April-May 2016

Apr-May ’16

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Feel A Sensation

VENUS INDUSTRIES Mfrs. & exporters of stainless steel cutlery hotelware & lifestyle products WZ-1, Basai Road, Moti Nagar, New Delhi-110015 Tel.: (91-11) 43163300, 45061071 E-mail: v_khurana@venusindustries.in Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review Apr-May ’16 Website: www.venusindustries.in

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E d i t o r i a l

Publisher cum Editor Rajneesh Sharma rajneeshhammer@gmail.com

Associate Editor Swarnendu Biswas Resident Editor Sharmila Chand (Delhi) Ashok Malkani (Mumbai) Layout & Design Hari Kumar. V Abhishek Singh Rathore Production Assistant Mamta Sharma Advertising Sales Delhi: Debabrata Nath, Sumesh Sharma Director Sales Sanjay Anand Mobile: +91 9811136837 Director Operations & Finance Rajat Taneja Mobile: +91 9810315463 Editorial & Advertising Offices: Delhi: Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 206, Samrat Bhawan, Ranjeet Nagar Commercial Complex, New Delhi-110008 Phone: 91-11-45084903, 45093486, 25704103 Mumbai: Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 105, 1st Floor, Aarpee Centre, Gufic Compound, 11th Road, MIDC, Near Tunga Paradise, Andheri (E), Mumbai-400093 Ph.: 022-28395833 Telefax: 022-28388947

Website: www.fbrmag.com E-mail: info@hammer.co.in © 2016 Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. No article can be reproduced in part or as whole without prior permission of the Publisher.

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review is a bi-monthly magazine, printed, owned and published by Rajneesh Sharma from 302, Himgiri Apartments, J-Block, Vikaspuri, New Delhi. Printed at Swan Press, B-71, Naraina Industrial Area, Phase-II, New Delhi-110 028.

With the growing health consciousness and increasing awareness about the harmful effects of pesticides, the popularity of organic food is rising in India. Rising disposable incomes in select but sizeable pockets of Indian society has contributed to this healthy trend.

Though organic farming is not a new concept in India, but in the recent years, it is showing signs of revival in post-modern India. But we have to take into account that the organic food market in the country is not growing as much as it deserves to in these health conscious times.

The reason for this is probably the comparatively higher prices of organic food products as compared to food products produced through the help of pesticides, for India, by and large, remains a highly pricesensitive society. Another reason is probably inadequate and largely disorganised marketing of organic food products in India, which is impeding the growth of awareness about organic products in India. Here we have discussed the benefits of organic farming, the growth of organic food market in India, and also the challenges and potential of organic food market in the Indian context.

The popularity of street food seemed to have a perennial character in the modern era, but now in this post-modern age, with people having less time on their hands to cook delicious meals at home, the popularity of street food is only expected to increase in the near future. One can say that the popularity of street food can be explained as a product of modern day urbanisation. In the Business Story of this issue, we have covered the factors that need to be taken into account before starting a street food enterprise in India.

The Feature section deals with the issue of interactive menus, where the possibility of people having their role in developing the menus of food service outlets is being explored. The topic can be of great interest for food service establishment managers and/or their owners.

The Beverage section of this issue can also make for interesting reading. Here we have covered an iconic entrepreneur’s re-entry into the carbonated soft drinks market and explored whether his recent enterprise can prove to be a success story or not.

Besides these above-mentioned interesting and relevant to the industry topics, we have explored some other interesting topics too through our features, articles and Q&As, which are, as usual, supplemented by an exhaustive coverage of information through our News, Report and Event sections.

We hope our esteemed readers would enjoy this endeavour of ours as much we had enjoyed developing it. I hereby signoff while wishing all our valued readers a brand new financial year, full of new promises and expectations.

Annual Subscription rate within India is Rs. 450 and overseas US $110, for surface mail. Single issue is available for Rs. 90 in India and US $25 overseas. Cheques are payable to Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd. Editorial Policy: Editorial emphasis in Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review magazine is on educational & informational material specifically designed to assist those responsible for managing institutional food & beverage business. Articles are welcome and will be published on the sole discretion of the editor.

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Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Apr-May ’16

Contents

Cover Story

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Departments

Organic Food Gaining Momentum

Business

Event

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News

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Report

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Restaurant Review

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Chef Voice

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Operations

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Hygiene

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Product Preview

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Interview

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Street Food Can Mean Smart Business

Feature

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The Case of Interactive Menus

Agri

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Jack is a Fruit

Beverage

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Thumbs Up to the Entrepreneur

Profile

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Presenting a Regal Dining Experience

Theme Cuisine Cover Pix: Courtesy: Pixabay Apr-May ’16

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The Flavours from Canton

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EVENT

Vinexpo Hong Kong Sees Exponential Rise in Visitors The seventh Hong Kong edition of the three-day ‘shop window’ to the Asian wine and spirits market was unparalleled in showcasing the latest trends and a large variety of developments within the industry

(From L-R) Vinexpo CEO , Guillaume Deglise with the winners of Asian Personality 2016, Yuko Kibayahi, Shin Kibayashi, alongside Patrick Schmidt of The Drinks Business at the Asian Personality 2016 award ceremony

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ith over 1,300 exhibitors representing wine and spirit brands from 33 countries, and with 17,000 visitors, Vinexpo Hong Kong 2016 firmly reinforced its position as one of Asia’s premier wine and spirits events.

With a rebound of China, the world’s fifth largest wine consuming market, as well as a dynamic overall Asia-Pacific presence, both exhibitors and buyers made the most of the three-day trading event held in Hong Kong from May 24-26.

Presented by Vinexpo feat. bettane+desseauve Burgundy Stars and Newcomers event at Vinexpo Hong Kong 2016

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Vinexpo Hong Kong 2016 — here business professionals, exhibitors and buyers alike were networking and enjoying a vast selection of wines from different regions around the world

The show witnessed exponential growth in terms of international visitors, with over double the number of visiting countries attending in 2016 as compared to 2014, Vinexpo Chairman Xavier de Eizaguirre pointed out.

