National conference, 18–19 November 2025

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Context and rationale

Despite significant progress in food production, approximately 195 million people in India remain undernourished, representing 14% of the population and a quarter of the global hunger burden. Chronic undernutrition or stunting affects four out of ten children, with 36% of women and 43% of children under five suffering from malnutrition. According to the World Bank 2018 Global Nutrition Report, malnutrition costs India at least USD 10 billion annually in lost productivity, illness and premature death, hindering human development and disrupting progress. Additionally, the prevalence of obesity in children and adolescents is rising, leading to long-term non-communicable diseases.

Promoting fruit tree cultivation and consumption helps address these issues of nutrition insecurity. It provides nutrient-rich foods, enhances rural incomes, supports low-carbon climate resilient production systems and restores degraded ecosystems. However, systemic challenges persist, including limited access to quality planting materials of nutritious fruits for low-income families, inadequate extension support and planting technologies, low prioritisation of fruit systems in national policies, and limited knowledge of the nutritional value and benefits of fruits.

Opportunity

🍀 Rich biodiversity: India harbours a vast diversity of indigenous underutilised and nutritious fruit tree species with untapped potential.

🍎 Potential for growth in fruit consumption: Awareness of the health benefits of fruit consumption has increased, particularly among urban dwellers, but it needs to be promoted among rural and marginalised communities.

🤝 Strong government support: The Government of India has launched various programmes to promote the cultivation of fruit trees, including the establishment of new fruit orchards, rejuvenation of old orchards, credit for hi-tech tree nurseries, protected cultivation, irrigation, subsidies for export-oriented fruit crops, support for perishable fruits for price stabilisation, and post-harvest infrastructure.

Significance of the conference

The Centre for Fruitful India (CFI) is committed to enhancing nutrition security, biodiversity conservation and sustainable livelihoods through fruit tree cultivation. In this context, the National Conference aims to bring together diverse stakeholders to create actionable strategies for a more resilient and adequately nourished India. The conference will serve as a collaborative platform for researchers, policymakers, farmers and development partners to discuss the role of fruit trees in nutrition, rural development, sustainable cultivation and climate adaptation. The conference aims to foster collaboration, ensure transparent grant allocation and advance impactful research through structured discussions and expert evaluations.

Objectives

1. Promote multi-sector collaborations: Facilitate networking opportunities for innovative research partnerships for fruit cultivation.
2. Showcase successful models: Share successful fruit tree cultivation models that have increased fruit access and affordability for low-income families.
3. Develop innovative approaches to cultivating fruit trees: Identify research topics that promote optimal land utilisation, including planting fruit trees on wasteland, field boundaries, community areas, forest peripheries, rooftops and roadsides.
4. Encourage community participation: Promote innovative research and development initiatives that engage communities in sustainable fruit tree cultivation to ensure year-round availability, promote entrepreneurship and advance regenerative agricultural practices.
5. Advance policy integration: Develop strategies for strengthening policy coordination through the inclusion of fruit tree cultivation within national food security frameworks.
6. Establish funding priorities: Determine and allocate funding streams that advance research into nature-positive initiatives aimed at increasing the availability and affordability of nutritious fruit for low-income families, while concurrently enhancing local ecosystem health.

Expected outcomes and likely impact

1. Multi-sector collaborations:
   • Establishing cross-institutional research consortia involving institutions, NGOs, community-based organisations and private sector entities.
   • Preparing joint proposals for projects focused on fruit-based climate-resilient food systems.
   • Increasing the adoption of affordable fruit tree solutions in various socio-economic and ecological zones.
2. Showcase successful models:
   • Documenting and disseminating case studies from urban, peri-urban and rural settings.
   • Identifying best practices that are both replicable and scalable for low-income households.
   • Enhancing household food security through the implementation of validated models.
3. Innovative strategies for fruit tree cultivation:
   • Establishing research agenda dedicated to optimising the utilisation of underutilised land for fruit production.
   • Identifying and cataloguing fruit species that are well suited to specific climatic conditions and locations appropriate for non-traditional cultivation methods.
   • Advancing best practices in land management to mitigate land degradation and promote sustainable use.
   • Enhancing household nutrition diversity while ensuring that staple crop production remains unaffected.
4. Community participation and empowerment:
   • Adopting participatory strategies for fruit cultivation, engaging institutions such as schools, Gram Panchayats, community centres, self-help groups and women-led enterprises.
   • Implementing entrepreneurship models to support the development of community-based nurseries, fruit processing ventures and local marketing channels.
   • Promoting community empowerment through collective ownership, ensuring year-round availability of fruits to enhance dietary diversity, with a particular focus on benefits for children and women.
   • Creating employment opportunities within local fruit-related value chains.
5. Policy integration:
   • Suggesting policy briefs for the inclusion of fruit tree cultivation in food security, nutrition, and climate adaptation programmes.
   • Developing frameworks outlining ways to incorporate fruit diversity into Integrated Child Development Services, school mid-day meals, and urban and peri-urban greening initiatives.
   • Considering fruit cultivation as an element of national nutrition security planning.
   • Increasing government policy support and incentives for farmer-driven orchard development.
6. Establish funding priorities:
   • Developing a mutually agreed-upon funding roadmap for fruit tree research and large-scale implementation.
   • Prioritising funding allocations under the CFI initiative to support nature-positive, community-driven fruit projects that benefit low-income households.
   • Strengthening local ecosystems through initiatives such as tree-based carbon sequestration, biodiversity enrichment, and soil and water conservation.

