IIFPT’s millet ice cream delights nutrition experts

‘It is lactose-free and packed with Omega-3 rich fatty acids’

Millet ice cream, a delicacy exhibited by the Indian Institute of Food Processing Technology (IIFPT), Thanjavur, at the Krishi Unnati Mela in New Delhi on Sunday, has gained the attention of the nation’s nutrition experts.

The fancy and nutritious delicacy developed by the premium food processing academic and research institution in the country has been lauded for its potential to strike the much desired socio economic balance.

For, while giving a huge fillip to the national nutritional security requirements, the product has also opened up scope for farmers to exploit a tremendous market. The millet ice cream formulated by a team of scientists led by the IIFPT Director C. Anandharamakrishnan, was appreciated not just for its unique and appealing taste but also for its enormous ability to provide the much needed market for millets produced by the farmers.

The product was launched at the World Food India 2017 held in November last by the Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal and immediately made waves in the international food industry conclave. Now, the product which is yet to see active commercial production, was displayed at the Krishi Unnati Mela at the instance of the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. Speaking on the meet and the product, Dr. Anandharamakrishnan said that the millet ice cream was a nutrient-dense food in which the ice cream is lactose-free and is packed with Omega-3 rich fatty acids.

It is made from a blend of millets that otherwise has challenges in terms of sensory acceptance. “The IIFPT is now developing jackfruit fibre based cones for the millet ice cream to add valuable dietary fibre content to the product”, he said.

The millet ice cream has 59 per cent lesser calories and 22 per cent lesser carbohydrates than the conventional ice cream and 43 per cent lesser fat than the regular vanilla ice cream.

More than that, children can be easily allured by the nutrient-rich millets instead of the more cumbersome powder or liquid form food that they would otherwise treat as a medicine.