Entrepreneurs of food products were oriented on the end-to-end assistance for tapping export opportunities provided through Tamil Nadu Food Processing and Agri Export Promotion Corporation (TNAPEx) at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University recently.
A. Keerthivasan, Team Leader (Project Manager), Regional Hub and Export Enablement Center, TNAPEx, Tiruchi, told entrepreneurs of startups and MSMEs that the support encompassed new product development, manufacturing support, identification of suitable production facilities, product registration, licensing, regulatory compliance, import and export procedures, market linkages, buyer-seller meets, branding and export promotion activities. Entrepreneurs, he said, could utilise the ecosystem to accelerate innovation, scale their businesses, and access new domestic and international markets.
The orientation constituted a part of ‘Connect and Grow – Food Business Meet’ organised by the TNAU’s Centre of Excellence in Biotechnology (COXBIT), to strengthen collaboration among food processing MSMEs, researchers and industry stakeholders.
The COXBIT, as the Technical Partner under TNAPEx, provides technical and financial support to MSMEs and startups through product development, testing, validation, regulatory guidance and commercialisation, thereby enhancing the competitiveness and sustainable growth of the food processing sector, COXBIT Director N. Senthil said.
Participants were also told about the significance of the Food Quality Testing Laboratory, attached to Centre for Post-Harvest Technology in the university that had NABL (National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories) accreditation till 2029, and recognised by APEDA (Agricultural Processed Food Products Export Development Authority).
The participants learnt the process of chemical and biological testing of food and agricultural products such as cereals, pulses, millets, edible oils, bakery products, honey, spices, instant mixes, ready-to-eat foods, and other processed products at the laboratory equipped with advanced analytical instruments.
Published – June 09, 2026 10:36 pm IST