Indian farmers can increase their income by exporting plant protein isolates and concentrates, according to Sanjay Sethi, Executive Director of the Plant Based Foods Industry Association (PBFIA).
He was speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Plant-based Foods Ecosystem’ at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi recently. PBFIA was the co-organiser of the event.
Sethi said young entrepreneurs were keen to popularise alternative protein products such as tempeh, hemp-protein, oats-based products, and so on.
Stating that Indian farmers have a chance to increase their income by exporting plant protein isolates and concentrates, he said: “Our healthcare professionals and nutritionists have started recognising food as a medicine.”
A PBFIA statement said the plant-based foods market in India, currently at ₹2,000 crore, is expected to rise to ₹40,000 crore in the next decade. Companies such as Tata and ITC have inflected the plant-based food industry with products, including dairy alternatives, nuggets, cheese, and others such as keema, burger patties, egg alternatives and kebabs. With more projects like the PBFIA’s plant protein cluster, India can leverage its native crops of legumes, millets, and cereals to feed the world, it said.
The aim of PBFIA would be to determine what must be done for the plant-based foods industry and find ways to achieve it most effectively, while providing support in policy advocacy, innovation, investment, and supply chain, it added.