4 Indian innovators in world’s top ‘50 Next’ gastronomy gamechangers list

Four young Indian innovators have been named among the world’s top 50 leading gastronomy gamechangers in a prestigious list celebrating the next generation of leaders creating sustainable solutions for the global food and drink industry.

The ‘50 Next: Class of 2022’, unveiled at a first-ever live awards ceremony in the Spanish city of Bilbao on Thursday, includes Delhi-based forensic scientist Dr Risha Jasmine Nathan, Bengaluru-based Vinesh Johny and Anusha Murthy, and Mumbai-based Nidhi Pant.

They join innovators selected from more than 400 candidates across 30 territories in six continents as the next-gen leaders of gastronomy.

Nathan, who will be taking up a post of Lecturer at the Anglia Ruskin University in the UK later this year, is now researching the topic in detail, hoping to change the lives of millions who still don’t have access to clean water.

Chef Vinesh Johny, who makes the 2022 class in the “Empowering Educators” category, is the founder of Lavonne Academy of Baking Science & Pastry Arts in Bengaluru – India’s first specialised international baking school.

“The school is trying to make sure that we get world-class pastry education for the students in India,” said Johny.

Also in the same category is Anusha Murthy, who along with co-creator Elizabeth Yorke is behind ‘Edible Issues’ – a food collective that fosters conversation around the Indian food system via community engagement and workshops. Aside from the joint venture, Murthy is also building a cooking robot to help consumers eat more healthily.

The “Trailblazing Activists” category of ‘50 Next’ includes Nidhi Pant, founder of S4S Technologies, which has created an electricity-free solar-powered food dehydrator that helps to alleviate vulnerable communities from hunger and helps farmers preserve crop yields.