The essential
summit on
smart protein
is back for 2022.
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October 13-14, 2022
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Eros Hotel, Nehru Place, New Delhi
Organizing Partner:
With support from:
The Smart Protein Summit 2022 is curated and convened by The Good Food Institute India, the central expert organization, thought leader, and convening body in the Indian ‘alternative protein’ sector.
With unique insights across science, business, and policy, we are using the collective power of food innovation and markets to accelerate the rebuilding of our broken food system by transitioning toward smart protein.
This year, we’re proud to announce that the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry - FICCI is an Organizing Partner for the Smart Protein Summit 2022. FICCI is India's largest and oldest apex business organization, and their history is closely interwoven with the country’s independence, industrial growth, and emergence as an economy to be reckoned with.
Together, in our efforts to build a National Mission for Smart Protein, we’ve designed the Summit to serve as a novel platform that highlights smart protein’s untapped potential, furthers our progress, and lays out how the sector is poised to become a key pillar of India’s new green economy.
Here is a glimpse of some of our speakers for 2022
Michal Klar
Co-Founder, Better Bite Ventures
Keyur Bhatia
Founder, TJUK Trade Networks
Gauri Devidayal
Restaurateur, Founder & CEO, Food Matters Group
For the uninitiated, the smart protein sector is at the forefront of global food innovation, with major benefits for people, planet, and profit. Across the world, entrepreneurs, food scientists, and researchers are already producing the future of food — smart protein products made from plants, cells, and microorganisms that perfectly replicate the sensory and cultural resonance of traditional meat, eggs, and dairy.
Who should attend
Students
Scientists
Entrepreneurs
Policy Makers
Investors
Corporate Executives
In India, the smart protein sector has grown at an exponential rate over the last 2 years.
In the midst of a pandemic that ravaged the country, it became evident that we need a more secure, sustainable, and just protein supply. We’ve seen the industry grow from just a handful of stakeholders to a thriving sunrise sector with 50+ startups, 80+ supporting companies, investments poised to grow exponentially, and policy advancements beginning to take clear shape. Today, with an increasing number of prominent companies and household names entering the industry, people across India are quickly beginning to take note of this burgeoning sector.
This is no accident. Over the last five years, GFI India has been carefully paving the way for the sector to take off by building a National Mission for Smart Protein.
Our strategic partnerships with leading research universities, innovation and biotechnology hubs, multilateral and government institutions, business consortia, and a host of crucial collaborators — all integral to the growth of this industry, have enabled us to prime the sector for success. Never before have so many key stakeholders across industry, policy, or academia come to the collective realization that in one stroke, investing in smart protein could propel the industries of the future, stave off climate change, and safeguard food security and public health for our growing population, for generations.
Building on this conviction, at this year’s Summit we have a single-minded focus on accelerating the momentum, forging collaborations, and leaving no stone unturned in the way of making Smart Protein a key pillar of India’s new green economy.
We’ve got an action-packed agenda for our 2-day Summit
First access to insights and data from GFI India and Deloitte India’s ‘Smart Protein Economic Analysis’. The study delves into the smart protein economic opportunity for India and includes data points on market size, export potential, and more, highlighting India’s chance to become a leading manufacturer and supplier of raw materials, ingredients, and equipment for the sector by 2030.
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Arun Chawla
Director General (FICCI)
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Deepak Bagla
Invest India
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Varun Deshpande
GFI India
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Mr. Anand Ramanathan
Partner Deloitte, India
Anand Ramanathan
Partner, Deloitte IndiaAnand Ramanathan leads the food and agribusiness capability for Deloitte in India. He works across the food and agribusiness value chain with Indian and global clients in the areas of growth, diversification and business transformation. He also helps various governments in India and other developing countries with the formulation of policy and capacity building in agriculture and allied industries.
Varun Deshpande
GFI IndiaAs the son of a cancer surgeon from Mumbai, Varun has been deeply immersed in healthcare and technology from a very young age. He spent several formative years studying Chemical and Biomedical Engineering at technology hub Carnegie Mellon University. He then went on to work on implementing digital health in India and the United States, helping vulnerable populations through care coordination, and a systems approach to healthcare. While in the United States, Varun learned about Effective Altruism, a philosophy which seeks to investigate and target the world's most pressing problems. He came to understand the tremendous impact of industrial animal agriculture on the world, and the imperative need to transition away from it using markets and technology. In dedicating his work to the future of protein and combining his duty to human and planetary health, Varun aims to help build a more healthy, sustainable, and just global food system, starting right here in India.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated Meat
Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated MeatWith a deeply scientific background, Akshay holds a BSc in Biotechnology from Bangalore University, a Masters in Medical Biochemistry, and a PhD in Cancer & Muscle Biology from the National University of Singapore. He was most recently a founder of FalconBio, a cancer drug delivery and services platform based out of Singapore. Akshay is an accomplished scientist and an entrepreneur with 7 years of experience in translational and cross-functional R&D projects with a focus on commercialization.
Hear from budding Indian Innovators as they gear up to address whitespace opportunities that the smart protein sector has created. Each innovator will get the opportunity to pitch and present their solution in a 5-minute window to our seasoned panel of investors.
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Karan Keswani
Managing Director, Brinc India
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Neha Poddar
Principal, Good Startup
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Sagar Tandon
Partner, Beyond Impact
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Soniya Sadhnani
Senior Associate - Seed Investments, CIIE.Co
Karan Keswani
Managing Director, Brinc IndiaArmed with a Bachelors and Masters in Manufacturing Engineering at Cambridge University, along with a MBA from INSEAD, Karan has worked over 14 years in entrepreneurship, business operations, supply chain, project management, infrastructure, Corporate Finance in the India and the Middle East. He was previously Director at Clairfield International Investment Bank and also Director at JADE Advisors, a global placement agent. He is now MD at Brinc India, and is excited to use his entrepreneurship, management, and investing experience to support early stage founders and create gamechangers.
Neha Poddar
Principal, Good StartupNeha is a Principal at Good Startup where she is responsible for deal origination, investment analysis and portfolio management. She works closely with Good Startup’s portfolio companies to help them in their mission of furthering the alternative protein industry. She has 12+ years of experience in financial markets spanning private equity, fixed income, credit, and public equities. Previously, she was a director of investments at JI Capital Partners, and before that an equity derivatives trader at Bank of America Merrill Lynch covering Southeast Asia and India. Neha holds an MBA (High Honors) from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering from IIT Bombay. Neha is a recipient of the prestigious Siebel Scholarship.