While the number of Chinese visitors was the highest at the event, Hong Kong and Taiwan came second and third respectively in terms of their presence.

They were followed by South Korea, Japan and Singapore. South-East Asia’s dynamic market was hot on their heels, with increasing representation from Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, and the Philippines.

Australian visitors to the show this year grew by 24 percent as compared to the 2014 edition of the show.

The three-day show welcomed visiting business professionals and exhibitors to experience 75 quality masterclasses, seminars, conferences, and tastings.

The ‘One to Wine Meetings’, a new initiative encouraging trade interaction and networking, was introduced to the event this year. Deemed a great success with over 1,500 business meetings taking place during the show, the initiative enabled tailor-made business appointments

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between exhibitors and specificallytargetted trade executives.

“With visiting professionals just as important to us as the exhibitors, this service added a superior degree of professionalism to the trade show,” Vinexpo CEO, Guillaume Deglise said.

Partnering with wineries, the seventh edition of the Hong Kong event hosted a Shiraz/Syrah Day – the first dedicated day for a grape variety as part of this show to increase awareness about the grape variety.

Another first for the Hong Kong show was the spotlight on Italy as this year’s dedicated ‘Country of Honour’. A large number of Italian producers were represented at the show, of which 60 participated for the first time. Vinexpo provided a platform for both well-known and emerging Italian brands. Italy was further highlighted through a series of dedicated seminars and tastings.

The strong visitor statistics for the 2016 edition of the show teamed with the well-attended quality programme of events, solidified Vinexpo as a key partner for the wine and spirits industry, internationally.

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EVENT EVENTS’ CALENDER Thaifex — World of Food Asia 2016 25-29 May 2016 Impact Exhibition & Convention Center, Thailand www.worldoffoodasia.com FISPAL FOOD SERVICE 2016 14-17 June 2016 Expo Centre, Sao Paulo, Brazil www.fispalfoodservice.com.br

An Event of Great Magnitude

THAIFEX — World of Food Asia (WOFA), one of Asia’s influential international food and hospitality show, has announced details of the upcoming edition of the event. It will be taking place during 25th May- 29th May 2016 at IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Centre, in Bangkok.

The show, which has grown from strength to strength over the past 12 years, has become an important platform for regional and international food importers and exporters to connect with trade visitors from Asia and worldwide.

The show also acts as a platform to introduce the latest food innovations, technologies and trends.

At the press announcement held in Bangkok, hosted by the representatives of the show organiser Koelnmesse and its partners, the Department of International Trade Promotion and TheThai Chamber of Commerce, it was confirmed that the 2016 edition of THAIFEX — World of Food Asia will be spread across a recordbreaking 80,000 sq.m of Bangkok’s IMPACT Exhibition and Convention Centre, up from 70,000 sq.m in the last year’s edition of the event. Additionally,

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more than 1,800 companies from 30 countries will take part in the show.

Organisers are also expecting an 8 percent increase in trade visitors in this year’s show as compared to that of its previous edition.

International exhibitors is also set to increase by 13 percent as compared to that of the last edition of the show.

Approximately 900 foreign companies from China, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Turkey and European countries such as Italy and Germany are expected to participate at the show. New exhibitor countries include Brunei, Cambodia, Chile, India, Indonesia, Norway and Ukraine.

This strong international interest is reflected in the additional 10,000 sqm of showroom space added to this year’s event, which will attract a greater number of international exhibitors and trade buyers including importers, wholesalers as well as retailers and distributors.

One of the highlights of the forthcoming event is the 5th edition of Thailand Ultimate Chef Challenge (TUCC), which would be contested by over 1,000 Chefs from 10 countries. The competition will introduce a new category named ‘Bakery & Pastry’. The 2nd edition of Celebrity Coffee Bar (CCB) will feature Japan’s Hidenori Izaki who won the 2014 World Barista Championship with 10 other award-winning baristas showcasing their skills. Debut of ‘pop-up’ coffee shop Artisan Café by iconic Italian espresso maker La Marzocco is another of the highlight of the forthcoming event.

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MIFB 2016 17-19 June 2016 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia www.mifb.com.my Bakers Technology Fair 2016 22-24 July 2016 The Codissia Trade Fair Complex, Coimbatore www.bakerstechnologyfair.com TRAFS 2016 4-7 Aug 2016 Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre (BITEC), Bangkok www.thailandhoreca.com Fi and Hi India 2016 22-24 Aug 2016 Pragati Maidan, New delhi www.foodingredientsglobal.com/india/ home Asia Fruit Logistica, 2016 7-9 Sep 2016 Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre, Hong Kong www.asiafruitlogistica.com Annapoorna World of Foods India- 2016 22-24 September 2016 Hall 6 , Bombay Exhibition Center, Mumbai www.worldoffoodindia.com International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE) 8-11 October 2016 Las Vegas Convention Centre, Nevada, US www.ibie2016.com SIAL Paris 2016 16-20 October 2016 Paris Nord Villepinte, Paris www.sial.fr HOSTECH by Tusid 2016 2-5 November 2016 Istanbul Turkey www.hostechbytusid.com

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NEWS SCAN

Say Cheers to Nightlife at Shangri-La’s New Bar Shangri-La’s - Eros Hotel, New Delhi has opened a new bar named Grappa. Taking advantage of the picturesque alfresco terrace overlooking lush green lawns as part of its seating plan, Grappa offers a dynamic, casual and friendly ambience.

Blending modern innovations with classic reverence, the bar showcases a remarkable Italian inspired bar menu of experimental cocktails that have been curated to work effortlessly well with the food at the adjoining Italian restaurant, Sorrento.

What is more, you also get to groove to the music played by DJ Oma, a trusted name in the electronic music circuit, on Friday and Saturday evenings at Grappa.

Catering to Global Cuisines With a team of Master Chefs who together have experience of preparing over 350 global cuisines, the newly launched White Clove Catering by Mumbai-based Gourmet Renaissance promises to offer all types of dishes, ranging from classic to the molecular gastronomy or inspired favourites with élan.

