Coimbatore : The Department of Food Process Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and the Research Institute of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) organized a three-day workshop of an All India Coordinated Research Project on 'Post Harvest Engineering and Technology' from March 12 to 14. More than 100 scientists participated in the workshop.
Coimbatore : The Department of Food Process Engineering, Agricultural Engineering College and the Research Institute of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) organized a three-day workshop of an All India Coordinated Research Project on 'Post Harvest Engineering and Technology' from March 12 to 14. More than 100 scientists participated in the workshop.
Dr. S Ganapathy, Professor and Head, Department of Food Process Engineering welcomed the gathering and Dr. S K Tyagi, PC (PHET), delivered the coordinators report. Dr. S N Jha, Assistant Director General, ICAR delivered the inaugural address and highlighted the importance of transferring technologies to farmers.
Dr. B Shridar, Dean, Agricultural Engineering and Research Institute, TNAU, in his special address explained the overall contribution made by process engineers in reducing post-harvest losses through the All India Coordinated Research Projects in the last 40 years.
Dr. K S Subramanian, Director of Research, TNAU said that nano technology can supplement and compliment food processing in minimizing the post-harvest losses of agricultural commodities and also emphasized the need for developing packaging films using nano technology as an alternative to plastics.
Dr. K Alagusundaram, Deputy Director of General, Agricultural Engineering, ICAR, New Delhi explained about the super straw management system with the help of 'Happy Seeder' to reduce the pollution in Delhi and Punjab. He also insisted on the consortium or value chain mode of research, rather than the conventional mode which will facilitate the delivery of benefits to farmers immediately.
IFAD has funded Rs.1000 crores for scaling up the successful technologies from various AICRP–PHET centres and adopting them to North Eastern states. He also discussed the importance of farm mechanization, establishment of more number of agro-processing centres in rural areas to develop the agricultural sector.
Dr. N Kumar, Vice-Chancellor, TNAU, Coimbatore in his chief guest address informed the gathering about the current status of post-harvest losses in our country. He insisted on developing suitable techniques to extend the shelf life of 'neera' by developing gadgets for easy and quick transportation.
He also mentioned the nutritional importance of dried moringa leaf powder and suggested developing suitable processing techniques to enhance the quality and shelf life. Furthermore, he listed the importance of developing bio-degradable packaging materials from banana as an alternate to plastics.
Dr. N Kumar also acknowledged the work done by the Bhuvaneshwar centre on flat bed mobile type paddy drier and recommended the adoption of such technology in the Tamil Nadu region. In closing, Dr. P Rajkumar, Professor, FPE, TNAU proposed a formal vote of thanks.
Dr. S Ganapathy, Professor and Head, Department of Food Process Engineering welcomed the gathering and Dr. S K Tyagi, PC (PHET), delivered the coordinators report. Dr. S N Jha, Assistant Director General, ICAR delivered the inaugural address and highlighted the importance of transferring technologies to farmers.
Dr. B Shridar, Dean, Agricultural Engineering and Research Institute, TNAU, in his special address explained the overall contribution made by process engineers in reducing post-harvest losses through the All India Coordinated Research Projects in the last 40 years.
Dr. K S Subramanian, Director of Research, TNAU said that nano technology can supplement and compliment food processing in minimizing the post-harvest losses of agricultural commodities and also emphasized the need for developing packaging films using nano technology as an alternative to plastics.
Dr. K Alagusundaram, Deputy Director of General, Agricultural Engineering, ICAR, New Delhi explained about the super straw management system with the help of 'Happy Seeder' to reduce the pollution in Delhi and Punjab. He also insisted on the consortium or value chain mode of research, rather than the conventional mode which will facilitate the delivery of benefits to farmers immediately.
IFAD has funded Rs.1000 crores for scaling up the successful technologies from various AICRP–PHET centres and adopting them to North Eastern states. He also discussed the importance of farm mechanization, establishment of more number of agro-processing centres in rural areas to develop the agricultural sector.
Dr. N Kumar, Vice-Chancellor, TNAU, Coimbatore in his chief guest address informed the gathering about the current status of post-harvest losses in our country. He insisted on developing suitable techniques to extend the shelf life of 'neera' by developing gadgets for easy and quick transportation.
He also mentioned the nutritional importance of dried moringa leaf powder and suggested developing suitable processing techniques to enhance the quality and shelf life. Furthermore, he listed the importance of developing bio-degradable packaging materials from banana as an alternate to plastics.
Dr. N Kumar also acknowledged the work done by the Bhuvaneshwar centre on flat bed mobile type paddy drier and recommended the adoption of such technology in the Tamil Nadu region. In closing, Dr. P Rajkumar, Professor, FPE, TNAU proposed a formal vote of thanks.