There is growing interest of private sector in food industries. This has come because of growing urbanization and better transportation opportunities as food now can be sent from one location to another at a fast rate than in the past. Moreover, the knowledge of food processing and quality is growing, and private sector has cashed this desire through establishing food processing industries.
Agricultural industries have been the focus of the government since the start of planning for development started from the mid 1950s. The interest in this sector came because of the fact that raw materials are available within the country and thus it will have strong backward and forward linkages. This was considered to have more employment generating impact within the country. But, the fact is that, the development of agricultural industries, i.e., based on food, has not been significant. This is because of the competition from the products coming from other countries, decline in agricultural production (on a per capita basis) and general political environment which has not been conducive for investment.
Food is produced through private sector in Nepal. Millions of farmers work on farm to produce food for themselves and if there is surplus sell in the market. But as discussed above there is very less surplus food produced.