Focused on sourcing best-quality raw materials, this luxury catering service seeks to use fresh, organic and hormone-free ingredients and implement stringent health and sanitation practices. With White Glove Catering, the food experience is complemented with high-end designer cutlery and crockery.

Noida Gets its Quirky Pan Asian Restaurant Mamagoto, the quirky pan Asian restaurant chain has opened a new outlet in Noida’s DLF Mall.

The new outlet spells ‘home’ to not only its existing customers, but also to the crowd of discerning locals seeking authentic and affordable panAsian flavours at a relaxed and casual space.

The interiors consist of vibrant, eclectic and quirky signature graphics designed exclusively for Mamagoto by Azure Hospitality’s Creative Director, Chetana Vij Sharma. The unconventional and edgy décor at the outlet creates the perfect setting for a fun Asian eating experience.

The menu at Mamagoto is thoughtfully curated with dishes that are predominantly of Asian origins, focusing mainly on the regional cuisines of China, Thailand and Japan (including a few from Indonesia, Myanmar and Malaysia). The menu boasts a selection of scrumptious appetisers, soups, salads and the Mamagoto signature rice and noodles that are served in a bowl, along with dishes from the Robata Grill, which uses a Japanese form of coal-firing barbeque cooking.

Enjoy Mamatiffin at Home To offer people a chance to experience a whiff of delicious yet affordable pan-Asian cuisine in the comfort of their home or work, Mamagoto recently launched an express lunch delivery service called Mamatiffin!

The Mamatiffin comes in a flawlessly packed version of a Bento box and offers a quick lunch delivery option to consumers who are time bound and yet crave for a complete scrumptious meal. The extensive menu offers eight options each for vegetarian and non-vegetarian consumers.

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No More Boring Breakfast With G. D. Foods introducing TOPS Chocoflakes, breakfast could be healthy without being boring. The high fibre breakfast alternative combines the benefits of healthy cereals with great and original taste of chocolate. This ready-to-eat breakfast menu, together with an affordable price, makes it a delicious and cost-effective breakfast for people to enjoy.

“By introducing Tops Chocoflakes, we aim to provide a healthy and tasty breakfast alternative to numerous households,” said Nitin Seth, Managing Director, G.D. Foods.

Research shows that breakfast not only offers a vital start to your day, but it is also a source of energy and should not be skipped.

Chocoflakes are a source of calcium, iron and essential vitamins, contributing to a balanced diet, the company said in a statement.

“Tops Chocoflakes are rich in taste and have very low fat content in it. It is a versatile breakfast that can be prepared quickly and conveniently and can be enjoyed with either hot or cold milk,” the statement added.

Where ‘Care’ Takes Centrestage Ethos of conviviality and care are at the heart of the hospitality business, stated the industry experts from India and abroad who gathered for the iHOST 2016 international conference, held at Le Cordon Bleu School of Hospitality, G D Goenka University in Gurgaon.

“This industry stands for warmth and welcome, for peace and prosperity, for happiness and hedonistic pleasures, for commemorating celebrations and milestones,” leading thespians and academicians of the industry said.

The conference attracted 35 papers from scholars and academicians from across India.

Roger Haden, Academic Director, Le Cordon Bleu Australia was the Chief Guest at the conference themed ‘Emerging Trends and Innovations in the Hospitality Industry.’

Speaking at the inaugural session of the conference, Haden underscored the importance of the unique hospitality ethos of conviviality and caring for people.

Other dignitaries who attended the sessions included David Hopcroft, General Manager, Le Meridien Gurgaon; Chef Anahita Dhondy, Chef Manager, SodaBottleOpenerwala; and Chef Abhishek Gupta, Senior Sous Chef, Tourant, among others.

Professor Deependra Kumar Jha, Pro-Vice Chancellor, G D Goenka University and Professor Y. G. Tharakan, Dean, Le Cordon Bleu School of Hospitality, presided over the sessions.

New Gravy Base on the Shelf VKL Foodservice has introduced Sunbay Gravies, a range of gravies and sauces that promises perfect taste and texture and are convenient to use. The four new gravy bases are — onion tomato gravy base, tomato makhani gravy base, yellow gravy base, and white gravy base. All the products allow you to create your own signature dish, and are available in sealed packs, with a shelf-life of 12 months.

With no artificial colours and flavours, Sunbay Gravies are 100 percent vegetarian and preservative-free.

These gravy bases can save your time and energy while preparing a wide variety of Indian dishes, without diluting the taste.

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NEWS SCAN

Sakshi Tanwar on Alcobrew Aims Big its mission statement at company celebration in London recently, New Mili Tea Packs Announcing Alcobrew, the makers of White & Blue, Golfer’s Shot and White Hills whisky, Celebrity television actor Sakshi Tanwar will be seen on the newly launched packs of Mili Tea that comes with an improved blend quality, the makers of the tea brand Wagh Bakri Tea Group announced.

“We are pleased to introduce our Mili Tea with improved blend quality and in new attractive pack that complements the quality demand,” said Parag Desai, Tea Sommelier & Executive Director of the Ahmedabad-based Wagh Bakri Tea Group.

With appetising colour and aroma, the improved blend of the tea also offers strong taste.

“Over the years, Mili has become preferred choice due to its consistency in taste and quality blend, among masses of this region. To complement the new Mili improved blend, the group also scientifically researched the design of the new pack before launching it in the market.

And with the launch we also announce our association with the celebrity Sakshi Tanwar,” Desai noted.

“This country is a heaven for tea lovers and I suggest tea lovers to have Mili Tea as it is strong and zaykedar,” Sakshi Tanwar said in a statement.

Heady Start for Mumbai Cocktail Week The first edition of Mumbai Cocktail Week, powered by WowTables, an online restaurant reservation portal that offers curated dining experience across India, and Mumbaibased driving services provider Zuver, raised a toast to the social drinking culture of the maximum city with a grand launch party at Trilogy, on April 2.

