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The International Food Convention, more popularly known by its acronym IFCON, will be held in Mysuru this year from December 7 to 10, 2023. Organised by the Association of Food Scientists and Technologists of India (AFSTI) with the support of reputed institutions like CSIR-CFTRL, DRDO-DFRL and CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research, Lucknow, the four-day convention will focus on the them of TRIMSAFE – Technology Re-Engineering for Innovation and Mitigating the risk for a Safe, sustainable, Affordable and secure Food Ecosystem.
To be inaugurated by Dr S Somenath, the Chairman of ISRO, on December 7, the convention will be held at KSOU Convocation Hall in Mysuru. Dr N. Kalaiselvi, the Director General of CSIR, New Delhi, will be addressing the participants as the chief guest virtually. The exhibition at the IFCON 2023 will be inaugurated by Pramoda Devi Wadiyar of the Mysuru royal family. Dr Sridevi Annapurna Singh, Director CSIR-CFTRI and Dr N. Bhaskar, Director CSIR-IITR and President AFTSI, and Anil Semwal, DRDO-DFRL Director will also be present at the event.
Video Credit: YouTube/Sanjeev Kapoor Khazana
With 18 sub-themes focused on various aspects of food production, distribution and consumption, the convention will especially highlight millets as a part of the International Year of Millets 2023. Some of the focus areas will include discussions on chemistry of foods, food for health and wellness, millets as nutri cereals, food ingredients, enzymes and additives, green food processing, preservation and sustainable packaging, dairy and animal food products, food grains and baking tech, food supply chain logistics, food microbiology and ethnic foods.
In addition, the exhibition will also have over 100 stalls which will be open to the public between December 8 and 9 from 1PM to 5PM on the first day and 10AM to 5PM on December 9. A special pavilion has been set up to highlight Indian millets and research around them. The US Embassy will also hold a session on higher education opportunities for students interested in the food production and processing industry. Estimates reveal that over 1,500 students from across the nation will participate. The CSIR and SFFAI will also be putting up stalls at the expo.
Video Credit: YouTube/Kunal Kapur
Dr Sridevi Annapurna Singh revealed at a press conference that food start-ups working on the CFTRI campus will also be setting up a stall to display their products. Millet-based products created by the women of a self-help group in Bilikere near Mysuru will also be highlighted at a stall in the expo. For those unaware, IFCON is organised once every five years to highlight progress made in food science. The last IFCON was held in 2018 in Mysuru.
