Department of Foods and Nutrition:
Established in 1950, it offers a comprehensive program for Bachelor's, Master's and Doctoral degrees in three thrust areas of Foods and Nutrition namely Dietetics, Public Health Nutrition and Food Science and Quality Control.
The department has been the recipient of UGC-DSA (Phase II) program (2009-2014) and DSA (Phase III) program (2015-2020) and with aid from the UGC Infrastructure Development Grants strives to upgrade its classrooms, laboratories and library It also runs a Nutrition Counseling Centre once a week (Saturday 1-4pm) and offers medical nutrition therapy to patients with specific disease condition and conducts nutrition assessment of patients free of cost.
VISION
To create world class committed Public Health Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science and Quality Control professionals who can contribute meaningfully to the social, economic and health development of the country.
MISSION
To update and enrich our curriculum, conduct research in ongoing and emerging areas of nutrition and partner with various stakeholders to improve nutrition outcomes of the Indian population through evidence based advocacy and operations research on national program implementation.
OPERATING PHILOSOPHY
The teaching and research in the 3 thrust areas of Foods and Nutrition namely dietetics, public health nutrition and food science and quality control aims at Evidence Generation, Capacity Building, System Strengthening Advocacy and in Partnership Building & Convergence.
EVIDENCE GENERATION
Conduct need based process and impact evaluation of health and nutrition programs of urban, rural and tribal areas.Conduct clinical nutrition trials to create evidence for mainstreaming nutrition interventions in different health care settings including hospitals, geriatric clinics/old age home role of various traditional herbs/plants/foods for their use as functional foods in prevention & management of health & diseases
Functional Food Product Development and shelf life for prevention and management of diseases.
CAPACITY BUILDING
Conduct joint training programs for field functionaries/caregivers and their supervisors
Conduct training programs for clinical nutrition care in different settings namely, hospitals, workplaces/school settings, caterers/food service handlers and geriatric clinics.
Conduct training programmes for promoting hygienic food service, food safety in food service organizations, entrepreneurship skills nutrition sensitive agriculture/horticulture and food processing.
SYSTEM STRENGTHENING & ADVOCACY
To support government programming for achieving Global/National/State WHO Nutrition & Sustainable Development Goals targets by 2025-2030 to improve nutrition outcomes in maternal, infant and young children, adolescents/school children. Evidence based advocacy for newer programs, reaching the unreached, essential interventions and strategies for inclusive programming, innovations in improving nutrition programming and its governance.
Supporting Food Safety and Standard Authority Of India (FSSAI) for food safety and quality control, Food labeling and addressing the gaps in FSSAI guidelines.
PARTNERSHIP BUILDING & CONVERGENCE
To foster partnerships and inter sectoral collaborations with United Nations, International/ National Non-Government Organizations, government, corporates and Public Private Partnerships for delivering nutrition specific and nutrition sensitive interventions and their optimal utilization by communities.
Foster partnerships with medical practitioners, government /private hospitals, schools/workplaces/sports academies/ old age homes, Government and Non-Government organizations towards implementing evidence based guidelines on the prevention and management of diet related diseases.
Foster partnerships with food industries, food service organizations, neutraceutical industry, government, agriculture/horticulture/animal husbandry for promotion of healthy diets and healthy packaged and processed foods.
NUTRITION HEALTH PROMOTION IN VARIOUS SETTINGS
Develop nutrition health promotion models for workplaces, schools/academic institutions, geriatric care centers.
FOOD COMPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Gap Filling in existing food composition data base with respect to important heavy metals, nutrients and non- nutrients of selected food.
Only academic department in country imparting public health nutrition training at under graduate, postgraduate and doctoral levels.