The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Survey of food industries required: Chinna Reddy

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Saturday, Apr 26, 2008
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Survey of food industries required: Chinna Reddy

Special Correspondent

Inaugurates national seminar on traditional and ethnic foods

10,000 traditional food products are available in India
Traditional food market worth Rs.50,000 cr. p.a

- Photo: P.V. Sivakumar

Novel idea: Edible spoons displayed at the ‘Beekay Foods’ stall in the ’Ethnic Foods’ exhibition at FAPCCI on Friday.

HYDERABAD: A national survey of food industries involved in production of ethnic food products should be taken up for providing them a niche area in the existing food processing sector, said Minister for Rural Development and Self Help Groups, G. Chinna Reddy here on Friday.

Inaugurating the national seminar on traditional and ethnic foods, ‘Opportunities and Challenges for Industrial Development’ organised by FAPCCI, the Minister said that traditional foods were an integral part of Indian culture and enjoyed a great market in the country and abroad.

Known for their nutritious value and balanced ingredients unlike western fast foods, the ethnic and traditional foods needed to be popularised and made available all over the world with better R & D, use of technology to scale up production without compromising on original taste and flavour for commercial exploitation, he said.

Purchasing power

With the economy of Andhra Pradesh and purchasing power of people growing, there is demand for ready-to-eat traditional foods and accordingly food processing units would be encouraged in the State, more so in rural areas, he said.

Director, Defence Food Research Laboratories, Mysore, Amarender Singh Bawa in his key note address said that about 10,000 traditional food products were available in India known for its varied cultures and sub-cultures.

The great pace of middle class rise in disposable income and sweeping changes in urban life style triggered higher consumption of ready to eat traditional foods and hence food market was poised to grow exponentially in the coming years not only at home but overseas with migrating Indians.

The traditional food market is approximately worth Rs.50,000 crore per year if made in clean and scientific manner. Sale of ‘Mithai’ in Delhi and Mumbai alone was more than sale of chocolates in the country.

Designing Indian machinery to suit traditional foods for their large scale production with uniform quality is need of the hour, he said.

In view of entry of MNCs in the traditional Indian food business and WTO norms including patent laws, food scientists and technologists should strive to preserve our traditional food industries with scientific inputs for preparation of safe and hygiene traditional foods with extended shelf life.

FAAPCI’s Agriculture and Agro Industry committee Chairman Shyam Sunder Pasari said the two-day seminar would discuss value addition, convenient processing and packaging of traditional foods.

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