“We cannot stop using resources but we can optimise their usage, and millets are a healthy and sustainable option we must choose,” said Anita Praveen, secretary, Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
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Ms. Praveen was speaking at the inauguration of the International Conference on Innovation in Food and Beverage Technology for Sustainable Future in Chennai, on Wednesday. The three-day conference, funded by the Ministry, will focus on the prospects, challenges, and opportunities in the food and beverage industry, recent technologies, global safety standards, and export opportunities.
She said that making the shift from rice, which required ecologically expensive technology, to millets will be the result of policy changes and that the government is incentivising companies to produce millet-based products. “Sustainability is often talked about, but it is not easy to achieve and countries like India are taking active steps towards achieving sustainable development goals,” she said. Students, Ms. Praveen said, are the “fresh minds” of the country.
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“It is important to understand India’s bio-climatic zones and develop customized technology,” said Usha Antony, president and dean, College of Fish Nutrition and Food Technology, Chennai.
Other dignitaries from the food and beverage industries as well as the founder of food products company, Aachi Group, were present to address the gathering
More than 600 faculty, researchers, students, entrepreneurs, and industrialists are expected to benefit from the deliberations at the conference. An exhibition of stalls of leading food industries will also be open to the public at the venue of the conference, at the Madras Veterinary College, Vepery.