Spectators at the G-20 International Food Festival at Talkatora Stadium in Delhi on Saturday. , Photo credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar
Due to low demand for millet-based products and low awareness about their benefits, only 13 out of 40 food stalls offer items using the grain at the ongoing G-20 International Food Festival at Talkatora Stadium.
‘International Year of Millets’ and ‘Taste the World’ are the main themes of the two-day festival, which was inaugurated by Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday.
four G-20 countries – China, Turkey, Japan and Mexico – and 14 Indian states and union territories – Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Delhi, Bihar, Punjab, Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Manipur and Meghalaya – participating in the festival, which is being organized by the New Delhi Municipal Council.
Mr. Puri said, “This event is not only a G-20 food festival, but also a food festival of Indian states.” He also emphasized on promotion of millets based products in government functions, canteens and kitchens. “I hope millet becomes a public movement,” he said, adding that it is a healthy option that can become part of anyone’s daily diet.
With the United Nations declaring 2023 as the International Year of Millets, the Center has taken keen interest in establishing itself as a global hub for millets. However, food stall owners at the G-20 festival say there is insufficient demand for millet-based products.
“We will not serve millet-based items as customers do not like them,” said Madhusudan Siddhanti, marketing head of Karnataka Food Centre. “Only people who have already tasted such items order them,” said Mr. Siddanti, who is from Ballari and grew up eating millet-based rotis.
He said that to encourage the growth and consumption of millet, the government needs to do more than just promote millet in the programs it organizes.
According to Faridabad-based food technologist-turned-entrepreneur Palak Arora, who runs Satguru Superfoods, the consumer base of millet-based products has grown over the past two years, but its reach is limited to health-conscious people.
“Most people are unaware of the form in which millets are consumed. People often push it aside because they find it difficult to digest,” Ms. Arora said. “People need to be made aware that by soaking millets in water we can get rid of nutrients that make them difficult to digest.”