Budding food technologists from academic institutions across the country have been invited to the 2018 edition of DNA to put their knowledge and skills to the test in bakery-themed projects.
These projects focus on bringing the essence of innovative taste and texture in bakery applications that are centred around five award categories:
• The Vegetarian Cake Treat
• Innovation in Muffins and Cupcakes
• Healthy Breads
• Gluten-free and Healthy Cookies
• Out-of-the-box Bakery Innovation
DuPont Nutrition and Health launched the first edition of DuPont NutriScholars Awards programme in August 2017 to pioneer the ideation of ethnic Indian foods and beverages amongst food science and technology students throughout India. Roadshows were organised at seven college and university campuses and involved interaction with food science and technology students pan-India.
The second season of DNA will reach out to over 200 universities and academies all over India. The winning team across each award category will be announced at a felicitation ceremony in Gurugram in December 2018.
The adjudicating panel in the grand finale will comprise esteemed industry experts from leading food companies, experienced academicians, scientists and DuPont representatives. The winning entries will be judged based on product innovativeness, commercialisation viability and the improvements made with one or more DuPont Danisco ingredients during the developmental process. There will be collaborations with academia for innovative baked goods. DNA Season 2 seeks to identify promising solutions to address health and nutrition gaps and textural challenges in bakery products.
“DuPont distinguishes itself with world-class product innovation and application development,” said Anurag Jain, business director, DuPont Nutrition and Health, South Asia.
“We have a broad portfolio of ingredient offerings created with differentiated technologies and a robust innovation pipeline. We are delighted to announce the second edition of DNA and to have the continuing support from the Indian food science academia. It’s a journey towards building the food strategies of the future and driving innovation in food science,” he added.
Karuna Jayakrishna, innovation leader, DuPont Nutrition and Health, South Asia, added, “The Indian bakery industry is huge and growing exponentially. DuPont provides an excellent opportunity for students from all the food and interdisciplinary science and technology fields to collaborate and work closely with industry. The competition drives the development of creative food products using nutritional and functional bakery ingredients to channel growth in the Indian bakery segment. This will help drive innovative ideas and shape the future careers of budding food scientists.”