With signature cocktails and food pairings at their favorite bars including Trilogy, PDT Mumbai, Havana Club, The Bar Terminal, Blue Frog to name a few, the cocktail week probably offered Mumbaikars a whole lot of heady experiences to cherish.

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revealed its intention to be among the top five liquor companies in India by 2020.

“Within three years of its introduction to the Indian market, White & Blue Whisky has hit a sales volume of 1.5 million cases in 2015-16 but that is not the only reason to celebrate. We have doubled our revenue from Rs. 125 crores to Rs. 250 crores in 2015-16 and we plan to double it again in 201617,”said Romesh Pandita, Chairman and Managing Director, Alcobrew.

“Our commitment to produce and deliver quality world-class products has helped in earning brand loyalty from our consumers,” Pandita asserted.

Alcobrew has come a long way since its humble beginnings in 2006, when the company commenced manufacturing and bottling of Old Smuggler in India for Gruppo Campari.

“Campari and Alcobrew have worked in close cooperation since 2006 and we are confident this mutually beneficial, successful relationship will continue for the years to come,” Brad Timbrell, Gruppo Campari’s Regional Director for Asia, said.

Alcobrew’s brands are already present in more than 20 states across India.

Its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility located at Derabassi, Punjab was built to adhere to strict global standards provided by Gruppo Campari.

La Réserve Comes in New Avatar India’s premium wine maker Grover Zampa Vineyards unveiled the new look of its signature wine, La Réserve, at an event held at JW Café Mumbai recently.

The evening offered the attendees a unique pairing of award winning wine ‘La Reserve’ and delectable barbequed delicacies.

The first vintage of La Réserve, released in 1998, was a brainchild of Nashikbased Grover Zampa Vineyards and one of the world’s finest oenologists Michel Rolland. The new look of the brand represents the ageold tradition, international standards of quality, finesse, sophistication, elegance and maturity, a company statement said.

La Réserve is greatly enjoyed by epicureans in the most exclusive and prestigious restaurants in over 20 countries. The wine was selected in the menu

by L’Arpège in Paris, one of the most esteemed restaurants in the world.

“Over the last 18 years La Reserve has charmed the world with its class and elegance,” said Sumedh Mandla, CEO, Grover Zampa Vineyards.

“The change comes as a part of our strategy to stay relevant to the changing times and evolving consumer behaviour. We have also introduced a unique concept — La Réserve Barbeques — to provide an experience to wine connoisseurs and enthusiasts while making them discover the pleasure of pairing the La Réserve range with barbeque delicacies,” Mandla noted.

La Réserve has been created from hand-picked selection of some of Grover Zampa’s oldest Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz vines. The wine is matured in new French oak barrels.

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NEWS SCAN

Here Celebration is a Daily Affair If you find filling your stomach with food each day a mundane job, a visit to the newly launched The Daily Affair could turn your everyday experience into a matter of celebration.

Located in the residential area of Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, The Daily Affair promises an authentic café and bakery experience, infusing global and Indian cuisines to suit sweet and savoury palate.

The décor of the café has used shades of pink and blue to provide a comforting yet energetic vibe and quirkiness is added to the café through interesting props, decor and board games. The modern yet classique dishes and their presentation remind you of a quaint evening at one of Europe’s cosy eateries.

The place seems ideal for a date, a casual hangout or a quick grab and go.

“Here at The Daily Affair, the food is about everyday stories,” Prerna Wadwa Chawla, the owner of The Daily Affair, said.

Nestle Launches New Range of Greek Yoghurt Nestlé India recently announced the launch of a brand new exotic range of Greek Yoghurt under the brand name of NESTLÉ a+ GREKYO. “As a leader in nutrition, health and wellness, our endeavour is to provide consumers with nutritious and healthy products.

NESTLÉ a+ GREKYO is a further brand extension of the NESTLÉ a+ range,” the company said in a statement in April.

This delicious yoghurt is rich in nutrients, having 70 percent more protein and calcium as compared to ‘NESTLÉ a+ Nourish Toned Dahi’. It also has low fat and contains real fruit bits.

Specifically tailored for the Indian consumers, the product is available in several variants like strawberry, mango, pineapple and orange.

“We have introduced this product for the first time in India.

A perfect blend of health and indulgence, NESTLÉ a+ GREKYO has a rich and creamy texture coupled with real fruit bits,” said Arvind Bhandari, General Manager — Dairy, Nestlé India.

“Globally the Greek yoghurt category came into prominence less than a decade back and in certain countries it has already captured a major share of the entire yoghurt market. In India, this category is still at a nascent stage but we are confident that Nestlé will lead the global trend for the Indian consumers soon,” affirmed Bhandari.

In India, the product has been initially launched in Delhi and the National Capital Region, and will be available in other major cities soon, the company statement added.

Packaging Market Revenue to Reach $1 Trillion by 2021 The global packaging market is likely to show a steady growth and reach a global revenue of around $1 trillion by the year 2021, shows an analysis by DecisionDatabases, a global business research reports provider.

IoT (Internet of Things), nano technology, biotechnology, bio-based plastics and many such technological and product innovations have propelled the growth of global packaging market, the report said.

Packaging has become an integral part of a product’s lifecycle and has outgrown its traditional usage limited to protection.

Sustainability, environmental concerns and the demand to keep the product quality high has brought a major shift in the packaging industry, making it smart and active.

Among the various materials used in packaging, the paper and paperboard

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packaging market is estimated to be the largest market owing to its multiple applications in different sectors such as food and beverages, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics among many others. Companies in this industry are exploring the emerging markets by opening technological centres to understand the regional needs.

The growing e-commerce and online retailing is fuelling the growth of paper board packaging market. Flexible packaging is anticipated to grow in the food and beverage industry by improving the barrier layers and more non-reactive packaging.

World’s rigid packaging market is also expected to show an upward trend with companies opting for green packaging solutions.

