‘Kappa with fish curry’’, Malayali’s all time favourite delicacy, is all set to enter the list of ready-to-cook foods like instant noodles. The technology has been developed by a Kochi-based company with the support of the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT).
Apart from Kappa and fish curry, the other products lined up to be released under the ready-to-cook food products brand, ‘Freedom Kitchen’ are ‘Kothu Paroota with Chicken’, ‘Amritsari Fish Curry’, ‘Thai Rice and Curry’, ‘Sphaghetti ‘Bolognaise’ and the list goes on. All these products will have a shelf life of one year under recommended storage conditions. The products have been tested by the company in the CIFT laboratory.
The Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) signed an Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the company, Ideal Caterers to develop the ready-to-eat food. The products which will hit the markets under the brand name ‘Freedom Kitchen’, marks the first attempt of the CIFT to develop entrepreneurship in the food sector in the country under its world bank funded project.
Under the project, technological support and certification of the products is done by the CIFT. Inbuilt state-of-the art equipment facilities including blast freezing, retorting, canning, and all possible extension of increasing shelf life of food items besides conducting extensive research on new food technologies are also provided to the entrepreneurs at a nominal fee.
The ready-to-eat food segment is one of the most promising sectors identified by the Union Ministry of Food Processing. Estimates say that the sector in India is projected to touch ` 2900 crores, and by 2015 is capable of scaling up an annual growth rate of 73 per cent, said the organisers.