Union Minister for Commerce & Industry Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday laid stress on innovation in packaging technology as a measure to boost exports. Speaking at the Annual Convocation of the Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) in Mumbai, Sitharaman described packaging as a blend of art, aesthetics, science and technology and underlined the role played by packaging in economic development.The Minister said the government attaches immense importance to innovation and the Prime Minister has already announced government support to provide a launch-pad for start ups.The Minister further said that while packaging was essential for all the products, the wastage of packaging material was a matter of grave environmental concern. She supported use of jute for packaging instead of man-made fibres wherever feasible.