High-profile figures from across the fresh produce industry have signed up to speak at Fresh Produce India, which heads to Pune on 24-26 April 2014.
Peru is making waves in markets around the world as its production booms. José Antonio Gómez, chief commercial officer of Peruvian agribusiness giant Camposol, discusses what the Andean nation has to offer India in a session spotlighting Peru.
New Zealand avocados recently gained access to the Indian market. Tony Ponder, director of New Zealand export alliance Avanza, examines the future for this novel product for Indian consumers in a session looking at emerging products and sources for the country’s importers.
He is joined by Saikat Sarkar, head of concepts and general manager of speciality foods for major Indian retailer Spencer’s Retail. A food and beverage specialist with extensive experience in the retail and hospitality sectors, Sarkar discusses the spread of demand for gourmet produce and high-end fresh food in India. He also explains how Spencer’s is developing retail concepts to capitalise on such consumer trends.
Also on the imports panel is Senthil Natarajan, CEO of Kovai Pazhamudir Nilayam (KPN). The specialist fresh produce retailer and distributor now runs a 50-outlet chain spanning 10 cities, and Natarajan sees good opportunities to widen the range of import products for Indian consumers.
The challenge of sustainability is one of the key topics up for discussion at Fresh Produce India 2014. Hemant Gaur, the founder and CEO of SVI Agri and a well-recognised figure in the farm extension, procurement and aggregation space in India, brings his expertise to bear on the issue. He is joined by Yogesh Mohite, head of the Food Chain Management team for Bayer CropScience, and Sarah Huber, chief operating officer of Driptech, an American start-up company that works to improve the profitability of small-plot farming through high-quality, low-cost drip irrigation.
Fresh Produce India takes place in Pune, Maharashtra’s cultural capital east of Mumbai, on 24-26 April 2014 at the centrally-located Hyatt Regency Hotel. Organised by Asiafruit in association with The SCS Group, the annual conference and expo event is the place to make and strengthen contacts with the movers and shakers in India’s rapidly growing fresh fruit and vegetable business. Some 250 delegates are expected to attend the event from India and across the world, and from every step of the fresh produce value chain.
Previous editions of Fresh Produce India have been held in Hyderabad (2007), Mumbai (2009), New Delhi (2011), Mumbai (2012) and Bangalore (2013).
For speaker updates or to register, visit www.freshproduceindia.com
