CIC to hold food conference

Indunil HEWAGE

The conference on ‘National Food and Nutrition Security 2012; Challenges and Opportunities for Sri Lanka’ organized by CIC Holdings Plc along with the Ministry of Agriculture will take place on October 17 at Waters Edge Hotel, Battaramulla.

The conference will bring together local and international food industry professionals, particularly food nutritionists, scientists, policymakers and agri-business firms for the first time to discuss and help create solutions to make Sri Lanka food and nutrition secure.

Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa will be the chief guest of the event while Treasury Secretary Dr. P.B Jayasundara will deliver the key note speech.

Professionals will discuss on various aspects of the local and global food industry such as current status and issues of food and nutrition security in Sri Lanka, Contribution of research and development on food and nutrition security of Sri Lanka, global potential and opportunities for food and nutrition security, potential and opportunities for Sri Lanka to become a nation secure in food, nutrition, and exports at the event.

According to the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction, the World Food Programme and Oxfam International, the reliance on grain crops for food security is threatened by more extreme climatic events, especially droughts and floods and some 375 million people will be affected by climate change-related disasters by 2015.

By 2050, the Food And Agriculture Organization notes that 10-20 % more people will be subject to hunger based on the changing climate's effects on agriculture and 24 million more children are expected to be malnourished in years ahead.