The Collective Marketing Centres (CMC) established under Megha-LAMP across Meghalaya were set up to counter the growing issue with the small and marginal farmers having little to no control in supply chains, and enable them to regain bargaining power, cut costs of transportation and storage, and minimize the position of middlemen. The initiative first stemmed from a recognition that existing market conditions were deplorable, and farmers were getting undeserved, meager returns for their produce. If not addressed, then thousands of farmers and their standards of living would be impacted.

CMCs are one-stop shops for cluster or village-level aggregation, processing, marketing, and input supply. They aim to create awareness of collective marketing and its merits, initiate a system of aggregation and value addition at the market level, ensure transparent and good governance for the marketing of produce by a collective, and enhance the skills of the stakeholder in areas of marketing and financial linkages.

Megha-LAMP supports their activities with a returnable working capital loan and an infrastructure grant. Since the start of the initiative in 2020, 185 CMCs have been formed.

Sunshine Ryngkhlem, Manager of the CMC in Wapung Skur Village, East Jaintia Hills stated, “the CMC has fulfilled the needs of the community. Fellow farmers no longer need to search for markets outside the village as these produce are available for customers here at fair prices. We also have taken the extra step of delivering goods to our customers’ doorsteps. We look forward to increasing the production of our farmers and our Producer Groups.”