India’s first food packaging laboratory inaugurated at Indian Institute Of Packaging, Delhi

It is a well known fact that the Indian economy is based on agriculture yet, international agri-based trade suffers because of lack of packaging expertise. India is ranked second with respect to the production of food grains (2nd only to China), third in milk production, fourth in the production of fruits and vegetables and 5th in the Marine Foods including Inland Fishes. Despite having such a large raw material base in the country, the international trade of India is only 1.3% which is very low as compared to the neighbouring countries. Hence, the Ministry of Food processing Industries, Govt. of India, has taken various initiatives for the growth of processed food sector and accordingly, Ministry of Food Processing Industries has also implemented its National Food Processing Mission. As on date, only 2% of fruits and vegetables and 15% of fresh milk are processed. As a result, the average growth of processed food sector is only 7%. Inaugurating the Academic Block and Food Packaging Laboratory, Dr. E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan, Hon’ble Minister of State for Commerce & Industry, Govt. of India said, “Govt. of India has made a target to increase the growth of the processed food sector from 7% to 20% by 2020. Since packaging and food processing industries are complementary to each other, it had become necessary to set up a laboratory which would support the testing of the same. It is quite interesting to note that there is no exclusive laboratory for the testing of packaged foods.” The Indian Institute of Packaging, being an autonomous body in the field of Packaging Technology and working under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Govt. of India, has therefore taken an initiative to expand the infrastructural facilities of its Delhi Centre which is located at Patparganj by way of setting up an exclusive Food Package Testing Laboratory under the current 12th Five Year Plan. Prof N C Saha, Director IIP said, “the growth of Packaging Industry has also created a great demand for qualified Packaging Professionals. The Institute has also started a Two Year Post Graduate Diploma in Packaging at Delhi in the year 2000 with the intake of 15 students, which we will now increase to 100. This has also created requirement of infrastructural facilities and thus the Institute has also constructed an exclusive Academic Block to accommodate more number of PG students.” Prof Saha also added that IIP will now modernise the Vaishnodevi prasad packaging process. Pilot experiments had been done in 2004; but the setting up of an exclusive Food Package Testing Laboratory under the current 12th Five Year Plan will now revive the project.