ICAR-CIFT, Kochi Organizes National Workshop on Natural Refrigerant-based Systems for Seafood Industry

3 July 2026, Kochi

ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Kochi, in association with Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, organized a National Workshop on "Natural Refrigerant-based Systems for Seafood Industry" under the INDEE3 Project, supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, at ICAR-CIFT, Kochi, today.

Shri V. E. Abdul Gafoor, the Minister for Fisheries, Harbour Engineering, and Social Justice, Government of Kerala, inaugurated the workshop.

In his inaugural address, the Minister emphasized the importance of adopting energy-efficient and environmentally sustainable refrigeration technologies to strengthen the seafood processing sector. He highlighted that Kerala, being one of India's leading seafood-producing and exporting states, must continue to embrace innovative cold-chain technologies to enhance product quality, improve export competitiveness, reduce post-harvest losses, and support sustainable development.

Dr George Ninan, Director, ICAR-CIFT, who presided over the function, stressed the need for accelerating the adoption of natural refrigerants such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), ammonia (NH₃), and hydrocarbons for developing climate-friendly refrigeration systems for the seafood industry. He noted that the workshop provides an important platform for collaboration among research institutions, industry, and policymakers to promote sustainable refrigeration technologies.

Prof. M. Ramgopal, IIT Kharagpur, highlighted the objectives and achievements of the INDEE3 Project, while Shri Alex K. Ninan, Vice President, Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI), emphasized the growing importance of energy-efficient refrigeration systems in improving the competitiveness of India's seafood export industry.

A Compendium of Technical Sessions containing contributions from leading experts in sustainable refrigeration and cold-chain technologies was released during the inaugural session.

The technical programme featured invited lectures on energy use optimization in seafood processing, cold-chain solutions, technology transformation in the seafood industry, natural refrigerant-based refrigeration systems, refrigeration safety, and multi-temperature refrigeration systems. Experts from premier research institutions, academia, and the refrigeration industry shared recent developments in low global warming potential refrigeration technologies and energy-efficient cold-chain solutions.

As part of the workshop, participants also visited the CO₂-based heating and cooling system at ICAR-CIFT and the CO₂–ammonia cascade refrigeration system installed at Bell Foods, Kochi, gaining first-hand exposure to commercially implemented natural refrigerant technologies for seafood processing.

The workshop witnessed the participation of scientists, engineers, seafood processors, refrigeration professionals, policymakers, students, and industry representatives from different parts of the country.

(Source: ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology, Kochi)