Nithin Shetty
Co-Founder, Klever MeatNithin is a Chartered Accountant by qualification and has has successfully run an FMCG business focused on manufacturing innovative food products, with a distribution base of more than 15,000 retails outlets across India, Nepal, and Bangladesh for more than 6 years. Nithin has worked as the CFO for companies ranging from healthcare, foodtech, logistics, manufacturing, and SaaS for more than 7 years. He also works as a management consultant and helps companies with their business strategies, sets up systems and processes, prepares them for fund raises/IPOs, and helps execute business plans. Previously Nithin has also run a B2B seafood supply startup in Western India for 2+ years and has experience in the seafood supply chain, distribution, logistics, and unit economics.
Ankush Jamadagni
Founder, OateyAnkush is an engineer from NIT - Surat (2006) with an HR masters from TISS, Mumbai (2010). Corporates brands and cultures didn't quite cut it for him and through his passion for fitness, love for the planet and its animals, and lastly, an obsession with the road less traveled, OATEY was born. Ankush is also an amateur biohacker, vegan, and holds a professional diploma in weight loss and sports nutrition level 1. Having worked in the corporate sector for 13 years across plenty of big brands across industries, in the capacity of HR leadership, Ankush built robust professional networks. His daughter Inaaya, fitness and wellness hacks, sustainability, plant-based diets, and a constant endeavor to push the limits on and off the field keep Ankush ticking.
Vaibhaw Dwivedi
COO, Urban TillerAn experienced people leader, Vaibhaw has 15 years of experience transforming operations for large organizations leading to improved customer experience and bottom line. An avid reader, Vaibhaw is passionate about sustainability and food security. A vegan by choice, Vaibhaw co-founded Urban Tiller to make plant based foods more accessible to everyone. Vaibhaw is an ex merchant navy officer and has sailed on the high seas for 2 years before pursuing his MBA from Great Lakes institute of Management, Chennai.
Sagar Tandon
Partner, Beyond ImpactSagar is Partner at Beyond Impact, a global VC fund focused solely on investing in animal-free ventures. He has about a decade of experience as an entrepreneur, operator, venture capitalist, and gender-lens investor. He has led investments in about 20 early-stage startups with the experience of setting up multiple micro-venture capital funds. Apart from his current role at Beyond Impact, he is a mentor at Fashion For Good, advisor to Angel Protocol, Venture Partner at Republic, and an active contributor to the GenderSmart Investing community.
Soniya Sadhnani
Senior Associate - Seed Investments, CIIE.CoSoniya supports CIIE.CO to make seed investments, manage portfolio startups, and build investment thesis. Prior to this she was working in a transaction advisory role at a CA firm. She is a Chartered Accountant and a Chartered Financial Analyst and has also co-authored reports on 'Building an Ecosystem for Cultivated Meat in India' and 'Digital Innovations in Mental Health Sector'.
Dr. Swapnil Kamble
Co-Founder, Klever MeatDr. Kamble has a PhD from Savitribai Phule University (National Centre for Cell Science, Pune) in biotechnology. He has publications in International Peer Reviewed Journals from Elsevier, Wiley, AACR publishers, and book chapters in Springer, ACS books. He has presented his work in National and International conferences and has been invited as speaker in conferences and faculty development programmes (FDP). He has guided 7 post-graduate students on their dissertation theses. He has consulted healthcare startups - Oncocur India Pvt. Ltd. and Nuimance Phytovigyan Pvt. Ltd. and some of his researched products are currently being marketed (BRECAN, BRECAN PLUS).
Arjun Ayyagari
CEO, Urban TillerAn Industrial engineer by qualification, Arjun has extensive experience in management and implementing digital transformations for large-scale organizations. Arjun co founded Urban Tiller to make our food systems more sustainable. An avid believer in food safety at source, Arjun has developed Agtech knowledge from scratch for more than 40 varieties of greens & vegetables cultivated in soil-less conditions. A musician at heart Arjun has completed his MBA from SP Jain School of Management Singapore/Dubai.
Shiva Susarla
Co-Founder, Urban Tiller & Founder, RENERGii VenturesShiva Susarla is founder of Singapore-based venture studio called RENERGii Ventures (www.renergii.com). RENERGii is building a high quality portfolio of cutting-edge startups using agri-food science and technology to make food systems circular, accessible and affordable in the long run. Apart from Urban Tiller, RENERGii venture companies include Mycovation (mycelium-based protein) and Feedwerkz (Insect-based protein). Shiva has done his MBA from Asian Institute of Management Philippines.
Smitha Devigere
Founder, Devigere BiosolutionsDevigere Biosolutions creates 100% clean label, versatile and functional plant protein concentrates from diverse pulses. Smitha has innovated and scaled up the most unique technology in protein extraction, where it is a 100% clean process, sustainable and includes minimal processing. She is highly passionate in producing the most versatile plant proteins for various applications. Today, her company’s plant proteins are tested by more than 100 food companies in the world. She holds an engineering degree in Biotechnology from VTU and Postgraduate diploma in Biotechniques from Institute of Bioinformatics and Applied Biotechnology (IBAB) Bangalore. She holds top notch work experience of 7 years in the R & D department at Novozymes South Asia Pvt Ltd. Bangalore, where she got the opportunity to develop products for global markets. She is determined to create high quality products to cater to global demand.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Husain Kurawadwala
Research Associate
Husain Kurawadwala
Research AssociateHusain holds a Master's degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. Through his experiences with organizations like the World Wildlife Fund and Soybean Innovation Lab, Husain has worked on international research projects to understand the impact of food production and consumption from a holistic perspective (environmental, economic, and health). Husain's passion for finding solutions across the food system has led him to GFI India, where he hopes to use his research and analysis skills to help India become a leader in the alternative protein industry.
Learn about the current technical landscape powering the smart protein sector, hear from pioneers in the space on how they think we can address key levers for product innovation and build a roadmap towards commercialization of bio-enabled solutions, particularly cultivated, fermentation-derived, and hybrid smart proteins.
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Shubhankar Takle
Chief Technology Officer Myoworks
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Vinod Kumar
Co-founder & Managing Director, String Bio
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Subramani Ramachandrappa
Laurus Bio
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Amrita Sadarangani
Gujarat Biotechnology University
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GS Krishnan
Hon. President, ABLE, Assoc. of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE)
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Dr Manish Diwan
Head, Strategic Partnership & Entr. Dev. (SPED), Biotech Industry Research Assist. Council (BIRAC)
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Nicole Rocque
Senior Innovation Specialist
Shubhankar Takle
Chief Technology Officer MyoworksShubhankar is the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) at MyoWorks. MyoWorks aims to create an ecosystem of ancillary products for the cultivated meat industry starting with their novel scaffolding solution.
