Meet Our Prestigious Speaker Panel

Angelo joined Selerant in 2014 taking responsibilities for sales and marketing activities in Europe proposing DevEX PLM software solution to support NPDI processes in chemical, food & beverage, cosmetics and pharma industries. He has a long experience in ICT consulting and sales. He’s managed for more than 10 years international ICT projects before moving his career to marketing and sales management. Angelo has broad experience in business management, sales and customer account management, project management, BPR, IT Strategy, IT corporate systems implementation, marketing and business development. He has been in the board in different consulting companies and has been reader in different university courses about ICT topics. Angelo has an Electronic Engineering degree.

Ankita Marwaha has been with PepsiCo India for more than 5 years. In her current role, Ankita is responsible for leading PepsiCo’s agenda on Health and Wellness, driving research, advocacy and awareness programs. Ankita’s role helps PepsiCo in moving into the area of work that has public health relevance particularly through transforming its core portfolio through sugar reduction & having Nutrition extensions and innovations. Ankita has over 16+ years of experience in the FMCG segment. During this period, she has been associated with eminent companies like Unilever and Marico Ltd having worked in the area of product development, nutrition and clinical research. She has been involved in clinical research in the area of Diabetes & Cholesterol Management & has both national & international published papers to her credit.

Ashley Sage PhD is currently head of Applied Markets Business Development for EMEAI at SCIEX, a global leader in analytical mass spectrometry technologies & solutions. In his role, he manages a team to develop and deploy new strategic analytical strategies and applications for the food and environmental science arena. Ashley gained his PhD in analytical science in 1995 in relation to food & environmental chemistry and has worked in the commercial scientific industry with a primary focus on developing new mass spectrometry technology and applications for life science applications for over 20 years. He has worked as an R&D scientist, applications development scientist, lab manager and business development specialist. He is currently a Chartered Chemist with the Royal Society of Chemistry and Vice Chair of the British Mass Spectrometry Society. He has authored and co-authored numerous papers and regularly presents at conferences globally on advances in mass spectrometry for both food and environmental chemistry related applications.

Anish Garg is the Director of business development at Zeon, an industry leader in contract manufacturing of nutraceutical products. He has done his masters in international business from University of South Carolina, USA and is responsible for leading strategy at the company. Anish works closely with the R&D, regulatory & business development teams. He has been a project lead on various formulation development projects initiated with various large health & wellness organizations. With a focus on strategy, he has been instrumental in setting up research & development lab and analytical development lab at the company. He also has taken up various initiatives in developing models to increase efficiencies and synergies within the teams. In his tenure, the company has transformed into a private label manufacturer, having developed over 70 formulations and commercialized them with over 30 companies

Dr. Asha Oroskar co-founded Orochem Technologies Inc. in 1996 in her home in Oak Brook, Illinois. Prior to starting Orochem, she worked at Nunc, now Thermo-Scientific Nalgene Inc. as part of a team that develop the membrane bottom filter plates and the molecular biology medical devices which evolved into a significant focus for Nalgene Nunc .

At Orochem Technologies, her focus was to develop innovative value-added high throughput devices to serve the Biotech and the Bioanalytical industry. Her first product at Orochem was a high-throughput synthesis 96-well plate for Oligonucleotide Synthesis. This oligo synthesis plate became an industry-standard format, and led to the implementation in leading Oligo houses of the 384-well Oligo Synthesis format. Asha was one of the leading entities to integrate depth prefilters into high-throughput filter plates, a concept first introduced by Orochem into the diagnostic community, and now routinely used for DNA extraction from human tissue samples in the identification of infectious agents.

With a focus on problem solving, Asha was the first to develop a protein-precipitation filterplate concept for carrying out sample clean-up in bioanalytical samples. Matching Technology and Products to Needs, and building capabilities, all the way for Orochem to become vertically integrated is a key strength, Asha brings to every aspect of work at Orochem. A scientist by training, an innovator by experience and a business woman by nature, Asha brings together all the qualities needed to bring innovative products to market rapidly and make them successful.

