Karnataka hosts the sixth edition of the International Millets Festival in Bengaluru

Karnataka is organising the sixth edition of the international millets festival in Bengaluru from January 23. Over 300 processors and manufacturers of millet-based products, farmer producer organisations will be displaying their products during the three day event, state Agriculture Minister N Cheluvarayaswamy said Monday.

A symposium titled “Transformation of agrifood systems through agri-ecology: A Global Perspective” is being organised as part of the festival. The event is being organised in collaboration with international agencies such as GIZ Germany and FiBL Switzerland. Experts from over 10 countries, including Germany, Switzerland, Spain, Australia, Kenya, Tanzania, Italy, Peru and England will be participating in the symposium.

Karnataka, which had organised the first edition of the international millets festival in 2017, is a major producer of nutri cereals. Millets are grown in over 18.37 lakh hectares (ha) in the state. Among major millets, ragi is grown in 8.27 lakh ha, jowar 8.11 lakh ha and bajra in 1.68 lakh ha. Minor millets such as fox millets, kodo millets and proso millets are grown in about 0.31 lakh ha in the state.