Chennai is to host the XXXVI (International Nut & Dried Fruit Council (INC) World Nut and Dried Fruit Congress from May 19-21, 2017.
"It is going to be a unique event which is expected to gather nearly 1,000 participants from 60 different countries",Pratap Nair, Chairman, Chennai INC Congress told Business Line .
He said the combined presence of the entire range of professionals involved in or related to the sector, including producers, manufacturers, traders, suppliers and buyers, undoubtedly shapes it as the largest and only worldwide event of the Nut and Dried Fruit industry.
The sessions program is the core of the event: exhaustive but segmented, it provides professionals with high-value information of their interest. Monographic round tables will reveal latest statistics and new crop forecasts, whereas two keynote speakers will offer a different perspective.
Other participants include Gopi Kallayil, Chief Evangelist and Brand Marketing at Google, and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Spiritual and Humanitarian Leader.
The program includes a Nutrition Research Update, chaired by professor Jordi Salas-Salvadó (INC World Forum for Nutrition Research and Dissemination) and featuring Dr. Richard Mattes (Distinguished Professor of Nutrition Science at Purdue University, USA) and Dr.Viswanathan Mohan (President & Director of the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation, India) as guest speakers.
In addition, the Congress will feature a Scientific Seminar on technological improvements in the cashew industry, chaired by Pino Calcagni (INC Scientific and Government Affairs Committee) and presented by Prakash Kalbavi (Kalbavi Cashews, India).
In parallel, the venue will host for three days the Exhibitors Area featuring the booths of 30 different companies from all over the world, which will serve a double purpose: it grants firms the chance to display their latest products and services and present them directly to their targeted audience; and, at the same time, it enables attendees (potential buyers) to learn about them.
INC Awards INC Golden Nut Award will be presented to K Ravindranathan Nair, popularly known as Ravi, in recognition of his indefatigable dedication to the cashew business for more than 40 years and his pivotal role in accelerating the distribution of nuts worldwide.
The Excellence in Research Award, it will be bestowed to Dr. Richard Mattes, who has been an active researcher in the area of nuts and health for over 20 years, whereas the winner of the Excellence in Gastronomy Award will be Bukhara Restaurant, located at the ITC Maurya Hotel (New Delhi). Regarding the Innovation Award, that is still to be granted: the delegates themselves will determine the winner by voting through the Congress App.