New Delhi: SUFALAM 2024, the Start-Up Forum for Aspiring Leaders and Mentors, concluded with a resounding message: the key drivers for transforming start-ups in the food processing domain into established businesses are innovations, collaborations, and advanced technologies. The Union Minister of Food Processing Industries, Pashupati Kumar Paras, inaugurated the two-day event on February 13th and 14th, 2024, in New Delhi, alongside Shobha Karandlaje, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Food Processing Industries, Anita Praveen, Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Dr. Harinder Oberoi, Director, NIFTEM, Kundli, and Minhaj Alam, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Food Processing Industries. With over 250 stakeholders participating, including start-ups, senior executives, MSMEs, financial institutions, venture capitalists, and academia, the event featured three knowledge sessions, two pitching sessions, two panel discussions, networking sessions, and an exhibition.
During the Start-up – Overview and Benefits session, participants learned about the role of Startup India, mentorship programs, and innovations fostering the start-up ecosystem in India. The Food Regulations session provided insights into regulations, certifications, and compliances for domestic and international trade of food products, as per FSSAI and EIC regulations, and discussed schemes under APEDA for promoting food product exports. The “Business and Financial Modeling for Start-ups” session provided tips on preparing a business plan, emphasizing viability, sustainability, the importance of free cash flow, and proper cash flow management.
The panel discussion on transforming food systems focused on diversifying raw materials, climate-resilient options, creativity in entrepreneurship, and highlighted designing processing machinery and Agri-Tech solutions for food safety and optimized supply chains. Interventions in raw material sourcing, exploring protein-rich foods, sustainable packaging, and collaboration for sustained innovations were also addressed.
The Start-up Conclave for Food Processing Entrepreneurs emphasized India’s potential as a food innovation hub, stressing convergence among industry, start-ups, and institutions. Discussions centered on sustainable packaging, sourcing quality raw materials, collaborating with farmers, and venturing into protein-rich foods and affordable nutrition-based products. The session concluded with a strong emphasis on collaboration for sustained innovation, particularly through credit innovation and cross-industry partnerships.
The two pitching sessions, held on each of the two days, featured twelve start-ups presenting their ideas to a panel of food technologists, top banking officials, VCs, NIFTEM faculty, and industry professionals. Six start-ups received mentoring support in product refinement, market linkage, and investor connections. The panelists welcomed the initiative, offering support for future endeavors to guide and mentor promising small ventures. In total, 38 exhibitors, including 26 start-ups, nine PMFME beneficiaries, and three government agencies, showcased their products, schemes, and technologies during the two-day event. Additionally, separate networking sessions facilitated discussions on handholding and technical support for the start-ups with the industry.