Vinod Kumar
Co-founder & Managing Director, String BioVinod Kumar co-founded String and currently serves as its Managing Director. From his first job as a teenager managing the supply chain for his family’s FMCG business to leading large cross functional teams at global multi billion-dollar companies in the telecommunications and data networking industries - Vinod’s corporate experience runs deep and broad. With his 23+ years of experience in product development, engineering, manufacturing, customer experience, and operations, Vinod brings a strong commitment to strategic and operational excellence as well as insights on taking products to market and increasing shareholder value. An outsider to the biotech industry, Vinod’s passion to deliver measurable and sustainable impact towards climate change in his lifetime, shapes his work at String.
GS Krishnan
Hon. President, ABLE, Assoc. of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE)Mr. Krishnan is an experienced thought-leader in industrial biotechnology and is passionate about sustainable solutions for climate challenges. With 35+ years of vast experience in strategy and management in multinational conglomerates, Krishnan now engages with biotech companies and startups as an advisor and a mentor. Krishnan has worked closely with decision-makers in the regulatory areas and policy advocacy to propagate the importance of viable biotech solutions to protect the environment.
Dr Manish Diwan
Head, Strategic Partnership & Entr. Dev. (SPED), Biotech Industry Research Assist. Council (BIRAC)Dr. Manish Diwan has a Ph.D. from Jamia Hamdard and ICGEB, New Delhi, in Pharmaceutical Sciences and Immunology. In his illustrious career spanning more than 25 years, Dr. Diwan has worked with corporate behemoths such as Daiichi-Sankyo Life Sciences, Dabur, and Ranbaxy. At BIRAC, Dr. Diwan is working at the research and entrepreneurship interface to empower and guide emerging biotech enterprises with cutting-edge innovations for commercialization and scaling.
Nicole Rocque
Senior Innovation SpecialistNicole studied Economics at the University of Warwick, UK. Prior to joining GFI India, Nicole worked at Invest India, the National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency of the Government of India, as a primary advisor to lifesciences groups' looking to set-up or expand their presence in India. As a special project nomination via Invest India, she worked directly under the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India to launch the national innovation commercialization initiative AGNIi as an in-roads to greater cooperation between industry, government labs and academic institutions. Nicole brings experience in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and technology commercialization to promote innovation in the plant-based, cultivated meat, eggs and dairy industry in India. Nicole is passionate about climate action and public health, which has led her to GFI India, in the hope to shape an Indian response to the biggest challenges of our lifetime.
Amrita Sadrangani
Gujarat Biotechnology UniversityAmrita holds an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from M. S. University of Baroda and is a experienced leader, problem solver, collaborator, and dot connector to solve some of the most important knowledge gaps across countries, with India as a center-piece of these conversations, including smart proteins. As a veteran with key networks, panning developing businesses of several companies through market research on life sciences, she has very strong know-how on how India compares with international education and what we need to teach to be globally competitive.
Explore the challenges & opportunities in accessing capital pools to support the growth of the smart protein ecosystem - across the landscape and at various stages of companies’ lifecycles.
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Shreyansh Singhal
Vice President, Ankur Capital
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Karan Mehta
Principal, Peak Sustainability Ventures
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Jinesh Shah
Chief Investment Officer, Ahimsa VC
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Nicole Rocque
Senior Innovation Specialist
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Pranav Pai
Founding Partner & Chief Investment Officer, 3one4 Capital
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Rajeev Chitrabhanu
Founder, Magnetic
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Maya Chandrashekaran
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Green Artha
Shreyansh Singhal
Vice President, Ankur CapitalShreyansh brings in his experience in research and sourcing of early stage startups, from his work at Traxcn (India and China geography) and YourStory. He has also worked on capital raising and GTM strategies at a boutique investment bank, EnvoyLabs Consulting. He currently leads new investments, portfolio management and capital raising at Ankur Capital.
Karan Mehta
Principal, Peak Sustainability VenturesKaran has been involved in impact investing and sustainability for most of his career. He has over 15 years of experience in asset management across various asset classes and has spent over 8 years directly investing in sustainable food and agriculture supply chains across South and SouthEast Asia. Karan has been actively involved in the plant and alternative proteins space since 2015, working with companies to set up extraction units across the world. As Principal at Peak Sustainability Ventures, Karan leads deals across Energy, Water, Agriculture and broader Climate technologies. He is a passionate ocean enthusiast, and is driven by an inherent desire to ‘rewild the planet’
Jinesh Shah
Chief Investment Officer, Ahimsa VCAn alumnus of NYU & YCombinator, Jinesh currently serves as the Chief Investment Officer at Ahimsa VC - India’s first & only impact venture capital fund focused on disrupting animal agriculture by investing in the future of food, materials & beyond. Jinesh has founded Alt Protein startups backed by the likes of Khosla Ventures & NBA athletes, & independently advised & consulted dozens of alt protein & materials startups globally including Eat JUST & Good Dot. Prior to this, Jinesh spent 15 years on Wall Street with Morgan Stanley & in Silicon Valley with Microsoft & several startups, living across 3 continents while also partnering with government & non-profit entities such as GFI India, EU’s EIT, Cambridge University & others across 6 continents.
Pranav Pai
Founding Partner & Chief Investment Officer, 3one4 CapitalPranav leads investments and portfolio construction at 3one4 Capital. As CIO, he has led over 70 seed and venture capital investments across several investment categories in India and the US. Currently, 3one4 Capital manages over INR 2,300 Cr (USD 300 Mn) and its investments include Licious, Open, DarwinBox, BetterPlace, Jupiter, Koo, Dozee, Begin, and Tracxn. Pranav serves on the boards of and as an advisor to several of the companies in the portfolio. Pranav received the “35 Under 35” award from Entrepreneur Magazine, India and the “40 Under 40” Alternative Investments Professionals of India award from the Association of International Wealth Management of India (AIWMI) and the Indian Association of Alternative Investment Funds (IAAIF).
Rajeev Chitrabhanu
Founder, MagneticRajeev served for many years at the C-level of financial services leader JM Morgan Stanley (subsequently JM Financial), where he sat on the SE Asia strategy committee. He recently left JM Financial as the CEO, having led it to $Bn++ market cap, and has more recently set up an advisory lead investment firm called Magnetic. Through Magnetic, Rajeev advises and invests in consumer/health focused businesses.
Maya Chandrashekaran
Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Green ArthaChandrasekaran is the co-founder and Managing Partner of Green Artha Innovation - a climate innovation and investment firm. She also co-founded and continues to actively run the 250+ member Women in Investing network as well as the Climate Capital Network. She is a mentor with TechStars India, Sangam FLCTD, advising several startups and impact groups. Maya is an expert at scaling companies that change lives, both as an investor and in practice. As one of the founding members of Menterra Venture Advisors, she built the Education and Skilling investment practice. Maya was part of the founding leadership that scaled Babajob.com into India’s largest tech-enabled livelihoods platform, securing meaningful work for over 10 million people in just 7 years. Maya is passionate about innovation, building ecosystems and creating collaborations.
