In a bid to reduce post-harvest losses and increase small farmers’ incomes, the government plans to establish solar-powered cold storage facilities at the farm level.
In its guidelines for the agriculture ministry and state governments, the ministry of new and renewable energy has proposed setting up cold storage facilities for perishable agricultural commodities, especially fruits and vegetables, with capacities ranging from 2 to 20 tonne and temperatures between -5°C and 4°C. The cold storage systems must support the daily pre-cooling of 10% of their total storage capacity for two consecutive days, it said.
Officials stated that the goal is to establish cold storage facilities to help farmers store their produce after harvest, allowing them to sell later at better prices. “Farmers often have to sell immediately after harvest when prices are low due to a lack of adequate cold storage at the farm level,” an official said.
Officials said agencies like farmers’ cooperative Nafed, the National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF), the Central Warehousing Corporation, and farmer producer companies can set up these solar-powered cold storage facilities. They can also access funds from various schemes, including the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) of the agriculture and food processing ministries.
The new guidelines seek to regulate the design, performance, and operation of solar-powered cold storage systems with thermal energy storage (TES) backup. “These field-level cold storage units will primarily run on solar photovoltaic (PV) power, with TES ensuring uninterrupted cooling during non-solar hours,” an official said.
“By ensuring consistent cold storage and reducing reliance on grid electricity or diesel generators, these systems address key post-harvest challenges,” an official note said. It added that the cold rooms are insulated with polyurethane foam for efficiency and come equipped with essential safety features and remote monitoring systems.
So far, over 1,400 solar cold storage systems have been installed across the country. Officials noted that despite India being one of the largest producers of paddy, wheat, oilseeds, milk, fish, fruits, and vegetables, post-harvest losses remain high compared to global standards, affecting yields and causing losses for farmers.
A Nabard study in 2022 estimated post-harvest losses of vegetables at 4.87%–11.61% and fruits at 6.02%–15.05% before reaching consumers.