As part of its Mission Millets initiative commemorating International Year of Millets, diversified conglomerate ITC Ltd in collaboration with Department of Post has released a special postal stamp celebrating millets and as part of the nationwide efforts to raise awareness on millets.
The exclusive stamp was released on Wednesday by Kailash Choudhary, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare of India, in the presence of Sushri Manju Kumar, Chief Post Master General, Department of Post, and S Sivakumar, Group Head – Agri Business, ITC, said a press statement issued by the company.
“Stamps have globally been a symbol of honour which immortalize people, moments or movements of great cultural value. The ITC Mission Millets stamp marks a milestone in the company’s journey to educate, empower and encourage millet farming and consumption in the country,” the release said.
Significance
The exclusive ITC Mission Millets postal stamp acknowledges the significant role of farmers and connects sustainable farming to nutritious food products and delicious millet-based recipes and dishes. The representation is a unique sketch illustration that depicts the collective and synergistic effort by ITC’s Agri Business Division, Foods Business Division and ITC Hotels to not only develop sustainable millet farming but also help consumers acquire a taste for healthy millets.
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ITC has developed a range of millet-based products in traditional and modern formats for all meal occasions including ready to eat food products, cookies, noodles, vermicelli, chocosticks, snacks and staples such as Multi Millet Mix and Ragi Flour. ITC Hotels has also crafted and included special millet based cuisines in their buffets. The stamp captures the journey of millets from the farms to the company’s food production factories.
The event also witnessed the launch of ITC’s initiative to encourage consumers to become millet advocates through its limited-edition digital collectible stamps.
Earlier this year, ITC launched its Mission Millets initiative to bring millets to the mainstream. It is also promoting FPOs in millet farming anchored by ITCMAARS, an integrated ‘phygital’ eco-system.