Mr. Sachin Joshi
Business Consultant
In the present scenario, demand for millets for direct consumption has been declining due to change in food habits and inconvenience attached with food preparation as compared fine cereals. Despite their exceptional nutritional profile, food use of millets is still confined only to traditional consumers and economically deprived sections of the society.
Diversification of food resources by incorporating less popular millets is essential for achieving the nutritional security and combat with emerging climatic vagaries and life-threatening diseases. The gluten-free nature of protein, bioactive compounds with medicinal value, and high micronutrient density makes them an ideal candidate for developing several functional and value-added food products.
NEED FOR VALUE ADDITION OF MILLETS
- To meet the taste/preferences of the consumers.
- Reducing post-harvest losses. 3. Nutrient enhancement.
- Ready to eat (RTE), ready to Cook (RTC) – Reduces the cooking time.
- Enhance shelf life and make the product available for a long time.
- Diversified Millet products can solve our food needs as climate changes.
- Improving the consumption of millet products can help to overcome malnutrition.
- Millet farmers will have more post-harvest technologies thus enhancing the economic value of millet as well as improving the status of farmers.
VALUE ADDED MILLET PRODUCTS
Several value-added products of millets like biscuits, cakes, pasta, and infant foods are available in the market and gaining the attention of economically rich and health concerned masses of the society.
Millets are taking their position on the plate and becoming part of the diet of health-conscious people, not by force but by choice. The demand for millets-based products is increasing in the urban areas and thus creating ample opportunities for new market entrants’ entrepreneurs.
Hence developing technology that makes millet value added products available as convenient to make and easy access at reasonable prices will find great demand and market particularly in urban places where there is growing conscious for nutritive intake of food.
- Composite Flours – These are made by blending of millet grains with widely utilized cereals like wheat and maize and some nutritious pulses. It is one of the possible ways to enhance widespread utilization of millets.
- Extruded Products – In products like cakes, pasta, macaroni, vermicelli, noodles, spaghetti, flakes etc. addition of millet flour in a certain ratio will enhance the nutritional and functional properties and change the physicochemical properties of these products. A variety of noodles and pasta are prepared from millets. There are many such products are present in the Indian market.
- Puffed/Popped and Flaked Products – Like Corn Flakes, trend of millets Consumption in the form of puffed and popped products is a common practice in developed and developing countries. People are giving preference to millet flakes over corn flakes and oats.
- Millet-based bakery products – Millet Cookies/bread and cake are popular ready-to-eat products. Millet cookies/ cake is prepared using 100% millet flour blended with other ingredients and bread are prepared by replacing 50% wheat with millet flour.Recently demand has increased for finger millet-based baking products in urban areas.
- Fermented food products – such as idli and dosa are the popular and common breakfast in many parts of India. Now a day single or multi millet Idli flour or batter is available in the market.
- Malt – Traditionally, the millet malt is used for infant feeding purposes. Finger millet has good malting properties and its malt is popular in tribal communities. Malting helps to significantly improve the nutrient composition such as minerals, fiber, crude fat, vitamin B, the bioavailability of nutrients, and sensory attributes of the grains
BRANDING STRATEGIES
The first challenge in the millet business is to make customer aware of the benefits of millets. They need to be convinced about the easy cooking of the millet products and reintroduce millets in many acceptable forms apart from traditional “Roti / bread” and other products which will suit the tastebuds of today’s generation. We have launched a range of ready to eat and ready to cook products as the options for breakfast / lunch / hi tea/dinner.
- The immediate marketing strategies should focus on expanding the local customer base and increasing the scale of supply, whereas the long-term strategies focus on building awareness of millets and establish brand name.
- Branding collateral such as posters, banners, flyers and websites can help position millet products as flavorful, hygienic, nutritious, and chemical-free products and thereby increase demand.
- Colorful and descriptive visuals should be used to communicate that the products’ positive attributes are based on actual consumer feedback. Ingredients and nutritional information could also be advertised in online media.
- Running health awareness campaigns in the metros, emphasizing the health and nutritional benefits of millets including Web marketing and social media networking.
- Holding cooking demonstrations at food courts in malls and corporate offices. Stalls selling tasty, healthy millet-based dishes at corporate office canteens would suit an urban, white- collar audience.
- Establishing linkages to different entities in the supply chain such as hotel chains selling food made of organic produce, eateries, schools or educational institutions.
- Use of online shopping portal, social media channels / platforms etc. to sell millet products
GOVT INITIATIVES
IIMR (erstwhile DSR) launched its brand name “Eat rite” to the Indian markets to promote the millet-based products.
On the backdrop of International Year of Millets (IYoM), the government is currently organizing domestic and international levels to popularize Indian millets as well as its value-added products across the world and make it a people’s movement.
APEDA would also organize food sampling and tasting at the retail level and in key local bazaars of targeted countries where individual, household consumers can gain familiarity with millet products.
The government is also mobilizing startups for export promotion of value-added products in the ready-to-eat (RTE) and ready-to-serve (RTS) categories such as noodles, pasta, breakfast cereals mix, biscuits, cookies, snacks and sweets.
SOURCE
Technology for Millet Value-Added Products 14 S. D. Deshpande and P. K. Nishad
India prepares a roadmap to promote export of millets and its value-added products – Agriculture Post
10 Innovative Millet Business Plan – A Profitable Agribusiness Idea for Startups in India – Millet Advisor
Technologies of Millet Value Added Products – Centre of Excellence on Sorghum ICAR- INDIAN INSTITUTE OF MILLETS RESEARCH
Microsoft Word – MSSRF Final Report 011013 (bestpracticesfoundation.org)