Pathologist by training (MBBS – Madras University, MD – Osmania University). Carried out research in the area of Nutrition, Food Safety, and Role of Nutrition in Cancer for 30 yrs.Over 100 publications and Chapters in 3 Books. Member of the expert groups which prepared guidelines for Probiotics in foods, Guidelines for GM food safety , Guidelines for Safety and Efficacy of Biosimilar Drugs, Recommended Dietary Allowances for Indians and Dietary Guidelines. Director NIN 2006 to 2012.Presently a visiting Professor in the school of Health Sciences, University of Hyderabad, Chairman of the Review Committee for Genetic Manipulation-(RCGM) Govt of India, Chairman of Scientific Panel on Food Labeling and Claims in Food Safety and Standards Authority of India(FSSAI) , Member of the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC)- Govt of India. Adjunct Professor, Mangalore University Fellow of the National Academy of Medical Sciences and Fellow of the International Medical Scientists Academy. Fellow of AP & Telengana Academies of Science, President Nutrition Society of India

Dr. Krishnakumar IM, a dynamic and passionate researcher with more than 15 years of product development experience in corporate/academic research management, currently working as the Head of R&D at AKAY, a Natural Ingredients manufacturing/marketing company catering to various food/nutraceuticals/cosmetics manufacturers globally. Current interests include the development of green delivery platform technologies and phytonutrients with enhanced bioavailability and efficacy. This includes novel extraction/isolation techniques, Mcroencapsulations / emulsions, mass spectrometry in nutrition, preclinical/clinical studies, natural colours & antioxidants. He has awarded Ph.D in Organic chemistry from Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala, and post-doctoral research fellowships from Houston Medical School and The Burnham Institute of Medical Research, USA. He has more than 25 International peer-reviewed publications, 16 patent publications and an international patent in his credit. Also delivered presentations in national and international seminars/conferences.

Dr.N Arlappa has completed his MBBS from Gandhi Medical College, Hyderabad and MD in Community Medicine from NTR University of Medical Sciences, Vijayawada. He has been working as Nutrition Scientist in the Division of Community Studies, National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Indian Council of Medical Research, Hyderabad, India, since 1997. He has 19 years research of experience in the field of Public Health Nutrition and published more than 60 scientific papers in peer-reviewed national and international journals. He has also published 4 book chapters, completed more than 40 research studies and published more than 250 technical reports. He has attended and presented more than 25 scientific papers in national and international conferences/workshops. He is the Faculty Member for the Courses of MPH (NIE), MSc (Nutrition) and PG Certificate course in Applied Nutrition at NIN.

Dr. Naresh Tondare is a Regulatory Expert with 11 years of experience in the areas of Regulatory Affairs/strategy, Product/Formulation Development, New Drug Delivery/Technologies and Clinical Research. He has completed a post graduate degree (MD) in Ayurvedic/Herbal Pharmacology and Pharmaceutical from Govt. Ayurvedic Medical College in 2004. He has also completed a PGDIM from School of Management Studies (SOMS), New Delhi in 2009 and a Black Belt in Six Sigma (BBSS) programme from Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) in 2008. After completion of his MD, he has joined AVT Institute for Advanced Research Institute (AVTAR). AVTAR is a research partner of University of Washington, Seattle and University of Los Angeles, California. At AVTAR, he has played a key role in the global clinical study (funded by NIH, US) for studying Personalised Complex Ayurvedic Interventions (holistic Ayurvedic treatment) vs. methotrexate (MTX) in the management of rheumatoid arthritis. This study is considered as a blue print for future studies for studying Traditional medicines.

Dr. Neerja Hajela has done her Masters in Microbiology and PhD in Biotechnology. She has been the Head of Science at Yakult Danone India Pvt. Limited since 2007. She is involved in the development, planning and implementation of scientific programmes for the company. She is responsible for critically appraising scientific information and adapting written and oral communications in the area of probiotics to a range of audience including health professionals. She is the Secretary of the Yakult India Microbiota and Probiotic Science Foundation that focuses on promoting the science of probiotics in the country. Prior to this Dr. Neerja Hajela has worked in the Research and Development division of Ranbaxy Laboratories and was a senior consultant in Biotechnology Consortium India Limited (BCIL), a Department of Biotechnology undertaking. She has been invited as a speaker for various National and International conferences and has several publications in peer reviewed journals.