Recently McDonald’s announced to source 100 percent of its fibre-based packaging requirement from recycled

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or certified sources by the end of 2020.

Similar is the move by Coco-Cola which aims to commercially actualise its “100 percent bio-based PlantBottle” dream by 2020.

Food and beverages packaging market is expected to grow owing to the rising demand for packed food, frozen food, packed beverages, etc.

High awareness and concerns over the state of packaged food and beverages has boosted the growth of food and beverages packaging market. Innovations in digital printing, technological advancement in smart and active packaging has brought major shift in the product range available in the market.

Asia-Pacific region is expected to be the fastest growing market as all developing countries fall into this region such as India, China, Japan and South Korea, the report said.

Apr-May ’16

PUBLI NEWS

All about SIAL Paris How do you set yourself apart today? Quite simply by visiting SIAL Paris to find new sources of inspiration that will awaken your consumers’ appetites! From 16th to 20th October 2016, SIAL Paris will host 7,000 exhibitors from 104 countries in a marketplace with 21 different sectors. A 360° product offering that will make Paris the capital of Planet Food! Over 5 days, you will have privileged access to the biggest showcase in food: from ingredients to equipment, from wines & spirits to alcohol-free beverages, from seafood to meat, gourmet foods, dairy and deli products and much, much more.

What is SIAL’s ambition? In a booming food industry, we want to provide genuine growth relays (thanks to a broader, more complete offer) and help you strengthen your business! In 2016, SIAL Paris will offer even more events such as SIAL Innovation, World Tour, Wine & Food Lab, In-Food Center and much more.

More than ever before, SIAL Paris is THE source for food inspiration!

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great reasons

to come to SIAL Paris

1> A product range appreciated by 9 out of 10 visitors (Source 2014) 2> 78% of exhibitors reveal new products (Source 2014) 3> Exclusive content to inspire you 4> A great many opportunities for talking to your peers from all over the world 5> The world’s largest food innovation exhibition

OR YOUR DER ENTRA NCE BADG E AT

WWW .SIAL

PARIS .C

OM

www.stockfood.com

Paris The world’s largest food

© Images by

innovation exhibition

More than 7,000 exhibitors from 104 countries 100% worldwide food retail industry For any question, contact our agent : Promosalons India Tel : +91 22 6610 0402 email : nitya@promosalons.com

More than 2,000 innovative products submitted

W W W. S I A L PA R I S . C O M Join us

Apr-May ’16 SIAL-PARIS-Inde-Food_and_beverage-220x307.indd 1

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NEWS SCAN

Le Creuset Launches Breakfast Collection for the Indian Market Le Creuset, a France-based premium cookware brand, has launched its Breakfast Collection for the Indian market. The colourful range of this breakfast collection from Le Creuset consists of a Grand Teapot, Classic Teapot, a jug, Espresso Mug and a Sugar Bowl. All these Le Creuset products are made of stoneware.

Presently, this Breakfast Collection from Le Creuset is present across the five stand-alone stores of Le Creuset.

Four of these stores are located in sleek malls across Delhi-NCR, whereas one of these five stores is located at Infiniti Mall at Malad, Mumbai.

According to a press release, the Classic Teapot and Grand Teapot of this Breakfast Collection, which are known as Stoneware Classic Teapot and Stoneware Grand Teapot respectively,

have large, easy grip handle which remains cold to the touch, making lifting and pouring effortless. They also have a steam hole, locking lid and an anti drip spout so as to prevent spillage.

One can gather from the press note that the scratch resistant surface of the Classic Teapot facilitates to keep it hygienic and free from absorbing odours and flavours. Grand Teapot’s 1.3L capacity is the perfect size for 4 cups of tea. Here it deserves a mention that Stoneware Grand Teapot also is easy to

Cremica’s New Product Ranges Can Facilitate the Industry In the recent past, Cremica Food Industries Ltd. displayed some of its new food product ranges. They can be greatly helpful for the food industry. One of the company’s newly launched product range is Desi Express, which according to press release, is a collection of 100 percent natural curry sauces. They are expected to help food business owners to serve their consumers a consistent and authentic taste of Indian cuisines. Offered in seven flavours, they

can be used to prepare a wide range of Indian recipes such as paneer makhani, pindi channa, mutton roganjosh, etc. Cooking with Desi Express is also time saving.

Another of the new product range from Cremica Food Industries is the Cremica Premium Dessert Toppings, which can cater to varied desserts. Black currant, strawberry, mango, chocolate, caramel are some of the flavours on offer in this range of premium toppings.

Cremica’s Sandwich Express is another newly launched product range from Cremica Food Industries. Sandwich Express is positioned as an exclusive range of condiments for sandwiches, pizza, pasta, salads and for other major QSR offerings in trend. The range included flavours from around the world.

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clean and is scratch resistant.

Both Stoneware Sugar Bowl and the Stonware Jug are fully enamelled and easy to clean, with a scratch resistant surface, thereby facilitating it to remain hygienic and free from absorbing odours and flavours.

While talking of Stoneware Sugar Bowl, the note observed that “Stoneware Sugar Bowl is a hygienic, durable and colourful way to preserve your sugar and is the finishing touch to your tea service.” The Stoneware Sugar Bowl comes with a lid to preserve sugar and it is microwave, oven, freezer and dishwasher safe.

The durable enamelled surface of Stoneware Mug resists staining, chipping and cracking, and is easy to clean. Providing a hygienic surface, it bars absorption of odours or flavours.

Barcelos Opens its Biggest Outlet in the World In the recent past, Barcelos spread its roots in India and launched the third Barcelos restaurant in Delhi-NCR, in Gurgaon Sector 29.

Presently, there are four outlets in India carrying Barcelos’s brand name, out of which two of them are owned outlets of Barcelos. The recently opened Gurgaon outlet is an owned outlet of Barcelos.

The restaurant is located in the heart of the corporate and commercial centre of Gurgaon. This new restaurant of Barcelos in India stands as the restaurant chain’s biggest outlet in the world.