Nicole Rocque
Senior Innovation SpecialistNicole studied Economics at the University of Warwick, UK. Prior to joining GFI India, Nicole worked at Invest India, the National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency of the Government of India, as a primary advisor to lifesciences groups' looking to set-up or expand their presence in India. As a special project nomination via Invest India, she worked directly under the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India to launch the national innovation commercialization initiative AGNIi as an in-roads to greater cooperation between industry, government labs and academic institutions. Nicole brings experience in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and technology commercialization to promote innovation in the plant-based, cultivated meat, eggs and dairy industry in India. Nicole is passionate about climate action and public health, which has led her to GFI India, in the hope to shape an Indian response to the biggest challenges of our lifetime.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Husain Kurawadwala
Research Associate
Husain Kurawadwala
Research AssociateHusain holds a Master's degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. Through his experiences with organizations like the World Wildlife Fund and Soybean Innovation Lab, Husain has worked on international research projects to understand the impact of food production and consumption from a holistic perspective (environmental, economic, and health). Husain's passion for finding solutions across the food system has led him to GFI India, where he hopes to use his research and analysis skills to help India become a leader in the alternative protein industry.
Hear directly from trailblazing smart protein startups as they share their roadmaps for success, perspectives on where this sunrise sector is headed, and what they need from industry and government to capture the most promising opportunities on their ways forward.
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Anand Nagarajan
Co-Founder, Shaka Harry
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Shraddha Bhansali
Co-founder and COO, EVO Foods
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Prateek Ghai
Co-Founder, BVeg Foods
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Sohil Wazir
Chief Commercial Officer, Blue Tribe Foods
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Gaurav Sharma
Founder, GREENEST
Anand Nagarajan
Co-Founder, Shaka HarryAnand is a 4-time entrepreneur with prior success in education, energy, and now extends his passion around sustainability as the cofounder and CEO of Liberate Foods, a plant protein company with a meat alternate line of products – Shaka Harry. Previously, Anand has set up and scaled an education services company that served clients in 155 countries and delivered over 6 million hours of training for global enterprises. In energy, Anand set up Dexler Energy, a renewable energy developer and scaled it to develop over USD 100 Mn of assets. In 2019, he set up a venture studio to curate, incubate and launch companies around education and sustainability. M By S Square, made 6 investments one of which was Liberate Foods. Liberate Foods was set up last year to provide more sustainable food choices. Anand is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School, a trainee aviator, and an aspiring musician.
Shraddha Bhansali
Co-founder and COO, EVO FoodsShraddha Bhansali is Co-founder and COO of EVO Foods, which is using cutting-edge technology and science to create next-gen plant-based substitutes for animal products. While pursuing her Bachelor of Business Administration at Boston University in 2010, she conceptualized a reality where the delicious food that people crave was made from plants and not animals. Driven by this, she co-founded EVO Foods - Asia’s first 100% plant-based egg - in October 2019 with Kartik Dixit. Through EVO Foods, both the founders not only aim to not only positively impact the food ecosystem but also leverage Indian indigenous ingredients as high-quality protein sources for the world. While she has been included to be part of the Forbes 30 under 30 lists for India in 2018 and Asia 2021, her efforts to promote green and clean eating habits have also seen her give a TEDx Talk on the importance of sustainable eating.
Sohil Wazir
Chief Commercial Officer, Blue Tribe FoodsSohil Wazir is the CCO of Blue Tribe- a DTC and HORECA based food tech company working on a mission to reinvent meat consuming methods in India. In his current position, Sohil is responsible for leading and scaling the sales, marketing, supply chain and finance. He is accountable for overseeing the overall operations and customer interface with the brand’s key product offerings to ensure that each functionality is in sync with its strategic, social and commercial objectives. Sohil has over nine years of experience and expertise in the field of traditional trade, brand management, new-age e-commerce and digital marketing. After completing his B.Tech from Visvesvaraya National Institute Of Technology, Nagpur, he went on to pursue Marketing Management degree from SP Jain Institute of Management and Research.
Gaurav Sharma
Founder, GREENESTGaurav qualified as one of the youngest CAs in India in 2011 and started his career with KPMG. He has always felt driven to align himself with meaningful work - in his case, an urge to find a way to get animals off the plate as he strongly believes that 15 minutes of palate pleasure are not more important than an entire life. At GREENEST, Gaurav and his team are on a serious mission to get smarter protein on India’s plates. GREENEST wants to play a pivotal role in defining and driving the smart protein movement in India, and they understand what goes into making a consumer’s meat experience great, and then work their way up to recreate that experience without getting the animal into the equation.
Prateek Ghai
Co-Founder, BVeg FoodsPrateek is a businessman turned food entrepreneur with 14 years of experience and an extensive background in finance and sales. A plant-based sustainability enthusiast who truly believes in bringing positive change to the world. His aim is to stimulate this movement towards the future of protein, healthy and clean eating, with the production of sustainable, plant-based protein products for the globe. BVeg Foods is an innovation-driven food company manufacturing plant-based meat products. Their vision acts as an ecosystem provider not only for India but also for international markets too. The BVeg facility is the center of excellence, one of its kind in India with state-of-the-art equipment from Europe. Prateek and the company certainly believe that India can be the epicenter of plant-based foods for the globe.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated Meat
Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated MeatWith a deeply scientific background, Akshay holds a BSc in Biotechnology from Bangalore University, a Masters in Medical Biochemistry, and a PhD in Cancer & Muscle Biology from the National University of Singapore. He was most recently a founder of FalconBio, a cancer drug delivery and services platform based out of Singapore. Akshay is an accomplished scientist and an entrepreneur with 7 years of experience in translational and cross-functional R&D projects with a focus on commercialization.
Explore the opportunity to advance the smart protein industry by optimizing key drivers of consumption: taste, price, convenience, and accessibility beyond early adopters and metros into the true mass market.
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Dheeraj Talreja
AAK
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Siraj Azmat Chaudhry
NCML
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Nirav Haria
Head - Business Development South Asia, Givaudan
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P.B.Chinnappa
M.D, Griffith Foods
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Prakash.M.G
IFF
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Rajyalakshmi Gummadi
Market & Consumer Insights Specialist
Dheeraj Talreja
President, India, AAKDheeraj is the President of the AAK group in India. AAK is a major global manufacturer of specialty oils/fats and other food ingredients and has been actively involved in the plant-based sector. Prior to AAK, Dheeraj worked across various roles at Huntsman Corporation finally becoming the Commercial Director for South Asia, Middle East & Africa in 2016.
