A new beginning has been made in the Nutraceutical Sector and a platform has been offered to bring together the entire Nutraceutical community in India. This industry has the potential to grow exponentially in the country, as internationally it is the second fastest growing sector, informed Dr V Prakash, director, Central Food Technological Research Institute - Mysore.
Dr Prakash who was in Bangalore to announce the 2nd Nutraceutical Summit which will be held at New Delhi from February 2-5, 2005. The 1st Nutraceutical Summit was held in Mumbai earlier this year had made a series of recommendations pertaining to regulatory issues.
Almost all the leading names in the sector like HLL, Nicholas Piramal, Heinz, Amway, Herbalife, Dupont, Dabur, Cadilla, Venkys, Avesthagen, Cadilla, ITC, Britannia, Xandu, etc participated in the 1st Summit. The Summit also saw major participation from the Government and Research labs as well as financial institutions like Exim Bank.
The Nutraceutical sector is the second fastest growing globally. Today, it is estimated to be a $46.7 billion industry and expected to grow to $74.7 billion by 2007.
In India key areas have been identified that have the potential to create a major dent in the international scenario and maximise the opportunity to create global brands. These include traditional knowledge industries like Ayurveda.
Nutraceuticals are frequently referred to as "dietary supplements" or "nutritional supplements". These are products that contain one or more of the following dietary ingredients: a vitamin, a mineral, a herb or other botanical products. These could also be an amino acid, a dietary substance to supplement the diet by increasing the total daily intake, or a concentrate, metabolite, constituent, extract, or combinations of these ingredients.
Nutraceuticals are essentially prophylactic or preventive, in contrast to drugs, which are active chemical substances used to treat an illness or symptoms of an illness. They represent a different approach to medicine, one based on nutrition and the health or wellness of the whole body, rather than treating the symptoms or effects of disease.
In the 2nd Nutraceutical Summit, the focus will be on Nutraceuticals in healthcare and the Challenges, Opportunities and Global Outreach thereof. It is expected that leading players in Nutraceuticals, Research Institutes, Food & Food Processing Industry, Herbal & Herbal Extracts Companies, Pharma and Bio-tech Companies as well as the Agro-tech industry will participate in the event. The services industry like packaging services, equipment manufacturers and financing agencies and consulting firms will also be represented in the event.
The three-day Summit has different Plenary and Technical Sessions planned where around 50 renowned national and international speakers will debate on the issues facing the sector.
Some sessions will be on Dietary Supplements and Opportunities, Nutraceuticals for women, Nutraceuticals and traditional knowledge industry, Role of biotech industry in Nutraceuticals, Marketing challenges and labelling issues, functional foods, New trends in Sportaceuticals, the emerging market of oileoceuticals, Nutraceuticals Pre-biotics and probiotics and Lifestyle diseases and Nutraceuticals.
Besides these, there are country presentations planned which will focus on certain countries and how they have leveraged their core competencies to create global markets. There are tradeshows planned alongside which will be the Business-to-Business arm of the event and will showcase R&D capabilities, brands, products and intermediaries and other services.