Overall conference impact:

The CFI conference will discuss fruit tree cultivation as a strategy with potential benefits for nutrition, affordability for low-income families, climate resilience and ecological restoration.

Structure of conference presentations

1. Keynote lectures: Eminent scientists, policymakers and administrators will be invited to deliver special lectures on various thematic areas of fruit cultivation. Each keynote lecture will last 20 minutes.
2. Invited lectures: Each invited lecture will be a concise presentation of 15 minutes, highlighting emerging technologies and recent scientific advancements in the domain of fruit tree cultivation, with a focus on the specific theme for which they are invited.
3. Contributory/oral presentation: Each contributory paper will be a rapid presentation of 5 minutes and will be shortlisted by a designated committee based on the significance of the topic and its alignment with the sub-themes.
4. Poster presentation: All delegates will have the opportunity to showcase their contributory research through poster presentations. Posters should adhere to the specified dimensions of 60” (L) and 36” (W) and use standard scientific font sizes for clarity and readability.
5. Presentation for the CFI research grant: Selected applicants, as identified by a designated scientific committee member, will be invited to give a presentation to provide more insight regarding their research ideas. The presentation will last 10–15 minutes.
6. Best oral and poster award: An expert panel will evaluate the oral and poster presentations under each thematic area to identify and award outstanding contributions. A certificate of participation will be awarded to all registered participants.

Official language: The official language of the conference will be English for all communications and presentations.

Call for abstracts

The CFI organising committee invites the participants to contribute papers for flash oral presentations and poster presentations.

• The abstract should not exceed 400 words.
• It should have a title followed by the name of the author(s), affiliation and email address of the corresponding author.
• It should contain a brief introduction, materials and methods, results, and discussion.
• It should be in Times New Roman with font size 12.
• The name of the presenting author must be underlined.

Expected participants

• • Agricultural scientists, nutritionists, policymakers and development agencies.
• • Non-governmental organisations and civil societies.
• • Farmers, cooperatives and grassroots organisations.
• • Corporate social responsibility leaders and private sector stakeholders.
• • Academia, environmental activists and agroforestry practitioners.

Important dates

Call for abstracts: 6 October 2025
Last date for submission of abstracts/papers: 24 October 2025
Acceptance of abstracts/papers: 31 October 2025
Registration closes: 31 October 2025

Participant guidelines

• Eligibility: Participation is open to individuals or groups interested in promoting fruit cultivation and consumption for people and planetary health.
• Registration: All participants must register through the CFI platform before engaging in activities or events.
• Conduct: Participants are expected to act respectfully towards others and adhere to all instructions provided by organisers.
• Safety: Safety protocols will be in place during the event, and participants are requested to adhere to the announcements and signage for safety systems.
• Sustainability: Use eco-friendly practices wherever possible to support environmental sustainability.
• The registration form can be filled in using the form below and should be completed by 30 October 2025. There will be no registration fees; however, participants must make their own arrangements for travel and accommodation. Travel and accommodation costs for selected invited participants will be covered by CFI.
• The abstracts may be submitted by email to info@cfi-india.org on or before 24 October 2025. Acceptance will be communicated to the presenting author by 31 October 2025.
• Limited accommodation is available at the International Guest House, NASC, and other guest houses at Pusa campus in New Delhi. There are several hotels located in Patel Nagar at reasonable rates.
• Participants – excluding invited speakers and co-chairs – are kindly requested to arrange their own accommodation.
• The weather in New Delhi during November is typically pleasant, with daytime temperatures ranging between 27°C and 29°C, and cooler nights averaging around 12°C to 18°C.

Further information

For more information, please contact:

Congress Secretariat: Centre for Fruitful India Project Management Unit
Phone: +91 11 2584 9000/01/02/08
Email: info@cfi-india.org

For submitting a research grant proposal, visit:
Call for proposals – Fruits research in India (2025)

To learn more about the Alliance of Bioversity International & CIAT, visit:
alliancebioversityciat.org

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