Siraj Azmat Chaudhry
Chairman, National Commodities Management Services Limited,Fmr. Chairman Cargill IndiaSiraj Chaudhry has been in Business for 34 years of which 20 years in leadership roles building, turning around, acquiring, divesting businesses in Agriculture and Food space. Siraj is presently Non-Executive Director and Chairman of National Commodity Management Ltd., (NCML). In his last role as the MD & CEO of NCML, he was successful in leading the organization through a transformation journey, greater diversification and expansion of company footprint across the country as a trusted and preferred Agri Supply chain and solutions partner. Siraj was the Chairman of Cargill India, the Indian arm of Cargill Inc., where he led the build and expansion of Cargill's Food Business in India. Siraj serves as an Independent Director on the Boards of Tata Consumers Products Ltd., Tata Coffee Ltd., Dhanuka Agritech, Jubilant Ingrevia Ltd., Carrier Air Conditioning and Refrigeration India and Bikaji Foods International.
Nirav Haria
Head Bus Dev & Integrated Solutions,SA, Taste & WellbeingMr. Nirav Haria is the Head – Business Development & Integrated Solutions – South Asia for Givaudan India Pvt. Ltd. He heads the business development team which focuses on the upcoming categories in the Taste & Well-Being space for South Asia. Plant based Protein products is one of these categories where Givaudan India is committed to support the growth and development of the entire plant-based ecosystem. He has been with Givaudan India for almost a decade now in various roles and has more than 21 years of experience in various industries like food, specialty chemicals & dyes, pharma intermediates etc.
P.B.Chinnappa
M.D, Griffith FoodsP.B. Chinnappa has been associated with the food and beverage industry for the past 30 years. He started his career with the erstwhile Tata Tea and then worked with Cadbury India Limited. During his stint with Cadbury, he brought a large acreage of non-traditional areas under cocoa cultivation, greatly improving the income levels of farmers and also saved precious foreign exchange by reducing imports of Cocoa. Chinnappa has been with Griffith Foods since 2007. At Griffith Foods, he has managed various functions including Sales, Supply Chain and Procurement before taking over as the Managing Director.
Rajyalakshmi Gummadi
Market & Consumer Insights SpecialistRajyalakshmi is a marketing professional with over 15 years of experience in Consumer and Business Insights, Data Analytics, and Marketing Strategy. Before joining GFI India, Raji worked with stalwart consumer brands such as Unilever, McDonalds, Aditya Birla Retail, and Nielsen. In her previous stints, she has focussed on Business and Brand Strategy driven by consumer insights, business and financial goals, macro trends, and competitive forces. At GFI India, Raji focuses on creating and executing consumer research that can meaningfully drive the smart protein market forward.
Prakash.M.G
Managing Director, India Subcontinent and Commercial Director - Flavours BU, IFFPrakash brings over 30 years of work experience in CPG organisations like Unilever, Hershey’s, Mead Johnson & IFF. He has held various roles in Sales & Customer Marketing across Foods & Personal care categories. His experience includes leading diverse teams in large multinational organisations, with a strong domain expertise in Finance, Marketing, HR & Manufacturing functions and a holistic understanding of the African, Middle Eastern & Asian markets.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Husain Kurawadwala
Research Associate
Husain Kurawadwala
Research AssociateHusain holds a Master's degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. Through his experiences with organizations like the World Wildlife Fund and Soybean Innovation Lab, Husain has worked on international research projects to understand the impact of food production and consumption from a holistic perspective (environmental, economic, and health). Husain's passion for finding solutions across the food system has led him to GFI India, where he hopes to use his research and analysis skills to help India become a leader in the alternative protein industry.
Find out how India can play a unique role in the global smart protein transformation, what our unique value propositions are, and how key stakeholders - including the speakers in this panel - can help build a roadmap for the future.
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Rinka Banerjee
Founder, Thinking Forks Consulting
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Kevin Parikh
Co-Founder, Proeon
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Dr. Dayakar Rao
Principal Scientist, Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR)
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Naina Sharma
Invest India
Rinka Banerjee
Founder, Thinking Forks ConsultingRinka is the Founder of Thinking Forks Consulting, an end to end R&D solution provider to the Food & Beverage industry. Thinking Forks has helped more than 30 companies launch more than 100 products in the last 7 years. Prior to starting her own venture, Rinka worked with Unilever for 16 years where she worked on several F&B categories and was the Director R&D at for Foods in South Asia for 5 years. Prior to Unilever, she worked with The International Food Network out of Ithaca, New York and worked on brands like Haagen Dazs and Slim Fast. Rinka has a Master’s degree in Food Science from The University of Vermont, USA and a Bachelor’s degree in Dairy Technology from National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal.
Kevin Parikh
Co-Founder, Proeon“Kevin forayed into entrepreneurship by co-founding Proeon in 2018, that produces high-quality plant protein ingredients with superior nutrition profile, functional profile, and sensory profile. Kevin currently manages R&D and New product development, Investor relationship and fund raise, Marketing and Legal activities at Proeon. Kevin is passionate about intelligent innovation for sustainable production and consumption of food that leads to better health, safer planet, and cruelty-free practices. His forte is connecting seemingly unrelated dots across sectors to create solutions that make ingredients and food products more joyful and healthy. Prior to Proeon, he gained substantial exposure to M&A and open innovation during his 5-year stint with OmniActive Health Technologies, where he was responsible for establishing and running OmniActive’s Open Innovation program. He also led an entrepreneurial initiative of setting up new B2B business for innovative functional ingredients targeted at nutrition and dietary supplements industries and successfully managed a cross-functional team across product development, supply chain, operations, commercialization and go-to-market execution. Kevin has a strong techno-commercial expertise with demonstrated experience in new product development and supply chain management across industries like food, beverage and nutraceutical ingredients. He is Management graduate from Institute of Rural Management, Anand (IRMA) and a Biotechnology graduate from Sardar Patel University.”
Dr. Dayakar Rao
Principal Scientist, Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR)Dayakar Rao is the CEO of Nutrihub and is also currently serving as a principal scientist at ICAR-IIMR. Dr Rao is a renowned agricultural scientist credited with the development of Value Chain on Millets with having a rich experience of more than three decades with a specialisation in processing, value addition of millets and commercialisation. Dr Dayakar has been instrumental in establishing a dedicated Technology Business Incubator, NUTRIHUB-TBI hosted at ICAR-IIMR to help Nutricereal start-ups grow in a streamlined fashion by providing them with the required technology and business support system. He has contributed immensely to replicating the successful millet value chain ecosystem for millets by supporting various states in India. Dr Dayakar has successfully developed 70+ technologies, 50+ value added products, 200+ recipes under various research projects and commercialized them through the Nutrihub-IIMR. His vision and proven leadership qualities to communicate and inspire confidence among the aspiring entrepreneurs and young scientists is praiseworthy.
Debomitra Dey
Food Extrusion Specialist with C.W. Brabender Instruments Inc., NJDebomitra is a Food Extrusion Specialist with C.W. Brabender Instruments Inc., NJ. She leads the food laboratory and extensively works on developing snacks, meat analogs, pet food, among others using extrusion processing. She is also involved in several collaborative projects with research institutions and universities in the US and Europe. She earned her PhD in food science from Washington State University in April 2022.
