Vets In Poultry, an association based in Pune, has more than 1000 members actively working in Poultry Farming. Vets In Poultry association always put relentless efforts into promoting the health benefits of eggs and Chicken in an innovative and scientific way, and as a part of this journey team Vets In Poultry has organized Chicken Cooking Competition & Chicken Festival on 23rd July 2022 at Krushna Sundar Lawns in Pune. This event was one of its kind because, during it, only Chicken and eggs cousins were allowed to be prepared and consumed.
The prime objective of the competition was to offer a professional platform to individuals and students who want to display their skills and creative talent and get opportunities to learn and share experiences in the competitive environment. This event was attended by contestants, Veterinary Animal Health Company employees, distributors, poultry farmers, and other industry associates.
Mr. Devwrat Jategaonkar marked his presence as a Chief Guest and Judge for this event. He is a renowned Chef holding the Guinness Book record and represented India in various culinary competitions across the globe. He also won the first Silver Medal for India In 2012 during Culinary Olympics held in Frankfurt, Germany. He has served as Executive Chef to various leading hotel chains in India. Dr. Monjeeta, a food blogger and Veterinarian, was also on the panel as a judge.
Dr. Jeevan Sonawane anchored this event and explained the event’s theme to the audience and contestants. The event was formally inaugurated by the lightening of the lamp and Gas stove by Chief Guest Mr. Devavrat Jategaonkar along with Dr. Ajay Deshpande, President of Vets In Poultry (VIP), Dr. Sanotsh Ire, Secretary VIP, Dr. Prasad Kulkarni, Treasurer VIP and other executive committee members of Vets In Poultry Dr. Chandrakant Pathak, Dr. Sujit Kulkarni, Dr. Pankaj Tuptewar, Dr. Jeevan Sonawane, and Dr. Sachin Patil.
During the inaugural speech, Dr. Ajay Deshpande expressed his views about the importance of eggs and Chicken in countering malnutrition, employing millions of agricultural farmers directly and indirectly. He also described the Vets In Poultry team’s relentless efforts to promote protein consumption through eggs and Chicken.
Mr. Devvrat, during his speech, expressed his views about this unique competition and emphasized the importance of eggs and Chicken in the hotel industry in India. He said that eggs and Chicken constitute around 50 % of hotel industry cousins and play a vital role in business. He also agreed that eggs and Chicken are essential protein sources and should be part of our regular diet. The chief guest set the perfect stage for all contestants by boosting their confidence with some practical tips for competition.
The top 20 contestants were selected for the event. Judges interacted with all contesting chefs to find out the ingredients of the recipes, nutritional value and historical significance of the dishes, etc., prepared by them. Food items displayed were a visual treat and were presented in an artistic and aesthetic style. Dishes were judged based on creativity, hygiene, taste, texture, and appearance by esteemed judges Mr. Devvrat Jategaonkar and Dr. Monjita.
Judges were overwhelmed by the efforts of the participants. It was great to see the participants’ energy, enthusiasm, and creativity.
The event has provided a platform for the household wives, gents, and students to foster their creativity and helped them to explore their hidden talents and discover new dishes. It was a challenging task for judges to choose a winner among innovative and delicious dishes.
Finally, three winners and two consolation prize winners were declared and awarded with an attractive trophy and cash prizes.
The cooking competition was followed by Chicken Festival, where many contestants and commercial houses sold their preparations to the visitors. Industry brands like Venky’s Express, Shalimar, Godrej, KGN, Power Eggs, Chicken Vicken & Belchick exhibited their stalls and served delicacy. Every visitor to the event was delighted to taste authentic Chicken and egg recipes at the event. Visitors also appreciated this event for tasting various chicken and egg dishes under one roof.
The cooking competition was formally closed with a Vote of thanks by Dr. Sujit Kulkarni. He thanked everyone who supported the event, directly and indirectly, contestants, participants, visitors, volunteers, event managers, members from Vets In Poultry, Producers, Feed millers, Animal Health distributors & everyone who supported this program wholeheartedly.
During event, various Vets In Poultry members expressed their views about Chicken and Eggs.
Dr. Ajay Deshpande, President of Vets In Poultry, expressed that the poultry industry plays a vital role in fighting against protein energy malnutrition. There is a massive gap between per capita consumption and actual recommendation by the National institute of nutrition in India and the need to create more awareness to enhance chicken and egg consumption. His speech expressed the health benefits of white meat vs. red meat.
Dr. B A Pawar, Life Time Member of Vets In Poultry, said there are rumours about broiler chickens that many antibiotics and hormones are used to grow chickens which is not valid. He assured audience that broiler birds are produced scientifically, and if anyone has any doubt, they can connect with us, and we will help them understand this phenomenon.
Dr. Monjeeta Barrowa, a food blogger and Veterinarian who was also one of the judges for this event, appreciated the initiative taken by Vets In Poultry. She said that eggs and chicken are economical and readily available protein sources and have multiple benefits for all ages. She highlighted the health benefits of eggs and chicken, particularly for middle age people, due to its richness in vital nutrients like zinc.
Dr. Chandrakant Pathak, Executive Committee Member of Vets In Poultry, expressed an important message about the health benefit of eggs and chicken to diabetic people, aged persons, and small kids. He said Vets In Poultry would continue such innovative activities in the future.
Dr. Sadanand Undegaokar, Life Time Member of Vets In Poultry, expressed that he is actively involved in the production and assured that chicken is organically produced using corn, soya, and other scientific additives and appealed to society to stay away from rumours. He also emphasized eating chicken and eggs for more health benefits.
Dr. Anju Deshpande, Life Time Member of Vets In Poultry expressed that the poultry farming community is raising poultry birds scientifically. She also appealed to homemakers not to withdraw protein from their diet during certain festival seasons because it may hamper the family’s health.
Dr. Jeevan Sonawane, an Executive Committee member, explained the objective of the event is to boost chicken and egg consumption. He also stated that India is a protein-deficient country, and many people don’t even know how much protein they should consume. He appealed to consume 1 gm per kg body weight protein, and eggs and chicken can help us to achieve this goal.
Dr. Pankaj Tuptewar, the Executive Committee member, explained the importance of protein for everyone and appealed that everyone should consume two eggs and 100 gms of chicken on a daily basis to fulfill their daily protein requirement.
Dr. Sujit Kulkarni, the Executive Committee member, said after the covid pandemic, eggs, and chicken got a lot of significance as protein sources. Indian medical association also recommended eating eggs and chicken to boost protein intake for good immunity. He also said eggs and chicken are rich in protein, vitamins, and minerals, which play a vital role in children’s and sportsman’s health.
Dr. Praksah Babu, the Chief Geneticist at Venkateshwara Egg Laying unit, said that egg is the most economical, readily available, and most importantly, affordable source of protein. He emphasized that egg is the most balanced food, which is near to mothers’ milk having all nutrients including vitamins and can give us good disease resistance power.
Dr. Santosh Ire, Secretary of Vets In Poultry, explained the event’s theme and thanked everyone who supported and participated in this event directly and indirectly. He said that all poultry industry goals are common, and we should all work together to promote our two products, eggs and chicken.
The event was formally closed at 3:30 pm with the promise of organizing more and more such events in the future by team Vets In Poultry.
