and recognise Farm Produced wood as farming produce under The Farmers (Endowment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020. FIPPI draws attention that although the entire wood procured by plywood and panel industries is from farmers having Agro Forestry plantations, there is no mention of such wood in the definition of Farming Produce under Section 2 subsection (a).
Such wood grown on farmers’ lands requires a certificate that the sourcing of such wood, is not from any forest origin. Such certifications are very costly and it has not been viable to handle the procedures involved especially for small farmers. This situation is becoming a problem to both farmers as well as the plywood industries – in order to explore global competitiveness of Indian plywood products.
The plywood and panel industry has purely shifted to farm produced wood as raw material after the implementation of National Forest Policy 1988 in the light of judgements of Hon’ble Supreme Court and is entirely independent of forests and forest based raw materials.
In this regard, FIPPI requests to consider the fact that how a tree grown by a farmer in his agricultural land can be considered as forest produce? It needs to immediately resolve this ambiguity of representation of raw material, in order to bring permanent clarity on the matter.
Plywood and Panel industry plays an important role as the primary income source of farm produced wood such as Poplar, Eucalyptus, Rubber (cash crop residue), Silver oak, Melia Dubia, Kadam etc.. Farm produced wood is the only source of timber for the sector. After the announcement of Pradhan Manthri Awas Yojna & Self Reliance Vision (Atmanirbhar Bharath Mission) by Prime Minister, the demand for timber increasing rapidly with positive interest shown by investors in this sector.
The period during 2016-2019 has seen an Export-Import gap of 31,655 Crores in the wood-based industries sector, which is a big drain on our foreign currency resources. Treating Farm-produce timber as under the definition of ‘farming produce’ of The Farmers (Endowment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020, and thereby facilitating contract farming of agro forestry species such as Popular, Eucalyptus, Melia, Casuarina Ailentus, Kadamb, toona, mangium and such other species (Silver oak, Rubber wood) as per the needs of plywood & panel sector industries.
BENEFITS & CONSEQUENCES OF RECOGNITION AS AGRO BASED INDUSTRY:
- Plug the export-import gap by making India more Export competitive.
- Motivate the industry to increase participation in product development and innovation, with the support of reputed sector based Institutes of International excellence.
- Identification as Agro based industries clears the way for automatic certification, thereby highlighting the truth that Indian products are of sustainable origin.
- Increase in production, thereby increasing employment as the sector is labour intensive.
- Immediate work towards wood resource expansion & self-reliance.
- Enhance the interest of farmers with increase in market demand.
- More wood produced = more green cover for the country = more carbon sequestration.
- Bring the plywood industry into the organised sector
The price fluctuation and demand and supply scenario can be managed to the mutual benefits of farmers and the industries as enshrined in the objectives of the ordinance. Mr. C N Pandey, Technical Advisor, FIPPI also informed that this letter also has sent to Prime Minister office for consideration and action.
All India Plywood Manufacture’s Association (AIPMA) wrote a letter to Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and back FIPPI demand. With regard to the plywood and panel industry sector, AIPMA highlighted some significant inputs apart from FIPPI presentation such as
To promote, encourage & expand farm grown wood resources and also in order to emerge self-reliant in wood resources, the industry & its allied Associations & Institutions (IPIRTI, IWST, ICFRE) are working with GolIndustries — working new strategies & executing new plans to meet our consumption of wood on our own.
Treating Farm-produce timber as agro-produce, and thereby recognising plywood & panel sector industries as Agro-based industries will hugely benefit all the stakeholders, especially the farmers. It would pave the way for easier certification and standardisation of the industry sector, making Indian Plywood & Panel Industries Sector more export competitive.