Muzaffarnagar is in the middle of highly fertile upper Ganga-Yamuna Doab region in the western border of the state of Uttar Pradesh (UP). The district at present comes under Saharanpur division and is part of National Capital Region and it is the principal commercial, industrial and educational hub of Western UP. The town was founded in 1633 near the site of an ancient town, Sarwat, by the son of a Mughal Commander Sayyid Muzaffar Khan during the reign of Shah Jahan. In 1901, during the British-Raj, it was a district under Meerut Division in the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. The economy of the district is mainly based on agriculture: sugarcane, paper and steel industries.

Muzaffarnagar is located on the western border of the state and it is 272 meters above sea level in the Doab region of Indo-Gangetic Plain. It is 125 kilometres NE of the national capital, Delhi, and 200 kilometres SE of Chandigarh, and near to Bijnor, Meerut and Hastinapur. The district is well connected by road and railway networks. The Ghaziabad - Saharanpur line passes through the city thus forming the backbone of the long-distance and best possible travel from the city. Indian Railways provides connections to New Delhi, Western Uttar Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, South India, and other parts of the country. Dehradun Shatabdi Express and Dehradun Jan Shatabdi Express trains pass through and halt at the Muzaffarnagar station. The Meerut - Saharanpur section of this railway route is now being developed as a part of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor. The corridor extends from Ludhiana in Punjab to Dankuni in West Bengal. The National Highway - 58 (NH-58) passes through Muzaffarnagar city. This highway provides connections towards Delhi on the southern direction and upper reaches of the Himalayas in the Uttarakhand state in the northern direction. The highway is the backbone of road transportation for the Muzaffarnagar city as well as the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand. Cities and areas of Hardwar, Rishikesh, Dehradun as well as Badrinath and Kedarnath are served by this highway. An international airport, Muzaffarnagar International Airport, was proposed in the city in order to reduce the traffic at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, however, the same was transferred to the Jewar Airport.

Muzaffarnagar is roughly rectangular in shape. The climate of Muzaffarnagar district is good from the point of view of health specially from November to March months the climate of the district is very pleasant due to western northern airflow. Here summer starts very early. The temperature of the district varies from 2º C in winter to 46º C in summer. The wet session normally starts in the end of June month. The average rainfall is 753 mm; the winter months are virtually dry. There are no minerals found in the district.

As given in the following table , MSME industries across the sectors of food/agro-based industries, repair & servicing, other manufacturing, wood, metal, apparel, paper, electrical and other transport, chemical, leather and engineering are key economy drivers in the district. “Agriculture based products/ food products” industries sector of MSME with more than 1700 micro units including Kolhus and trading units (both registered and unregistered) and more than 20,000 skilled and non-skilled workers in the district is the prominent contributing sector in the economy. The “Misc. manufacturing” sector have more than 637 units deploying more than 3300 people and resources in the cluster. This is further followed by Repair and servicing sector and wooden furniture in the district.

The total export from Muzaffarnagar district during Sep 2020-Nov 2021 stands at 4281 crore which includes export value of products i.e., jaggery (cane sugar), glucose liquid, frozen, boneless meat of bovine animals, seeds, paper, craft paper and paperboard, cast articles and alloy steel and others. The major exportable items are jaggery and frozen, Boneless meat of bovine animals.

The turnover of Muzaffarnagar’s jaggery cluster is approx. Rs. 255 crores. In last three fiscal years the annual turnover of the industries has decreased due to shift of producing units to other places & increasing awareness about adulteration of product. The district tops the list of jaggery producing districts in the state with around 150 villages and 1620 Kolhus producing 60 varieties of NCS (Non centrifugal sugar) known as Gur in India. Morna, Baghra, Jansath, Sadar and Purqazi and Shahpur blocks are manufacturing more than 60% of jaggery of Muzaffarnagar. Muzaffarnagar is the biggest mandi (marketplace) of Jaggery in Asia. It accounts for an estimated 20% of India’s Jaggery production. The farmers produce around 60 varieties of Jaggery in Muzaffarnagar. According to Muzaffarnagar market secretary, around 10,74,838 quintals of jaggery were sold in the mandi in 2018-19. The sugarcane is cultivated in more than 139221 hectares of area. The region has 8 sugar mills and about 1,600 small units that produce jaggery. Nearly 70-80 lakh tons of jaggery is produced across the country with Uttar Pradesh accounting to 50% of the production. The State Advised Price (SAP) of Sugarcane is Rs. 315 in Uttar Pradesh set by Government of Uttar Pradesh. In Muzaffarnagar, 20% of sugarcane used for Jaggery production while in Ayodhya only 5% of the sugarcane production is used for production of Jaggery. More than 20000 people are directly employed in Muzaffarnagar Jaggery cluster. Gur from Muzaffarnagar mandi is then sold in Assam, Bihar, Chattisgarh, Delhi, Gujrat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttrakhand, West Bengal, Orissa, & Andhra Pradesh.

In Muzaffarnagar, jaggery is produced in three forms viz., solid, liquid, and powder /granular form.

