-Aishwarya Menon
Kerala has carved a niche of its own in the global spice market for its rich flavoured spices. Kerala needs to be positioned as Spice Destination and a Safe Food Destination. The first edition of Spice Conference was held 20 – 21 September 2021 in partnership with Government of Kerala, Spices Board, Directorate of Foreign Trade and Districts as Export Hubs. The Conference had discussion and presentations on Export Prospects & Challenges in Spice Sector, Opportunities for Spices in the New Normal and Role of Eco-system Players which was well attended by all relevant stake holders from different Industry sectors, Senior Government Officials from different departments, Regulatory authorities, Research Institutions and Civic Society Organization under a single platform.
On this background CII Kerala is organising the 2nd Edition of Spice Conference & Exposition scheduled to be held on 27 & 28 September 2022 in partnership with Spices Board and CII Food and Agriculture Centre of Excellence (FACE) which is spread over as Two-Day Conference and Exposition with the theme “Value Creation in Spices – Global Market”. This conference aims to bring together the Spice and Value-Added Spice Industry together.
The Spice conference will deliberate on promoting the State as a spice hub, creating global standards, new trends and to promote Kerala spices and spice products to Global Market. The objective of the conference is to position Kerala as a Spice Destination and a Safe Food Destination to expand more global markets. In an interaction with Kitchen Herald, a spokesperson from spiceboard on the event.
Kitchen Herald: What is the significance of the event and how often is it conducted? Kindly provide an introduction for the same.
Organizers: Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Kerala in partnership with Spices Board and CII Food and Agriculture Centre of Excellence (FACE) is organizing the 2nd Edition of Spice Conference a Two-Day Conference and Exposition with the theme “Value Creation in Spices – Global Market”.
Significance of the conference to bring together the Spice and Value-Added Spice Industry together. The Spice conference will deliberate on promoting the State as a spice hub, creating global standards, new trends and to promote Kerala spices and spice products to Global Market. Exports are one of the major drivers of economic growth and development. Exports form an integral part of India’s growth model and has a significant role to play in achieving India’s objective of becoming USD 5 trillion economy by 2024-25. Despite the challenges posed by Covid pandemic, Indian exports, surpassing pre-covid levels has recuperated strongly, registering a positive growth. Along with recovery of global demand coupled with revival in domestic activities, the timely initiatives of the government also played a vital role in fostering Indian exports.
The Conference is being held every year with the main aim to promote Kerala as a Spice Destination and to expand more global markets. The stakeholders would get a platform to discuss opportunities to create a strong growth trajectory for the spice industry and learn about best practices. The Annual conference is expected to give Kerala, as the host state, a definite edge in acquiring innovations in spice sector and direct the attention of the global spice markets.
What are the events being conducted and who are the target audience?
Organizers: The two-day seminar would have participants from the Spices Board, FSSAI, DGFT, ICAR-Indian Institute of Spices Research (IISR), and National Biodiversity Authority. The topics covered during the Couse of two days are
- Value Addition in Spices – the way forward with focus on Cardamom, Pepper, Ginger, Turmeric etc.
- Pesticide usage in Spices and issues associated with it – What Kerala can do as a “first mover State”
- Sustainability and Technology for the Spices Industry
- Strategies for Biodiversity-friendly farming
- Global Marketing – Opportunities and Challenges
- Focus for Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) – Sharing Best Models of Good Agriculture Practices & Certifications
- Research & Development opportunities for Start-up Exporters
Kitchen Herald: Who are the guests or the contributors for the conference?
Organizers: The two-day conference will witness over 450 delegates representing various states, industry leaders, representatives of international spice associations, policy makers and end-users are expected to attend. There will be 30 stalls for the Exposition.
Kitchen Herald: What are the special benefits and the predicted outcomes you hope to achieve by the end of the conference?
Organizers:The Spice conference will deliberate on promoting the State as a spice hub, creating global standards, new trends and to promote Kerala spices and spice products to Global Market.
Centred around the need to look at futuristic approaches and innovative applications of spices for modern products, the conference will highlight the direct impact on the consumers and industry and cover quality issues in the spice sector and their appropriate solutions.
