Lucknow: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has taken the decision to launch the ‘One District-One Cuisine (ODOC)’ scheme in the direction of giving global recognition to the state’s rich and diverse food and drink tradition.
After the big role of the One District One Product scheme in strengthening Brand UP, Uttar Pradesh’s traditional cuisine will now be established on national and international platforms through organised branding.
The Chief Minister said that every district of the state comes forward with its distinct taste, culture and identity, which is the basic objective of the ODOC scheme.
Traditional dishes highlighted
While giving examples, the Chief Minister said that Mainpuri’s sonpapdi, Mathura’s peda, Aligarh’s chamcham, Hathras’s rabri, Kasganj’s kalakand and moong’s dalma, Etah’s chikori, Sultanpur’s kadaha ki poori and kohde ki sabzi, Barabanki’s chandrakala sweet, Azamgarh’s white carrot halwa, Varanasi’s longlata, Bareilly’s sewaiyan, Amethi’s samosa, Basti’s sirka and Siddharthnagar’s ramkatori are not only food items but also represent local heritage, skill and economy. By providing quality, identity and market to them, the state’s cultural strength will be converted into economic power.
Grassroots implementation planned
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed that ODOC be implemented at the grassroots level on the lines of ODOP, so that traditional artisans, halwais and small entrepreneurs get opportunities for permanent livelihood. He said that quality, cleanliness and food safety will be the highest priority and all products will be certified as per food safety standards.
The Chief Minister also emphasised encouraging GI tagging, protecting the identity of local cuisines and developing taste-based diversity according to the choice of youth and modern consumers.
Focus on branding and market linkage
The Chief Minister said that under ODOC, distinct cuisines of each district should be identified and developed as cuisine clusters. Encouragement should be given to manufacturers and sellers for branding, technology, packaging and marketing of traditional dishes.
The Chief Minister was informed that under the scheme, conservation of products, promotion of the local economy, expansion of food diversity, employment generation, strengthening of the value chain and market linkage, as well as integration with the tourism and hospitality sector, are included.
Export potential and global outreach
Along with this, work will also be done on a strategy to increase export capacity and prepare products for international consumers.
Packaging and identity strategy
In the meeting, it was stated that under the branding strategy, district-specific colour, symbol and style will be added to the ODOC logo. A product story and identity tag depicting its culture, history and method will be included with every dish.
It was also stated in the meeting that special attention will be given to packaging. Advanced techniques for increasing shelf life will be used with food-grade, eco-friendly and safe packaging.
Traceability and consumer information will be ensured through QR codes, nutrition labels, barcodes and dual-language labelling. Regional and festival-theme-based packaging designs will also be developed.
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Boost to ‘Vocal for Local’
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that the ODOC scheme will give new momentum to ‘Vocal for Local’ and will establish Uttar Pradesh’s culinary heritage on the global food map.
He directed that this initiative should not remain only a scheme but become a strong medium of the state’s cultural identity, economic empowerment and employment generation, and that all necessary efforts should be made for this.
