Branding and Marketing support

Marketing and branding support would be provided to groups of FPOs/SHGs/ Cooperatives or an SPV of micro food processing enterprises under the scheme. Following the ODOP approach, marketing & branding support would only be provided for such a product at the State or regional level.

Eligible items for support under the scheme:

1. Training relating to marketing to be fully funded under the scheme;
2. Developing a common brand and packaging including standardization to participate in common packaging;
3. Marketing tie-up with national and regional retail chains and state-level institutions;
4. Quality control to ensure product quality meets the required standards;

Support for marketing and branding requires developing a common brand, common packaging, and product standardization. The appropriate level for common branding and packaging would differ from place to place, case to case, and product to product. Whether it should be district, regional, or state level would be decided by the concerned SNA in each case. Therefore, the proposal for support to marketing and branding should be prepared by the SNA. Support for branding and marketing would be limited to 50% of the total expenditure. The maximum limit of grant in such cases would be as prescribed. No support would be provided for opening retail outlets under the scheme.

Vertical products at the national level could also be provided support for branding & marketing on the same lines as described above for ODOP focus. Such support for common branding/packaging and marketing would be provided at the national level. Proposal for that support should be sent to MoFPI by the states or national level institutions or organizations or partner institutions.

Eligibility criteria:
The proposals should fulfill the following conditions: –

1. The proposal should relate to ODOP
2. The minimum turnover of product to be eligible for assistance should be Rs 5 crore
3. The final product should be the one to be sold to the consumer in a retail pack
4. Applicant should be an FPO/SHG/cooperative/ regional – State levels SPV to bring a large number of producers together
5. Product and producers should be scalable to larger levels
6. Management and entrepreneurship capability of promoting entities should be established in the proposal.

Procedure for applying for assistance under Branding & Marketing
Detailed Project Report preparation:

1. A DPR should be prepared for the proposal, comprising essential details of the project, product, strategy, quality control, aggregation of produce, common packaging, and branding, pricing strategy, promotional details, warehousing and storage, marketing channel, plans for an increase in sales, etc.
2. Support up to Rs.5 lakh would be available from SNA for preparing DPR for proposals for marketing & branding.
3. The proposal should also contain a flow chart of activities from the procurement of raw material to marketing, critical control points, ensuring quality control, plans for five years in terms of promotional activities, increasing the number of participating producers, and turnover.

There should be an agreement with a business plan, executed between the cooperatives/SHG/FPO/SPV, the lead buyer(s) if any, and the SNA, which would describe the capital and services needs of the producers and proposed improvements that would allow them to upgrade their production capacities and skills to strengthen their linkage with the market, i.e. the lead buyer(s).