Naina Sharma
Invest IndiaNaina Sharma is a Senior Investment Specialist and a member of the Agri-Food cluster at Invest India, the government of India’s investment promotion and trade facilitation agency. In the past 2 years, she has spearheaded various initiatives such as - reviewing the laws that impact the livestock sector, created an export and market access strategy for dairy and meat products , identified agri-food commodities with the potential for GI tagging, and drafted policy recommendations for enhancing support for agritech startups. Additionally, Naina has been working closely with GFI to draft policy recommendations for the cultivated meat sector and how government support can be leveraged to help develop the industry further. Naina studied law and public policy in India and the United States.
Shri Vinod Kumar Vidhyarthi
APEDAShri Vinod Kumar Vidyarthi is a General Manager in the Agricultural and Processed Foods Export Development Authority and handles, Geographical Indicators, Common Infrastructure Projects, Agriculture Processing, value addition of products, cold chain of agri food products, Health foods, exports from urban agriculture, novel foods, Vegan products, Traditional Food Products, Ayurvedic Aahar Agri supply extension programme, Natural Products such as phyto-extracts, antioxidants, additives, colours, enzymes etc., dehydrated floral crafts, propagation material such as tissue culture plants, seeds, foliage, orchids, live plants etc. In the past, he handled issues related to WTO, Foreign Trade Policy and procedure, sanitary and phyto-sanitary issues, Market Access issues and participated several Trade Agreements ( bilateral and multilateral). He has contributing on rules of origin for Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) multi-lateral Trade Agreement. He has attended WTO courses and received certificates. He has done his post-graduation from Indian Veterinary Research Institute, and studied Meat Science. He has published several research papers and popular articles on the meat Industry. Vidhyarthi Ji has been instrumental in providing dedicated support for the growth and development of the vegan industry in India with the formation of an expert committee on vegan products at APEDA.
Radhika Ramesh
Policy AssociateRadhika holds a degree in law, having completed her Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Law with Political Science and International Law Honors from Alliance University, Bangalore. As a student she interned in several litigation firms, but deepened her passion for climate change and environmental protection after working with climate think tanks and the Asian Nature Conservation Foundation where she studied the human influence on urban, rural and wildlife geographies, and worked on analyzing animal protection laws and suggesting reforms. Radhika's passion towards international trade law, nutrition, sustainability, and policy has led her to GFI India. She believes that GFI India's work will bring India to the forefront of sustainable nutrition and a powerhouse of alternative protein production.
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated Meat
Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated MeatWith a deeply scientific background, Akshay holds a BSc in Biotechnology from Bangalore University, a Masters in Medical Biochemistry, and a PhD in Cancer & Muscle Biology from the National University of Singapore. He was most recently a founder of FalconBio, a cancer drug delivery and services platform based out of Singapore. Akshay is an accomplished scientist and an entrepreneur with 7 years of experience in translational and cross-functional R&D projects with a focus on commercialization.
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Devika Suresh
Innovation Associate
Devika Suresh
Innovation AssociateA civil engineer from National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Devika worked as a software analyst at Citi for two years before getting acquainted with GFI India through the India Smart Protein Innovation Challenge. As a challenge finalist and through her own explorations with a plant-based diet, Devika found herself drawn towards the smart protein sector and the immense scope for innovation within it. She finds the future of food to be an exciting realm that marries her interests in technology and sustainability. Devika has always been focused on creating societal net-positive outcomes in every venture she has been a part of and finds the work she does at GFI India truly rewarding!
Learn about how the regulatory ecosystem in India can play a pivotal role in enhancing the ease of doing business in new innovation and shape consumer perception about smart protein products - particularly in new and emerging categories.
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Dr. Jasvir Singh
Lead - Regulatory, Scientific & Government Affairs, IFF
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Abhinav Singh
FICCI-CIFTI
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Astha Gaur
GFI India
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Vikram Jeet Singh
UBTG Legal
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Dr. Prabodh Halde
Head - Regulatory, Marico Ltd.
Dr. Jasvir Singh
IFFDr. Jasvir Singh obtained his Master’s Degree in Microbiology from Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, followed by Doctorate from Biochemical Engineering Research and Process Development Centre, Institute of Microbial Technology, Chandigarh. His area of research was Enzyme Fermentations and Industrial Process Development, and he is currently working with International Flavors & Fragrances, as Regulatory, Scientific and Government Affairs Lead - South Asia. Prior to this, worked in the areas of Quality, Food Safety and Regulatory Affairs with organizations like Mondelez (Cadbury), ITC, SGS, Food Research and Analysis Centre, and Jagatjit Industries. He has also provided his expertise in Laboratory Quality Management Systems to the Government of Vietnam, as a Technical Expert for FAO. He is a member of various Committees/ Task Forces of both Government as well as Industry Associations. His areas of interest include regulatory and public policy frameworks, in the areas of science, technology and public health.
Vikram Jeet Singh
BTG LegalVikram Jeet Singh heads the Digital Business and Retail practice groups of BTG Legal, New Delhi. Vikram has more than 18 years of experience in corporate commercial advisory, particularly in the digital business and online retail spaces. He is a sector specialist in laws relating to consumer liability, product liability, health and safety, and e-commerce. As a part of his sector focus, Vikram advises on Indian food laws, including those relating to importing, manufacture, and sale of novel foods. Vikram is experienced in advising on issues relating to food laws including food labelling, health claims, advertising, and novel foods. Vikram has featured as a writer and speaker in domestic and overseas conferences on the topics of online commerce, food laws, and retail laws. Vikram worked with Unilever India, S&R Associates and Poovayya & Co. before joining BTG. He graduated from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore in 2004.
Dr. Prabodh Halde
Head - Regulatory, Marico Ltd.Dr Halde is the Regulatory Head in R&D at Marico & Chairman of Chamber for advancement for small and medium businesses India. He is also the former President of AFSTI CFTRI, and serves on various boards & committees of government & industry bodies & academia bodies. He is a renowned Food Technologist, & has 28 years of industrial experience at Bakemans, ACC & Coca Cola India. He is a mentor for startups in food processing & food safety, & was a central advisory member for FSSAI. He is a recipient of GlobOil Food Safety Award 2018, Outstanding Regulatory Award 2018, & the ‘Eat Right Awards 2019 & Golden Aim award 2022’. He has participated 6 times in Codex committee meetings where he represented India.
