Dehradun: To celebrate ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ a webinar on Potential and Prospects of Value Addition in Wild Edibles was jointly organized on 26th November, 2021 by Chemistry & Bioprospecting Division and Forest Pathology Discipline, Forest Protection Division, Forest Research Institute, Dehradun. More than 60 participants including scientists, technical staff, and research scholars of the FRI; representatives of Krishivan Doon (P) Ltd., Dehradun; Doon Eagle Organics (P), Ltd, Dehradun; Han Agrocare, Dehradun; R.K. Industries, Dehardun; Jaunsar Organics, Sahiya, Dehardun, Godavari Gramodhyog, Bageshwar, Bagwan Gramodhyog Samiti, Shyampur, Dehradun; Daimond Shiksha Prachar Samiti, Dehardun; mushroom growers and aspirant entrepreneurs joined the programme.
The Director General, ICFRE, Shri Arun Singh Rawat inaugurated the event and stressed upon the need for large-scale cultivation of mushrooms and value addition of wild edibles including fruits and mushrooms owing to their high nutrient and medicinal potential and socio-economic and environmental benefits. Dr. Rajdeo Rai, Ex Chief Editor, Mushroom Research Solan (H.P.) and entrepreneurs such as Sh. Gursharan Bajwa, M.D. of Doon Eagle Pvt. Ltd., Shri Pramod Chaurasiya, Director, Krishi Van Doon Pvt. Ltd were the special invitees who shared their experiences, commercial products and ventures with the participants.
Benefits of mushroom consumption, important edible and medicinal mushrooms and their cultivation techniques; value addition of wild edible fruits and mushrooms and preservation and storage of edible mushrooms were discussed. Experiences of the mushroom growers, entrepreneurs, and NGOs were also shared with the participants. In this webinar Dr. Y.C. Tripathi and Dr. V.K. Varshney from the Chemistry & Bioprospecting Division and Dr. Amit Pandey, and Dr. Manoj Kumar from Forest Pathology Discipline were the resource persons of FRI. The webinar ended with the vote of thanks proposed by Dr. Y.C. Tripathi, Head, Chemistry & Bioprospecting Division, FRI, Dehradun.
