The experience of developed countries in the development of agro-industry. Abstract

DEFINITION AND TYPES OF AGRO-INDUSTRY
Agro-industry is the generic term applied to the industrial processing of raw materials andintermediate products derived from the agricultural sector (defined broadly to include forestryand fishing as well as crop production and animal husbandry). In the United Nation's International Standard Industrial Classification of all Economic Activities (ISIC) system, agro industry encompasses the food industry, beverages and tobacco (ISIC codes 311-314); textiles, wearing apparel and leather industries (ISIC codes 321-324): wood and wood products, including furniture (ISIC codes 331-332); paper and paper products, printing and publishing (ISIC codes 341-342); and rubber products (ISIC code 355). The industries based upon agricultural products as raw materials comprise a very varied group. They range from simple preservation (such as sun drying) and operations closely related to harvesting, at one extreme, to the production by modern, capital-intensive methods. of such articles as textiles, pulp and paper at the other extreme.
Since their products all have the same end use, the 'food industries' are much more homogeneous and easier to classify than the non-food industries. Most preservation techniques, for example, are basically similar over a whole range of perishable food products. whether fruit, vegetables, milk, meat, or fish. In fact, the processing of the more perishable food products is to a large extent primarily for the purpose of preservation.Shows a rough classification of the main functions performed in food processing. It does not attempt an exhaustive listing of all the many different processes, but merely shows some of the main ones by way of illustration. Furthermore, the five categories distinguished in the table overlap to some extent. The original purpose of some of the processes included in the first three categories was actually preservation, but the preserved products (such as cheese and jam) have become established in their own right as separate foodstuffs. Similarly. some preserved products (such as canned and frozen fruit, vegetables, meat and fish) are used by consumers more for their own convenience than because they are preserved, and thus could be included in the fifth category of processing that is carried out in response to consumer demand, rather than because it is essential. There is also a further category (not included in the table) covering the by-products of food processing, but these are used mainly for animal feed, fertilizer and other non-food uses. Agro-industrial policy reviews. Methodological guidelines.

Agro-industry can be further classified into 'upstream' industries and 'downstream' industries. Upstream industries are engaged in the initial processing of agricultural commodities. Examples are rice and flour milling, leather tanning, cotton ginning, oil pressing, saw milling and fish canning. Downstream industries undertake further manufacturing operations on intermediate products made from agricultural materials. Examples are bread, biscuit and noodle making, textile spinning and weaving, garment making. paper production, and shoe and rubber products manufacturing.

Agro-industry is thus distinguished from the rest of manufacturing by the agricultural origin of most of its material inputs. Other industries, such as chemicals, plastics, basic metals, machinery, transport equipment, electrical appliances, and other metal products derive their raw materials from the mining and quarrying sectors of the economy (ISIC codes 210: 220: 230: 290).
This definition focuses on industrial processing activities, which are distinguished in national accounts from agriculture and hunting (ISIC codes 111-113), forestry and logging (ISIC codes 121-122), and fishing activities (ISIC code 130). Some agro-industries may be engaged in both primary production and industrial processing (e.g.. sugar cane plantations and sugar mills). Such integrated operations are sometimes called agribusiness, but backward integration through ownership is not an essential characteristic of agro-industry. Indeed, it is rare in some subsectors and countries. Most agro-indusial enterprises obtain their raw materials from independent producers or traders, though they may take the lead in setting quality standards and the planning of production and delivery schedules.