Dr. Nilesh Amritkar has done his PhD in Microbiology from UDCT Mumbai and as Managing Director, is spearheading the operations of Envirocare Labs Pvt Ltd, a 100% Indian World Class Lab. Envirocare Labs over past 37 years has been in the forefront of Monitoring, Analysis, Research and Training and has grown into a world class laboratory spread across 15000+ square feet of state-of-the-art instrumentation with 135+ people working in the field of Environment, Food and Consumer Product testing services. The lab is accredited under ISO 17025 by NABL and is recognized by MoEF, MoFPI, FSSAI, BIS, APEDA, AGMARK. The lab is also certified for QMS, EMS and OSHAS and is empaneled with World Bank and as 3P Lab with many multinationals. Dr Amritkar has many publications in national as well as international journals and has presented scientific lectures on many occasions. Dr Amritkar, with a scholastic background and mandate to empower Indian Industry Professionals, Govt. Regulators & Academia with knowledge & skills drive him to organize training programs, seminars & workshops through Envirocare Center for Continual Education and Research. Due to his scientific fervor, entrepreneurship, nationalistic spirit, vision and social commitment, Dr. Amritkar has been delivering several responsibilities while occupying prestigious positions such as: Vice President – Association of Food Scientist & Technologist of India, Mumbai Chapter. Various Committee Member - FSSAI, New Delhi & FDA, Maharashtra. Technical Committee Member of FAD 14 – Food and Agriculture: Water and Beverages, BIS, GoI. Executive Committee Member of All India Food, Processors Association West Zone, Association of Analytical Chemists, India Section of AOAC International, USA. IGNOU Mumbai PSC - Program Incharge for PGDFSQM. Lead Auditor and Expert Panel Member - National Accreditation Board for Testing & Calibration Laboratories (NABL). Microbiology Assessor and Task Force Committee Member - Dubai Accreditation Committee (DAC), Dubai for Middle East Region. Executive Committee Member – All India Food Processors Association, West Zone.

Dr. Prabodh Halde is currently working as Head Regulatory Marico Ltd for domestic and international business. Prabodh is Food technologist with post-graduation in Marketing and personal Management and PhD in Global Food safety regulations. Prabodh is having more than 21 years of Industrial experience in area of Quality and Food Safety. He has worked for Coca-Cola and ACC ltd in Past. He is lead auditor for ISO 9001/14001/OSHAS 18001/ISO 22000. Prabodh is President of AFST Mumbai, Technical committee member of IBHA, Executive committee member of Solvent Extractor’s Association India, Expert Panel member FICCI Codex & Food Processing committee member. He has participated in India delegation to CODEX meeting three times at China & Malaysia- 2012/13/15. He has published many articles in scientific journals and news letter. Prabodh is approved trainer from FSSAI and FDA Maharashtra, FDA Gujarath,FDA Goa, FDA Kerala & FDA MP. He has trained more than 2000 Food safety officers so far as part of TOT and FSO training program. He has delivered more than 100 seminars/lectures at different conferences all across India & abroad on food processing/Quality and Food Safety. Board of Management member on BHM SNDT Mumbai. Syllabus committee member of UDCT,Pondechary university and CFT MAU Parbhani. His area of expertise is food safety and Food regulations. He was part of PMO visit delegation to Tajakisthan as a food industry expert during June 2015 visit. He has written book on Food safety for traders/Oil industry and Bakery Industry & retail industry. These books are very useful guide for FBOs He has published 4 motivational books for students named ‘prabodhika’ and recent one was inaugurated by Shri L.K.Advani. His n book on objectives of food safety for competitive exam has been inaugurated by Shri Subhash Desai, Minister of industries Govt. of Maharashtra on 28th February 2015. Recent regulatory book got released on 10th February 2016. He has received various awards includes 2 times best employee awards at Coca-Cola and six times Value awards at Marico ltd. He is also active member of UDAAN foundation an NGO working for underprivileged section of the society.