The restaurant’s interiors and ambience have been designed around the European theme. The simulation of a vintage car in the restaurant could facilitate to make dining at the restaurant a memorable experience. There is a live kitchen concept in the restaurant which makes the whole restaurant environment interesting.

Barcelos is renowned for its flame grilled menu with peri peri sauces. According to a press release, “From revolutionising the concept of burger in India by presenting it in different colours to introducing India’s first Sangria Bar, Barcelos has won many people’s heart with its very own gourmet innovations.”

Along with the launch of this new outlet, Barcelos has also introduced the new menu for the Indian market, which includes coloured mini wraps. Available in chicken, mutton and veg variants, these coloured mini wraps are priced at Rs. 225, Rs. 275 and Rs. 285 respectively. These wraps are available in four different colours i.e. white, red, green and yellow.

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APPOINTMENTS

Luigi Ferraro

Mukul Jha

Jacob Justin

Ranveer Brar

Shangri-La’s - Eros Hotel, New Delhi has appointed Luigi Ferraro as the Italian Chef at the hotel’s newly launched Italian restaurant named Sorrento.

Chef Luigi brings with him more than two decades of hospitality experience from across the globe. Before moving to India, Chef Luigi served as Executive Chef for a luxury restaurant, Café Calvados, in Moscow, where he handled the complete management of the restaurant and staff, and conceptualised menus based on the fusion of creative Mediterranean and international cuisines.

Chef Luigi’s extensive culinary experience and wide repertoire in Mediterranean and international cuisines are accentuated by his philosophy of serving dishes orchestrated with passion and crafted to evoke full flavours. His culinary vision and creativity are expected to bring a new and elevated dining experience to Sorrento.

At Shangri-La’s - Eros Hotel, he has been working behind the scenes with the hotel’s Executive Chef Neeraj Tyagi and his culinary team to further define the restaurant’s food and beverage operations.

The team under his supervision has been artistically crafting dishes inspired by his classic culinary skills, use of authentic ingredients and his global experience.

Courtyard by Marriott, Chennai has appointed Jacob Justin as the Head Chef. In his new role Chef Jacob will be responsible for overseeing Courtyard

by Marriott Chennai’s dining venues — Paprika Cafe and Rhapsody — room service, catering and culinary events as well as further enhancing the hotel’s culinary offerings.

“We are delighted to welcome Chef Jacob to Courtyard by Marriott Chennai and we are confident that his expertise, impressive level of talent, and enthusiasm will help heighten the hotel’s diverse dining offerings to a new level of excellence for our guests,” said Prakash Jayadevan, General Manager, Courtyard by Marriott Chennai.

With over 15 years of experience in the food and hospitality industry, Chef Jacob brings to the table high quality service, and strong culinary and administrative skills.

A reliable leader and enthusiastic team member, Chef Jacob began his culinary journey with Park Hotels in 2002 and went on to work with Sheraton Creek Dubai, Courtyard by Marriott Ahmedabad, Radisson Blu, AVASA Hotels Madhapur Hyderabad and Raintree Hotels, Annasalai.

He has extensive knowledge in all aspects of food preparation and service. Chef Jacob is a specialist in pastry and confectionery products. Chef Jacob brings innovation into his menu by amalgamating traditional and modern culinary trends.

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Grand Mercure Mysuru, part of leading hotel operator AccorHotels, recently announced the appointment of Mukul Jha as Executive Chef. He will be responsible for overseeing all of the operations of hotel’s culinary offerings at its four restaurants and bars.

With 14 years of culinary experience in high-end hotels across India and Britain, Chef Mukul will lead the team at Grand Mercure Mysuru in taking quality cuisine into the next level of excellence.

His career began with ITC Grand Maratha Sheraton & Towers, Mumbai, following which he moved to Britain. He also assisted the Michelin Star Chef Darren Rowe during his tenure at Crowne Plaza, Birmingham. Brands such as Hilton, Starwood Hotel & Resorts, and Marriot also add to his successful career stints.

“With a wealth of experience in food and beverage management and the culinary arts, I am excited to offer unparalleled dining experience to this city. My mantra is value for money, constant innovation, consistent quality and great flavour. I hope to further enhance the impressive array of food and beverage offerings at the Grand Mercure, Mysuru,” Chef Mukul said.

Victorinox, the makers of the original Swiss Army knife, announced the appointment of celebrity Chef Ranveer Brar as its “Brand Friend”.

A host/judge for several TV shows (most popularly Snack Attack, Ranveer’s Cafe, The Great Indian Rasoi and MasterChef India — Season 4), winner of the Best Chef on TV award at the Indian Telly Awards 2016, and a food stylist, Chef Ranveer has several accomplishments up his sleeve.

“I am very excited to be on board with Victorinox. I have always used the knives and have a lot of respect for the brand’s finesse, craftsmanship and attention to detail,” Chef Ranveer said.

Chef Ranveer is famous for representing Indian food across the globe with over 20 years of experience in the food industry and more than 10 years at kitchen management positions across India and the US. “Victorinox has a lot to offer to Indians in general and cooks in particular, whether they be amateur or professional,” he added.

Victorinox is focused on creating household and professional knives that are aesthetically designed and are functionally accurate.

“Ranveer was a natural choice for Victorinox owing to his innovative and fresh approach to culinary arts,’’ Colonel Chandhoke, Managing Director and CEO of Victorinox, said.

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REPORT

Bread Expected to be Free of the ‘Hazardous’ Chemical

By Jyotismita Sharma

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n response to a study conducted by the New Delhi-based think tank, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) announced steps to ban the use of potassium bromate in making bread, in India.

The study, conducted by CSE’s Pollution Monitoring Laboratory (PML), found that many Indian bread manufacturers use potassium bromate and potassium iodate for treating flour while making bread. The use of these chemicals in the bread-making sector has been banned in many countries because they are listed as hazardous for public health — one is a category 2B carcinogen (possibly carcinogenic to humans) and the other could trigger thyroid disorders. India has not banned their use.

