PAU organises symposium on food processing

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, May 5

Scientists, industry experts, researchers, policymakers and entrepreneurs from various parts of the country gathered at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) to attend the national symposium on ‘Food Processing 4.0: Innovation and Sustainability’. The symposium, organised by the Department of Food Science and Technology, PAU, was a milestone event that heralded a new era of innovation and progress in the realm of food processing.

Dr Satbir Singh Gosal, vice-chancellor, who was the chief guest, emphasised on creating a dynamic platform for interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration. Punjab Agricultural University has remained a pioneer in addressing the national and global agriculture related challenges, and played a pivotal role in the Green Revolution, bringing food security to the entire national system, he added. This symposium will enable food science experts to explore the transformative potential of technology in revolutionising food processing methodologies, he observed.

The guest of honour, Bal Mukand Sharma, Chairman, Punjab State Food Commission, highlighted the present global challenges in food processing industries and expressed an urgent need for innovative and sustainable technologies for human wellness with focus on carbon foot print and carbon credit.

Dr AS Dhatt, Director of Research, PAU, while presenting an overview of the symposium, underlined the need to remain committed to the goal towards creation of green and clean environment-friendly technologies, to deliver effective solutions for complex challenges emerging in the sector of food processing.

A notable entrepreneur, Rajni Bector, founder and CEO of Cremica Food Industries Limited, was honoured with a the award ‘Outstanding Contribution in Food Processing’ during the symposium. In her address, she advised the participants to develop smart and digital food processing technologies which are techno-economically feasible for implementation at industrial scale.

A panel discussion was chaired by Dr BVC Mahajan, director, Punjab Horticultural Post-Harvest Technology Centre, and Dr RS Sethi, dean, College of Dairy and Food Science Technology, GADVASU, Ludhiana. It comprised speakers from leading industries and academic institutes, gathered for amalgamation and fusion of cutting-edge technologies with digitalisation systems for bringing more efficiency, transparency and traceability in food production, processing and distribution.

Dr Savita Sharma, head, Department of Food Science and Technology, and convener of this national symposium, outlined the importance and objectives of the symposium.

The symposium witnessed more than 200 participants from leading institutes such as IIT, Delhi; National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal; Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi; CIPHET, Ludhiana; Panjab University, Chandigarh; GADVASU, Ludhiana; Dr YS Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Solan; Banda University of Agriculture and Technology, Banda, Uttar Pradesh, and Islamic University of Science and Technology, Kashmir. There were a total of 50 oral presentations and 119 poster presentations besides the high-octane panel discussion on issues and challenges faced by the food processing arena and novel as well as feasible ideas to mitigate these challenges.

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