Shashank R. Joshi is an Indian endocrinologist, diabetologist and medical researcher, considered by many as one of the prominent practitioners of the trade in India.He was honoured by the Government of India, in 2014, by bestowing on him the Padma Shri. Shashank R Joshi had a noteworthy academic career, topping all the medical examinations. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Endocrinology(USA), Fellow of the American College of Physicians (USA), Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons (Glasgow) and the Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (Edinburgh). He has a Diploma of Growth from Sweden, too. He is now working at Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai, as the Consultant Endocrine and Metabolic Physician. Joshi is the President of two important organizations, the Indian Academy of Diabetes and the Association of Physicians of India (API). He was also a former President of the Research Society for Study of Diabetes in India (RSSDI) and the All India Association of Advancing Research in Obesity. He is the former Vice President of the Association of Physicians of India and is now its Advisory Board member. Joshi is involved with the activities of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology (AACE) and is serving as the Chairperson of its India Chapter. Some of the past positions he held include: Visiting Clinician at the Mayo Clinic. Member of the ICMR-WHO Task Force for Management of Type 2 Diabetes. Director of the Asian Health Clinic in Western Australia. Shashank Joshi is involved in evidence based research on Endocrinology with special emphasis on Diabetes, Obesity, Thyroid, Osteoporosis and Growth. His studies on the Asian Indian phenotype (thin-fat Indian), co-morbidities in hypothyroidism and the impact of vitamin D deficiency on bone health in Asian Indians are notable. He has also worked as the principal investigator in many teams engaged in multinational clinical trials and has covered two epidemics of diabetes and hypertension in India and Adult Growth Hormone deficiency. Joshi is a prolific writer of articles on Diabetology and Endocrinology and has published 18 books and monograms and over 600 research publications on topics such as Diabetes, Obesity, Thyroid disorders, Osteoporosis, and Growth. He is also the Editor of Practical Medicine, a popular undergraduate Indian text book. He is also the Editor Emeritus of the Journal of the Association of Physicians of India and has been the Editor of three prominent Indian journals namely Indian Journal of Obesity, Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism and Indian Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics. Dr. Joshi founded the Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine and was its executive editor.

Dr Shweta Khandelwal is an Associate Professor at the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Delhi NCR. She is a trained public health nutritionist and her current research (as an Early career fellow, funded by the Wellcome DBT Alliance) is focused on exploring the role of prenatal omega-3 fatty acids (DHA) supplementation on neurodevelopment of Indian infants. She is also interested in studying the nutrition epidemiology of cardiovascular disease risk factors among the Indian population. She is also the lead for capacity building initiatives in Public Health Nutrition (PHN) at PHFI and CCDC. Shweta has won several awards and recognition in the area of PHN.

Chief Advisor, Nutritional Solutions Business, Tata Chemicals Limited, Mumbai

Visiting Professor, Food Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai

Expert, working group on Proprietary foods, FSSAI

Former member of the FSSAI scientific panel on Functional foods, Nutraceuticals and dietary supplements

Research interests include Food technology and nutrition science, Analytical chemistry, Oleo chemicals, Ayurveda, environmental sciences and cosmetic technology. Doctorate in Physical Organic Chemistry from National Chemical Laboratory, Pune. Over a decade of academic research in the area of Synthetic Organic Chemistry and biotechnology, toxicology at Johns Hopkins University and National Institutes of Health in USA. Over 30 years of Industrial research and management in leading corporations like Hindustan Unilever, Colgate Palmolive, General Electric (GE), Godrej Consumer Products, Marico Limited and Birla Research and Life sciences. Has taught at Hindustan Lever Research Foundation; Centre for Advanced cell and Molecular Biology, Washington DC, Foundation for Advancement of Science (FAES), National Institutes of Health, USA.; Six Sigma School of GE; Kane Memorial Visiting Professor at ICT, Mumbai in the Fats and Oils department. Have over 20 publications in international journals.