► Solid Jaggery: In Muzaffarnagar, the colour of solid non-centrifugal sugar (or jaggery) varies from yellow to brown or dark brown. The filtered cane juice is pumped into open pans kept on triple pan furnace and heated until dry. The most commonly found shapes are laddu (small ball shaped), dali (big cubes) and chocolate (small cubes) etc.
► Liquid Jaggery: It is also known as Molasses/ Raab/ Kakvi / Sheera / Treacle/ Cane Syrup/ etc. Liquid jaggery is an intermediate product obtained during concentration of purified sugarcane juice during jaggery making, and is semi liquid syrup like product, known for its energy boosting properties
► Granular or Powder Jaggery: The process of making granular jaggery is similar up to concentration. The concentrating slurry is rubbed with wooden scrapper, for formation of grains. The granular jaggery is then cooled and sieved. Less than 3 mm sized crystals are found to be better for quality granular jaggery.
► Organic Jaggery: Organic Jaggery Powder is produced from sugarcane cultivated in organic farms spread across India without application of chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Processing is done without using any toxic and harsh chemicals used to clarify cane sugar. It is derived from the process of evaporation of raw sugarcane juice without separating the molasses from the crystals. It is known as "panela" in South America & Mexico, "gur" in India. It is characterised with a soft texture. Colour of Organic Jaggery varies from yellow to dark brown. Production of organic jaggery is marginal in the district because of absence of organic farms in the district.
► Value added products: Currently, few value-added products are prepared using jaggery instead of sugar viz., Rosagolla, Peda, curd, laddu (puffed cereal, nuts and sesame etc.) but no scientific literatures as well as process technologies are available for commercial exploitation. Other uses include jaggery toffees and jaggery cake made with pumpkin preserve, cashew nuts, pea nuts and spices. Jaggery may also be used in the creation of alcoholic beverages like palm wine. Products of Jaggery (Gur) like Confectionary Products, Ayurvedic Jaggery, Gur-Patti, Gur-Laddu, Ram-Dana Laddu, Til-Laddu, Gur-Gazak, Gur-Chocolate, Gur-Burfi and Gur Containing Nutritional and Medicinal Substances are also being manufactured. ;

The fame of unique handicrafts, aromatic agricultural products and natural goods from Uttar Pradesh has crossed borders, for 36 items have been GI tagged to the state, in a bid to preserve and promote their uniqueness. When marked on a map, the items on this list cover the length and breadth of UP in a manner that truly reflects its artistic legacy and agricultural ingenuity. Muzaffarnagar district doesn’t have any product registered with GI.;

Following are four principal Industry Associations/SPVs that are working for the development of Jaggery in Muzaffarnagar:
► The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)
► Sugarcane Research Station (UPCSR), Muzaffarnagar (AICRP)
► MSME Development Institute, Kanpur
► District Industries Enterprise Promotion Council (DIEPC)
► U.P. Council of Agricultural Research (UPCAR) ;

Product Diversification is one of the most crucial product uplifting strategies which in turn is an important part of a product’s export. This plays a vital role in any products exports as it is a product uplifting strategy. Most Farmers/ or jaggery manufacturers/ traders are not bothered about changing their product range and they fail to understand that it is an integral part of comprehensive marketing. Diversification can be brought in the cluster by: 1. Development of a new range of products: The Farmers of the district should be encouraged to diversify the product categories and must be provided with enough resources to create innovative products without losing the ancestral essence of the product. Jaggery may be value added with different natural flavour (ginger, black pepper, cardamom, lemon etc.), nutrition (protein, vitamins and phytochemicals), texture (additives) and taste (additives like nuts, spices, cereal and pulses). 2. Modifications of Existing Products to add more value: Design Innovation Centre to pursue product diversification as a permanent feature locally. Establishment of a vacuum packaging facility to produce packaging that prevents any contact of jaggery with the environment, hence giving it longer shelf life.

Muzaffarnagar is famous for processed meat. Export of processed meat from Muzaffarnagar holds a prominent place in the Indian economy. There is one slaughterhouse in Muzaffarnagar employing around 700 workers. Buffalo meat is the main source of meat production and export. Some of major names include Ind Alnoor exports p.v.t. ltd. etc. This units contribute for major export of processed meat from the district. The cluster’s annual turnover in 2020-21 was around INR 100 Cr As per stake holder consultation. The export turnover from September 2020 to November 2021 was INR 85.91 Cr . Total employment in the cluster is around 700.

► The total exports of boneless meat from the district as per HS code 020230 is around INR 85.9 crores from September 2020 to November 2021. Product 020230 - Below figure shows the top importers for this product

Boneless Meat of Bovine Animals

► Chilled Boneless Buffalo Meat
► Frozen Boneless Buffalo Meat ;

Raw material supplier The primary raw material suppliers are farmers who supply the disease-free animals to the slaughterhouse. Unit owners & Workers There is one slaughterhouse involved in processing and export of meat. More than 700 workers are working in these units and are residing in Saharanpur , Meerut, and nearby areas of Muzaffarnagar. Machinery Supplier Most of the units are having modern abattoir cum meat processing plant with most of segments are fully automated. Vyapari (middlemen): The vyapari is the vital cog in the buffalo meat value chain, connecting the small dairy farmer in UP’s rural hinterlands to the processor. Vyaparis source and aggregate buffaloes from farmers. Registered Suppliers: are technically authorised to supply animals to integrated abattoirs-cum-meat processing plants on a commission basis and to whom payment is made through RTGS bank fund transfer. He, in turn, pays the middlemen independently in cash. Transporters: They render logistical support or freight services for transporting animals to the processing plants.

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Following are principal industry associations that are working for the development of Meat products:

Rurrent Scenario The export scenario of World and India have been analysed basis the export statistics of HS codes 020230 under which meat is exported. Alongside are the key facts pertaining to the analysed product code;