The “New Normal” for Food Processing Industry

INTRODUCTION Year 2020 started with knowing, understanding and familiarization of new vocabulary of words like “Pandemic”, “Quarantine”, “lockdown” and so on. Currently we are constantly bombarded with these words since more than Four months. For the first time in this generation we are witnessing the “irreversible” and “unavoidable” impact of COVID 19.

- Sumedha Jalgaonkar*

The global coronavirus pandemic originated from the city of Wuhan in China has not left any part of world unaffected. Nearly 180 nations are under threat of this deadly invisible microorganism. News and other pieces of information received from social media are just soul-shattering and this is true for everyone right from people of metro cities to villages and from leaders, business owners to daily wager.

Even when it seems the world is coming to a standstill situation and everywhere there is lockdown across the major part of the world, one thing that can not and should not stop or undergo lockdown is “supply of food”. Like they say the show must go on so that to safeguard “our lives”.

However now and hereafter all the sectors specially food processing and health care sectors are going to witness tremendous impact of COVID 19 not only from the economic but psychological and social point of view. Famous writer Mr. Achyut Godbole mentioned in one of his video regarding impact of COVID 19 that hereafter the time will be identified as BC (Before Corona) and AC (After Corona). Such deep-rooted impact is going to happen to world due to the spread of Corona virus and food processing industry will among top few sectors which will be majorly impacted ones.

Here is list of few key challenges which food processing industries across the world and particularly India is probably going to face. Food processing business owner, employees and consumers need to think about these challenges and way forward to deal with these challenges.