With Sight and Life, a global nutrition think tank, her work focuses on agriculture and food systems; analytics, social business models, distribution & supply chains and public private partnerships in low and middle-income countries. For nearly 12 years, Kalpana’s professional experience spans food and renewable energy industries; nutrition and WASH global health programs. With Nestle, PATH, DSM and Sight and Life, Kalpana has worked in multi-cultural and science driven contexts fostering innovation and entrepreneurship in several countries. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, a Master’s degree in Agricultural and Biological Engineering from University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign and a Bachelor’s degree from Indian Institute of Technology (Kharagpur) in Agricultural and Food Engineering.

M M Chitale is a very senior food expert having more than 50 years of experience in the F&B industry. In the past he has been the Executive Director for The Protein Foods & Nutrition Development Association of India, Mumbai. His previous companies include M/s. Abbott Laboratories, Hindustan Lever Research Centre, Dr. Writers Food Products and Amrit Protein Foods (Amrit Banaspati Co.). His professional memberships include: Member of Association of Food Scientists and Technologists of India; Vice President of AFST (I), Mumbai Chapter; Vice President of AFST (I), All India Basis; Core Action committee member of Ramkrishna Bajaj; Testing and Consumer Education center – SNDT Juhu Campus, Mumbai

Naaznin Husein Is the Founder of Freedom Wellness Management. She is currently the President, Indian Dietetic Association-Mumbai Chapter and a National Executive member of the IDA Pan India. Naaznin believes and strongly practises Holistic Wellness and is chief Dietitian Yoga institute-Santacruz. Naaznin persue’s her passion for sports and heads the INDIA RUSHSOCCER ACADEMY as a Nutritionist. She is an Associate Professor at Mumbai University- Nirmala Niketan Colllege teaching Specialised dietetics to students Persuing their Masters in sports Nutrition. She is currently onboard Nutritionist and advisory board member of Corporates and with many Elite Schools of Mumbai Nutritionist to may Lead Corporate Houses for Corporate wellness workshops Naaznin’s Current areas of Interest research in Lifestyle Managements. Naaznin is a proud to be the 1st Nutritionist to be on the advisory board of the Indian Navy and armed forces. Ms Naaznin Husein has been a Nutritional Counsellor for famous Sports Celebrities and Bollywood actors and is Regular Columnist in Newspapers, Tv Shows and Radio interviews. She is the Trustee of the Equal Streets movement and Mumbai Car Free Day promoting Health,Wellness, Environment and Open spaces

Poornima Shankar is a Senior Research Scientist in the Functional Foods Division at The Himalaya Drug Company, Bangalore. She is a product development nutritionist and also supports Marketing and External Engagement activities in her current role. Poornima has a MSc in Nutrition and MS degree In Foods Science from Rutgers University, USA. She is one of very few Registered Dietitians (RD) certified by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics USA residing in India. Her wide range of experience includes medical nutrition therapy where she was responsible for care involving generalized nutrition counselling to managing critical care. Post her MS, she moved to corporate nutrition working at Gerber Foods in the areas of labelling, claim development, competitor benchmarking and marketing support activities as content expert. Poornima has taught advanced Food Science and Nutrition to senior students as an adjunct professor at the City University of New York and Mount Carmel College, Bangalore. After moving to India, she worked at Hindustan Unilever Research Centre, Bangalore for 5 years supporting their corporate agenda and provided nutritional inputs, claims management for their product development and marketing led activities.

Born in 1957, Sh. Chakraborty completed Degrees in Science with honours in Chemistry from University of Calcutta and Food Technology & Bio - Chemical Engineering from Jadavpur University, Kolkata. Sh. Chakraborty having rich experience of more than 32 years in the fields of Food Processing, Quality Control, Project Management & Export of Processed Foods worked as Production Manager in the first 100% export oriented fish processing unit of Andaman & Nicobar Islands at Port Blair, which was set-up and operationalised by him besides setting up of Food Park in West Bengal. Sh. Chakraborty who was on deputation with the Food Safety & Standards Authority of India ( FSSAI ) very successfully held various senior positions like Director ( Product Approval ), Director ( Zones ), Nodal Officer for Scientific Panel on ' Food additives, flavorings, processing aids and materials in contact with food ' and done his best to expedite cases on priority. Sh. Chakraborty has written a number of technical articles on food safety and related topics for various journals including "Indian Food Packer". Keeping in view his vast experience & contributions to the Food Industry, All India Food Processors ' Association conferred him AIFPA Presidents' Special Award for the year 2013

