In a bid to promote Kashmir saffron, the New York based Consulate General of India in association with Jammu & Kashmir Trade Promotion Organisation (JKTPO) and US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) on Thursday organised a virtual conference to promote export of Saffron.

The event was aimed to increase the export of this globally renowned spice in the US.

The virtual promotion was attended by Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, Commissioner & Secretary to the Government, Industries & Commerce Department, Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General of India (CGI), New York, Devi Prasad Misra, Consul (Trade), Ankita Kar, Managing Director, J&K Trade Promotion Organization, Celebrity Chef Vikas Khanna, Dr. Nasheeman Ashraf, Sr. Scientist, CSIR IIM, and food columnist Ramin Ganeshram and senior officials from J&K Government and CGI, New York along with important members of Saffron Exporting community of J&K and American Importers.

Manoj Dwivedi said, “J&K is the largest producer of the best quality saffron in the world. As we embark on to explore the potential markets, events like these will help us to reach potential buyers in every country and will increase the brand value of our products in the international market.

“We are thankful to Government of Jammu & Kashmir for this initiative. We hope that both the markets will be mutually benefitted by this association. We want to get more of Indian Saffron to the US. India is one of the leading producers of Saffron and we look forward to add value to trade and the production line.” said Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General of India (CGI), New York.

The event also served as a knowledge dissemination about various aspects of Saffron. Celebrity Chef Vikas Khanna shared insights about the culinary story of saffron; Dr. Nasheeman Ashraf introduced scientific and genetic nature of Indian Saffron to the participants through his session- ‘From Farm to Plate’; Ramin Ganeshram talked about the Global History of Saffron and America’s First Michelin-Starred Indian Chef, Hemant Mathur spoke about the use of Saffron in Western Cuisine.

The event was targeted to enable the reputed exporters of Saffron to connect with the potential US importers. More than 40 saffron exporters registered with the JKTPO for this event.

The event was concluded with a Q&A session and the details along with company profiles of the registered exporters from J&K were shared with the CGI, New York to connect the buyers and sellers. Ankita Kar delivered the vote of thanks to all members and participants.

With an aim to put Jammu and Kashmir on an accelerated socio-economic growth phase, various similar events are planned across sectors to connect the stakeholders.