The CSE laboratory tested 38 commonly available branded varieties of pre-packaged breads, pav and buns, ready-to-eat burger bread, and ready-to-eat pizza breads from popular fast food outlets from Delhi.

“We found 84 percent samples positive with potassium bromate/iodate. We reconfirmed the presence of potassium bromate/ iodate in a few samples through an external third-party laboratory. We checked labels and

How the World Treats Potassium Bromate/Iodate?

In 1999, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified potassium bromate as possibly carcinogenic (cancer causing) to humans. It was found to cause tumours of the kidney, thyroid, and cancer of the abdominal lining in laboratory animals.

Considering potassium bromate as a ‘genotoxic carcinogen’, the JECFA (WHO/FAO Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives) in 1992 said that “use of potassium bromate as a flour treatment agent was not appropriate.”

The European Union had already banned its use in 1990 and so did the Britain.

Subsequently, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, China, Sri Lanka, Brazil, Nigeria, Peru and Columbia have also decided against its use.

Source: CSE

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talked to industry and scientists. Our study confirms the widespread use of potassium bromate/iodate as well as presence of bromate/iodate residues in the final product,” Chandra Bhushan, Deputy Director General, CSE, said in a statement.

Following this finding, the Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare, J P Nadda asserted that the government would take appropriate action to make breads and other bakery products safe for consumption, according to media reports.

Potassium bromate is one of the 11,000 food additives which are allowed in food business. But as per reports, following the CSE study, FSSAI has recommended the removal of potassium bromate from the list of permissible food additives to the Health Ministry, and further notifications would be issued by the Ministry in due course. After the removal of potassium bromate from the list of permissible food additives, its use in bread and other food items would be banned. The CSE, meanwhile has appreciated the regulator’s proactive move in deciding to examine the use of potassium iodate in bread-making.

“We welcome the steps initiated by FSSAI to ban potassium bromate and evaluate the use of potassium iodate – we hope a ban on potassium iodate will follow. The authority’s quick response to what we found in our study reestablishes our stand that public health must remain a priority,” Bhushan said in a separate CSE statement.

Potassium bromate is a powerful oxidising agent, use of which makes bread fluffy, soft and gives it a good finish. Under ideal baking conditions, bromate converts into bromide which is harmless. However, this does not seem to happen in practice.

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Bread Makers were Using Permissible Chemicals: ASSOCHAM Meanwhile, the Associated Chambers of Commerce & Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) has come out in support of the bread manufacturers and slammed CSE, saying that the food processing industry cannot be left to scare-mongering by NGOs. While the report by the CSE has caused a panic among the consumers resulting in plummeting of sales of bread and bakery products in India, the use of potassium bromate, purported to be harmful for health, was being done with the permission and full knowledge of the food regulator, the ASSOCHAM said in a statement.

“If at all there is a problem, it does not lie at the door of the industry, which only would be put to immense loss of consumer confidence and crores of rupees. Already, reports suggest a sharp fall in the sales of morning breads and a sense of panic among the homemakers,” ASSOCHAM Secretary General, D S Rawat said. The ASSOCHAM is all for adoption of internationally accepted food standards, Rawat added.

“But an impression has been created as if the entire lot of bread manufacturers is deliberately causing risk to the public health.

A similar thing had happened in the case of Maggi noodles, which finally returned to the market after an effective court intervention, but not without several hundreds of crores of rupees of loss to the manufacturers,” Rawat pointed out. The ASSOCHAM said if India had to scale up its food processing industry, it cannot be left to scare-mongering by NGOs. “The NGOs are free to be watch dogs, but they must realise that their reports and findings should not be targeted only at the industry….

While the government is trying to move towards the ease of doing business by relaxing the inspector raj, the NGO policing may harm many times,” the ASSOCHAM statement added.

Rawat said that the Health Ministry and the FSSAI should immediately come out with a clarification on the bread controversy. “Or else, immense loss of goodwill and financial loss would be caused. As it is, the stock prices of the food companies have come under pressure out of panic,” Rawat noted.

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REPORT

A Classy Dining, Entertainment and Banqueting Destination

By Swarnendu Biswas of Continental cuisine during her multiple overseas trips, got bowled over by the Napoli style pizza. At the same time, she also appreciated the multiple Indian dishes offered as starters. Though the restaurant has an impressive collection of beverages, but we chose only a beer for me and a coconut-based mocktail for Jyoti, as Jyoti cautioned me against my bad habit of going slightly overboard on drinking of alcoholic beverages, at times.

The starters were followed by the main course, which included Dhaba Murg, Mutton Kofta Curry, Paneer Lababdar, and Dal-e-Frontier. To put it mildly, it was sumptuous dining. We had tiramisu and hot gulaab jamun for dessert. Chowdhury

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have always maintained that the age of restaurant complexes, which encapsulate multiple dining and entertainment options within the ambit of a single set up, has arrived in the Indian metros. The advantage of restaurant complex is that it can cater to multiple guest profiles or guest interests within the same real estate. In the recent past, me and my colleague Jyoti got to visit one such restaurant complex in Punjabi Bagh, New Delhi.

The name of the restaurant complex is World Art Dining and it was launched in October 2015. It has three food service options within it. They are known as The CookHouse, The BrewHouse, and The Celebrations, which are spread across four floors.

However, Sanjay Chowdhury, the GM and Director, Dining Experience at World Art Dining, said that the management of the place is promoting the dining, partying and banqueting destination as an F&B hub.

The entire real estate is spread across 45,000 sq. ft. A total of 39 Chefs produce the diverse gastronomic requirements of the guests hosted at the restaurant complex or the F&B hub.

The CookHouse is a classy eating out venue, offering delectable oriental, European and Indian dishes to satiate the palate of its guests. The oriental offerings at the place happen to be fairly comprehensive, which include Japanese, Thai, Malaysian and Chinese cuisines

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among others.

