Kumar Kartikey: From Foodie to Food Scientist

My journey in science started with my curiosity over natural phenomena occurring in our universe. This inquisitiveness gave me an increased focus on subjects like physics and biology during my high-school education. Particularly, I was greatly drawn by the concept of the food web and how the whole ecosystem is interconnected by the common factor “food”. 

Eventually, I underwent my Bachelor’s degree in food science at SHUTS Prayagraj. During my college, I was pretty fascinated by the process of food product development and the role of nutrition in living organisms. I still remember the day when I was awe-struck by how food innovations have evolved the food industry and changed the way humans eat food. The dynamics involved are a marvel. Fortunately, during the final year of my degree, I got an opportunity to develop a fruit jam with functional properties. The process involved was very diligent and gave me clarity on my career interest. At this point, I developed a deeper inclination towards Food research & product development.

With this profound knowledge, I was able to envision my career path as a food product developer. Later the same year, I was fortunate enough to kick start my career in my area of interest and landed as a Product Developer at Arboreal. Being a fresher and fresh out of academics, the transition period from college to work was challenging. During this period, I worked on my lacunas and converted them into strong assets. Also being in a start-up, I had to be very flexible and learned about other department functionalities too. This experience is unmatchable.