Mr. R. Manickavasagam areas of expertise are quality and food safety management and wide experience in operations & marketing strategy, new & innovative product solution. He has done his post graduate in physical chemistry from University of Madras and Advance Operation Management from IIM-Kozhikode. He is lead auditor of ISO 9001/ 22000. He is guest lecturer for Dairy Chemistry at Gandhigram Rural University. He is the instrumental for “Raaj” in developing nutritional products of sustainable energy. His professional capabilities and leadership helps the company consistently to grow in the nutraceuticals sector.

Rama R is currently Vice President, Science & Innovation, Asia Pacific at DSM Nutritional Products. Before joining DSM in 2015, he was Corporate VP Pacific Asia for Abbott Nutrition, with a turnover of $1.3Bn. Rama has over 30 years of work experience in pharmaceuticals and the healthcare industry in operational roles. Having grown through the ranks from sales and marketing he led the Asia business for Abbott in pharmaceuticals before transitioning to the nutrition business with a consumer bias 8 years ago when it was $400MM. He was deeply involved in driving Asia relevant innovation, and building multiple new businesses to accelerate growth – resulting in his being appointed one of 38 Corporate Officers in a 72000 employee global organization. Experienced with startup operations in the emerging markets, he has setup many successful businesses in Asia, led acquisitions & helped shape the regulatory environment for healthcare products. Rama holds an MBA (Cranfield University, UK) and a B.Sc. Pharmacy (NUS). He is also a member of the Singapore Institute of Directors (SID)

Mr. Sandeep Gupta, comes with a rich experience of close to 20 years in healthcare industry. His areas of expertise include Sales, Marketing, Business Development, Strategy, Regulatory, Legal Strategy, New & Innovative Product Solution, Corporate Development, Strategic Alliances, Novel Technology Solutions & Government Relations. During his tenure he is worked in various organizations ranging from startups & growing Indian companies to Large multinationals like Unisearch Labs (Unichem Group), Unique Pharmaceuticals (JB Group), Alkem, Universal Medicare, Bayer HealthCare, Geltec & Universal Group Of Companies. Mr. Sandeep Gupta, Post graduate (MBA) in Healthcare marketing and communications and Graduate in B. Pharmacy has under taken various short term executive programs in India & Internationally in the areas of brand management, marketing and advertising. He is a Distinguished Member of Leadership Excellence at Harvard Square. He is a passion to innovation professional who has about close to 15 years of experience and exposure to Nutraceutical Health & Dietary Supplements Industry. Currently Mr. Sandeep Gupta is working as a Vice President Business Development, Strategic Initiatives & Corporate Affairs which includes Regulatory, Legal & Government Affairs. His expertise, professional capabilities and leadership helps the company consistently to strengthen its position in the healthcare space further.

Sanjay currently holds position of “Head R&D” of M/s Ruchi Soya Industries Ltd. In past he has worked with Piramal Enterprises, Glaxo, Heinz, PepsiCo, Raptakos Brett & Natrol Inc. USA in similar capacity. Mr. Singh will be talking on Texturized Soya Protein: A solution to address malnutrition due to Protein deficiency in India. Sanjay is a senior Food Technologist. Holds the degree of Food Technology & also a degree in Chemistry from the University of Mumbai. He has been associated with food & Neutraceutical industry for past 27 years while working with leading corporate houses in the field of nutrition & health care. He developed range of nutritious products particularly in the area of infant milk substitutes, Soya based Lactose free infant milk formula weaning foods , Multi nutrient tablets , Cough lozenges , Sports performance formula & variety of specialized foods for specific medical conditions & weight management . He has been instrumental in introduction of many leading foods & Neutraceutical brands in India & USA.