Abhinav Singh
Head of FICCI Food Processing Division & Confederation of Indian Food Trade & Industry (CIFTI-FICCI)Mr. Abhinav Singh has been associated with FICCI for 14 years. He is a management professional with 17+ years of experience in Policy Advocacy, Government Affairs, Building Strategic Partnerships, Business & Trade Facilitation and Fundraising. Abhinav has a deep understanding of the Indian food processing ecosystem and works very closely with senior stakeholders from the government and industry. As a food processing sector expert, he advises food processing companies in formulating growth strategies, the Indian food regulation framework, market access & international outreach. He also spearheads the FICCI Centre for Nutrition Excellence (FCNE), responsible for driving the nutrition agenda. He is a member of many critical government committees & task forces, and also provides policy inputs to the central government, various state governments and embassies. Additionally, he mentors food start-ups and entrepreneurs in ideation and market expansion strategies. Abhinav holds a master’s in marketing & finance also and graduated in Commerce from Delhi University.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Husain Kurawadwala
Research Associate
Husain Kurawadwala
Research AssociateHusain holds a Master's degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign. Through his experiences with organizations like the World Wildlife Fund and Soybean Innovation Lab, Husain has worked on international research projects to understand the impact of food production and consumption from a holistic perspective (environmental, economic, and health). Husain's passion for finding solutions across the food system has led him to GFI India, where he hopes to use his research and analysis skills to help India become a leader in the alternative protein industry.
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Devika Suresh
Innovation Associate
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Armaan Dhanda
Co-Organizer, DU SPP
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Palakh Khanna
Co-Organizer, DU SPP
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Samarth Bhatnagar
Co-Organizer, DU SPP
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Kartik Chauhan
Co-Organizer, DU SPP
Armaan Dhanda
Co-Organizer, DU SPPArmaan is a science-driven student motivated to change the future of food through biotechnology and conscious capitalism. He is pursuing Chemical Engineering at NUS and is a winner of the India Smart Protein Innovation Challenge - ISPIC 2021. His current interest lies in mycelium based end-products through biomass fermentation. If he's not working on alt protein or studying, you will find him outdoors.
Palakh Khanna
Co-Organizer, DU SPPPalakh is a 19-year-old Youth Changemaker, social entrepreneur, mentor, teacher, and environmentalist. A second-year undergraduate student at Delhi University, she is India's 20 Under 20 and a World Record Holder. As a Co-Organizer for the Delhi Smart Protein Project, she wishes to promote sustainability and build an alternative protein ecosystem through this initiative.
Samarth Bhatnagar
Co-Organizer, DU SPPSamarth is an INSPIRE Scholar and a student at St. Stephen’s College, New Delhi pursuing BSc (Honours) Chemistry. Having early interests in sustainability and innovative ways to produce food, he was introduced to the field of alt protein in December 2021. He joined the Cambridge Alt Protein Fundamentals Program in February 2022. His interactions with students, journalists, entrepreneurs, and academia from around the world through the program motivated him to start a movement for alt protein in his university as well. Thus, he embarked on a journey as a co-organizer to set up the first Alt Protein Project in India at Delhi University.
Kartik Chauhan
Co-Organizer, DU SPPKartik is an impact-driven individual pursuing economics from Hindu College and invested in the intersection of entrepreneurship, technology, and sustainability. The science factor and the massive potential impact on climate change brought him to the Delhi University Smart Protein Project, where he is in charge of innovation and entrepreneurship initiatives. When he is not obsessing over "the tech world" on the web, you can find Kartik directing and editing films as a hobby.
Devika Suresh
Innovation AssociateA civil engineer from National Institute of Technology Karnataka, Devika worked as a software analyst at Citi for two years before getting acquainted with GFI India through the India Smart Protein Innovation Challenge. As a challenge finalist and through her own explorations with a plant-based diet, Devika found herself drawn towards the smart protein sector and the immense scope for innovation within it. She finds the future of food to be an exciting realm that marries her interests in technology and sustainability. Devika has always been focused on creating societal net-positive outcomes in every venture she has been a part of and finds the work she does at GFI India truly rewarding!
Hear from leading academicians and researchers about our joint vision to actualize and unleash talent, training, and niche placements within the smart protein sector, solidifying our roadmap toward effectively funneling high caliber talent to this sunrise sector.
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Sunil Marwah
CEO, FICSI
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Dr. Gurmeet Singh
Professor and Center Head, TransDisciplinary University (TDU)
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Dr. Ravishankar CN
CIFE
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Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated Meat
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Dr. Madhusudhana Rao
CCMB
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Amrita Sadrangani
Gujarat Biotechnology University
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Dr Komal Chauhan
NIFTEM
Sunil Marwah
CEO, FICSISunil Kumar Marwah is the CEO of FICSI — The Sector Skill Council (SSC) for Food Processing. The SSC is supported by the Union Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries, NSDC, and the leading companies in the Food Processing Sector like ITC, L.T. Foods, Patanjali, Nestle, MTR Foods, etc. Before joining FICSI in 2018, Mr Marwah had over 30 years of cross-functional experience having worked with business groups like Dabur, Ranbaxy, and NIIT. He is a Hindu College, Delhi University graduate, and holds an MBA from the Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University. He was also a recipient of the international scholarship from the Commonwealth Office, U.K. Govt for pursuing an advanced program in Management at the University of Leeds (U.K.).
Dr. Gurmeet Singh
Professor and Center Head, TransDisciplinary University (TDU)Dr. Gurmeet Singh is a scientist, inventor, and innovator with 25 years of experience in academia, food research & development. Dr. Gurmeet was a part of senior leadership at Unilever for 20 years. Currently, he is 'Professor and Center Head' at the TransDisciplinary University, where he researches sustainable food solutions for health and wellness problems relevant to society & environment. His research spans food analytics, developing functional foods for nutrient deficiencies, texturized vegetarian proteins, and creating livelihood-generating technologies for social entrepreneurship. Dr. Gurmeet has 25 patents filed, 20 publications published, one book edited, and several accolades such as winning the Best Teacher Award at Penn State (1997), Best Patent Award Unilever (2005), and Unilever Global Compass Award for Innovation (2013).
Dr. Ravishankar CN
Director, and Vice-Chancellor, ICAR-CIFE (Central Institute of Fisheries Education)Dr. Ravishankar, CN is the Director and Vice Chancellor of Central Institute of Fisheries Education (CIFE), under ICAR, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India. Earlier, he was the Director of ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology Cochin between 2014—21. He has a Ph.D. in Fish Processing Technology from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore. He chairs the scientific panel on Fish and Fish Products, FSSAI, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India, and many key government agencies, including being a member of important committees in many Governmental organizations like ICAR, NABL, FSSAI, BIS, LDCL, DFRL, DBT, MoFPI, MPEDA. He has also been a consultant to many international and national organizations.
