Rockefeller Foundation selects FSSAI as finalist for Food System Vision Prize

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has been adjudged among the top ten finalists for the Food System Vision Prize by the US-based Rockefeller Foundation. It was declared among the ten finalists for its Eat Right India initiative, from among a pool of more than 1,300 applicants from 110 countries.

Each of the ten finalists will receive a prize of $200,000 and includes Hyderabad-based non-profit organisation Naandi Foundation.

In a statement, the Rockefeller Foundation said the FSSAI's vision behind Eat Right India "looks to create a national movement towards healthier diets through a systems-based approach of reducing food waste; improving hygiene and sanitation across the value chain; and increasing access to and affordability of healthy foods." The Food System Vision Prize focuses on encouraging organizations across the globe to develop a "vision of the regenerative and nourishing food system" that they aspire to create by the year 2050.

Pawan Agarwal, former CEO of FSSAI, who had led the team that submitted the application for the prize last year, said, the food safety authority's Eat Right India initiative has received a global endorsement and the vision which focuses on better food for better lives in the country is "ambitious but achievable."

Agarwal, who is currently serving as Special Secretary (Logistics) at the Commerce Ministry added that it is "heartening to see the commitment of the new leadership at FSSAI towards the Eat Right India" programme.

FSSAI launched the initiative in July 2018 and focuses on empowering citizens to make the right food choices. It is also working on "nudging" food businesses to reformulate their products, provide better nutritional information to consumers and step up investments on healthy food products.

Last month, FSSAI CEO Arun Singhal had told BusinessLine, that the food safety authority plans to scale up the Eat Right Campus programme (part of the Eat Right India initiative) over the next two years. Eat Right Campus aims to promote healthy and safe food across educational institutes, corporate offices, hospitals and government offices.