Some food for thought

CHENNAI: To make people give some thought to the food they consume, The School of Food Science, MOP Vaishnav College for Women,  recently organised a two-day international conference called Foods 2012-Food Web. Inaugurated on Friday, this conference provided an inter-disciplinary platform for the discussion of agricultural, environmental, nutritional, health, social, economic and cultural facets of food.Dr A S Bawa, Director of Defence Food Research Laboratory, Mysore, speaking at the inaugural event, said, “India makes enough food to feed its population. The lag lies in the supply chain. If only we can bridge the gap, we can ensure food security for the teeming millions.” He added that  processed food was one area that needed focus. This, he said, was because it would increase the shelf life of food products.The theme of the conference ranged from broad theoretical and global policy explorations to the detailed study of specific human, nutritional, social and aesthetic dynamics of food.Ganesan Ampalavanar, Vice-President, Sales, Nestle India  Ltd, New Delhi, stressed on the importance of processed foods. “India is a huge potential market for processed foods,” he said.Usha Ravi, Organising  Secretary, Foods-2012, MOP Vaishnav College for Women said, “This is the first of its kind. We have 12 international speakers. For student delegates, this is definitely  an  extended  classroom experience.”Over 140 research papers were presented as posters by young researches from various universities. The top 10 were awarded on Saturday. Appealing to the aesthetic side of food, a food photography competition too was organised with 217 entries received for the contest. A Food blogging competition, which had 51 entries, too was held. The students put up a food market, featuring 15 stalls — ‘ Sweet Art’ Baked products by Sujani Nagaraj was a highlight of the food market.