Dr. Madhusudhana Rao
CEO, Atal Incubation Centre — Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology at Hyderabad (AIC-CCMB)Dr. N Madhusudhana Rao is the CEO of Atal Incubation Centre — Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology at Hyderabad (AIC-CCMB). Dr. Rao holds a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the National Institute of Nutrition, and his extensive career spans protein engineering and cell biology of gene delivery. At CCMB, he coordinated several multi-institutional projects involving various Indian and international institutes, including Purdue, Deakin, Kumamoto, and the Roswell Park Cancer Institute. Rao holds 12 U.S. patents and is keen on developing processes for technology transfers. CCMB has been the epicentre of a great deal of cultivated meat developments in India. GFI India worked closely on an application to the Department of Biotechnology, including partnering with the neighboring National Research Centre on Meat. The project secured INR 4.6 cr to develop cultivated mutton — at the time, the largest govt grant for research in cultivated meat anywhere in the world. The project focused on cultivated mutton, and we have buy-ins from industry players from within India to license and commercialize the research as it is ready.
Amrita Sadrangani
Amrita holds an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from M. S. University of Baroda and is a experienced leader, problem solver, collaborator, and dot connector to solve some of the most important knowledge gaps across countries, with India as a center-piece of these conversations, including smart proteins. As a veteran with key networks, panning developing businesses of several companies through market research on life sciences, she has very strong know-how on how India compares with international education and what we need to teach to be globally competitive.
Dr. Komal NIFTEM VC
Head of the Food Science and Technology Department, NIFTEM, HaryanaDr. Komal Chauhan is the head of the food science and technology department, NIFTEM, Haryana. Dr. Chauhan has a Ph.D. in food science and nutrition from Banasthali University, Aliyabad, Rajasthan. She has several years of experience in food science and nutrition, nutritional biochemistry, malnutrition and fortification, nutraceuticals and functional foods, extraction, isolation, and functional aspects of bioactive compounds and nutraceuticals. Dr. Chauhan has several publications, book chapters, and accolades to her name, such as the designer foods DuPont Nutri Award and the Nutrition Excellence Leadership award.
Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated MeatWith a deeply scientific background, Akshay holds a BSc in Biotechnology from Bangalore University, a Masters in Medical Biochemistry, and a PhD in Cancer & Muscle Biology from the National University of Singapore. He was most recently a founder of FalconBio, a cancer drug delivery and services platform based out of Singapore. Akshay is an accomplished scientist and an entrepreneur with 7 years of experience in translational and cross-functional R&D projects with a focus on commercialization.
To ensure we facilitate a meaningful discussion, this session will be invite-only for select delegates and host a curated set of participants only.
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Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated Meat
Akshay Vishnu Bhat
Science & Technology Specialist - Cultivated MeatWith a deeply scientific background, Akshay holds a BSc in Biotechnology from Bangalore University, a Masters in Medical Biochemistry, and a PhD in Cancer & Muscle Biology from the National University of Singapore. He was most recently a founder of FalconBio, a cancer drug delivery and services platform based out of Singapore. Akshay is an accomplished scientist and an entrepreneur with 7 years of experience in translational and cross-functional R&D projects with a focus on commercialization.
Hear from in-country representatives from Israel, Canada, and the Netherlands, as they discuss outcomes from GFI India and Invest India’s multilateral meeting - the Smart Protein Corridors Pre-Summit Event - organized to align, document, and execute opportunities for bilateral and multilateral partnerships across business, science and policy for the advancement of the global alternative protein ecosystem.
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HE Cameron MacCay
High Commissioner of Canada to India
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Representative from Israel
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Nicole Rocque
Senior Innovation Specialist
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HE Marten van den Berg
Ambassador of the Netherlands to India
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Session Chair: Arun Seth
Advisor to GFI India, Board Member Narayana Health & Jubilant Group
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Varun Deshpande
GFI India
HE Cameron MacCay
High Commissioner of Canada to IndiaCameron MacKay is a career diplomat with foreign policy and trade negotiations experience in Asia, Europe and the Americas. Before his assignment to India, he was Canada’s Ambassador to Indonesia and Timor-Leste. Prior to that he served as Director of Operations at the Foreign and Defence Policy Secretariat of Canada’s Privy Council Office, providing non-partisan policy advice to the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. In previous roles at Canada’s foreign ministry he was Director General for Trade Sectors, Director General for Trade Negotiations and Director General for China Trade Policy. Ambassador MacKay has a bachelor’s degree in economics and industrial relations from McGill University (Montreal), a master’s degree in environmental studies from York University (Toronto), and is a graduate of the University of Ottawa’s mid-career certificate program in Public Sector Leadership and Governance.
Nicole Rocque
Senior Innovation SpecialistNicole studied Economics at the University of Warwick, UK. Prior to joining GFI India, Nicole worked at Invest India, the National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency of the Government of India, as a primary advisor to lifesciences groups' looking to set-up or expand their presence in India. As a special project nomination via Invest India, she worked directly under the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India to launch the national innovation commercialization initiative AGNIi as an in-roads to greater cooperation between industry, government labs and academic institutions. Nicole brings experience in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and technology commercialization to promote innovation in the plant-based, cultivated meat, eggs and dairy industry in India. Nicole is passionate about climate action and public health, which has led her to GFI India, in the hope to shape an Indian response to the biggest challenges of our lifetime.
Varun Deshpande
GFI IndiaAs the son of a cancer surgeon from Mumbai, Varun has been deeply immersed in healthcare and technology from a very young age. He spent several formative years studying Chemical and Biomedical Engineering at technology hub Carnegie Mellon University. He then went on to work on implementing digital health in India and the United States, helping vulnerable populations through care coordination, and a systems approach to healthcare. While in the United States, Varun learned about Effective Altruism, a philosophy which seeks to investigate and target the world's most pressing problems. He came to understand the tremendous impact of industrial animal agriculture on the world, and the imperative need to transition away from it using markets and technology. In dedicating his work to the future of protein and combining his duty to human and planetary health, Varun aims to help build a more healthy, sustainable, and just global food system, starting right here in India.
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
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Shri Amit Shah
Union Home Minister and Cooperatives
Minister
You’ll hear from movers and shakers from the industry — leading corporations, trailblazing startups, influential think tanks, major policy and government groups, and iconic leaders in the smart protein sector as they bring their voices forward and share their valuable insights and expertise.
We look forward to seeing you at the event for the smart protein sector in India, where you can network, collaborate and learn from leading minds in the sector.
Mark your calendars now!
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October 13-14, 2022
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Eros Hotel, Nehru Place, New Delhi
Please note: The Smart Protein Summit 2022 is an in-person event with a limited seating capacity. To secure your spot at the conference, register now! Your attendee confirmation will be issued to you via email, once your registration request has been reviewed.
To learn more about Smart Protein Summit’s tremendous journey over the years,
read this Impact Report
To hear from last year’s speakers, watch our sessions and explore our video library.