We dined at The CookHouse, which a conventional dining venue. The CookHouse can accommodate 200 persons at a time and has three interactive kitchens. “Varied global cuisine menu is our specialty. Here you will always find enough variety of what you would want to relish. At The CookHouse, one can enjoy such diverse culinary specialties like Napoli style pizzas from live clay oven, sushi and as well as tandoori kebabs and wonderful Dal-e-Frontier, all under the same roof,” maintained Chowdhury. On weekends they have affordable buffet options.

I liked the Tandoori Jhinga, Gosht Shammi Kebab and Peeli Mirch ka Fish Tikka whereas Jyoti, who has developed a great liking for Italian and other forms

Sanjay Chowdhury

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

informed that they had an impressive array of expertly crafted desserts and confectionery on offer to complement the starters and the main course.

“The BrewHouse is targeted at the partying crowd, as here you can get a wonderful blend of foot tapping entertainment and heady beverages.

Here the diverse entertainment options can vary from soul stirring sufi music to a rip-roaring comedy night. Of course, we have live DJ and musicians,” offered Chowdhury. Badshahi Kebab Platter, Oriental Shrimp Balls, Sichuan Prawns, Zig Zag Fried Chicken, Chicken Salt & Pepper, Indonesian Paneer Satay are some of the many delectable snacking options available at this partying outlet, all of which can go very well with the drinks.

According to Chowdhury, many popular entertainers from the Indian subcontinent did come and performed at The BrewHouse, which included the noted

Apr-May ’16

REPORT Pakistani singer Farhan Saeed, Punjabi sufi singer Satinder Sartaj, and the former porn star turned Bollywood actress Sunny Leone among others. “The BrewHouse has been promoting some of the best names in the music industry, across the Indian subcontinent. Best of the performers have been swaying the crowds here for the last six months,” asserted Chowdhury.

The BrewHouse can accommodate up to 300 guests at a time and it can serve as an appropriate venue for throwing up an office or a private party. “True to its tagline ‘Music in Abundance’ the walls of The BrewHouse have the murals of maestros and legends who have made their names globally. The shades of grey and black go well with the theme; complimented by a happening bar and kitchen,” articulated Chowdhury.

He also maintained that The CookHouse and as well as The BrewHouse were already doing very well in terms of garnering revenues. The writer feels that both these dining and entertainment options do have the potential to become a rage among the west Delhi crowd.

Banqueting has been becoming a big source of revenue in the Indian food service and hospitality industry and World

Apr-May ’16

Art Dining has intelligently explored the market potential of banqueting by allotting two floors to cater to banqueting and conferencing options, which are termed as Celebrations I and Celebrations II. “Each of them can host 300 people at a time,” informed Chowdhury. The Celebrations I and Celebrations II are spread across first and second floor of the property, whereas The BrewHouse is stationed at the third

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

floor and The CookHouse is positioned at the fourth floor.

Both Celebrations I and Celebrations II have four types of dining options for the guests, which are termed as Luxury Veg, Luxury Non-Veg, Premium Veg and Premium Non-Veg. Done up in light shades and cushioned walls, here banqueting and corporate events can give a wonderful experience. n

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FOCUS

Outlets for Your Taste Buds

By Ashok Malkani

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raverse down the Western Express Highway in Mumbai and veer away from the Oberoi Mall towards the Goregaon flyover, for SV Road. As you climb down the Veer Savarkar flyover you cannot miss the attractive structure announcing ‘Grand Sarovar Premiere.’ Enter the hotel’s lobby, which is draped in attractively designed curtains, and enter the elevator to take you to level 2. The entire floor is devoted to satiating the Epicurean in you.

Here one can enter The Liquid Lounge (a bar), and then follow it up with a visit to 180 Degree (a restaurant serving Indian, Continental and Oriental food), culminating in The Tipsy Terrace (an open-air restaurant), which gives you a bird’s eye view of the surroundings.

We all know that there are multiple

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factors besides the quality of food served that can influence customers’ experience while they are eating out. They include the right ambience, the right décor and the right music among others. If all these three are in tune with the culinary character or the profile of the restaurant, then the entire experience can greatly contribute to the guests’ mood, and influence repeat visits from them.

Here it deserves a mention that the ambience of all the three F&B outlets discussed here are extremely calm and placating; inducing the customers to enjoy themselves, and maybe even attracting them to stay longer than they have originally planned for it is likely that they may be wanting to soak in the atmosphere of the place.

The Liquid Lounge is an ideal venue for the jet setting corporates to unwind and mingle over lunch or a few cocktails.

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Here wood, marble and glass blend in perfectly, creating an ambience and decor just right to enjoy the wonderful mix of business and pleasure.

The lounge has two huge TV screens, enabling you to watch the sporting events while you sip on your favourite spirit. The display cellar allows you to have a look at the array of spirits available. A private area in the bar is reserved for cigar smoking guests, where they serve fine cigars.

While you sip your Scotch, single malt, Cognac or cocktail or mocktail at the lounge, while watching a sporting event, Rahul Chitnis, the Food & Beverage Manager of the hotel, is always ready to help you with your choice of the bar’s finger licking crisp finger food. If you are a vegetarian you could order for some Mexican Nachos with Tomato Salsa. If you are curious about the antecedents of nachos, Rahul is eager to reveal the story behind nachos (see the Box Item). The lovers of vegetarian

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Rahul Chitnis

food could also try the Hara Bara Kabab (spinach and vegetable spicy dumplings).

For those preferring non-vegetarian options, they could try the Fried Calamari (cajun spiced calamari served with tartar sauce). Calamari is a squid.

The Fiery Pepper Chicken (wok tossed chicken with bell peppers and chilies served with sweet & spicy sauce) and Prawn Schezwan (marinated battered prawns lightly fried & served with spicy schezwan sauce) also go well with the spirits.

Some interesting cocktails that the guests could try at The Liquid Lounge are Woo Woo (Vodka, Triple Sec and Cranberry), Cuba Libre (Bacardi, Lime Juice, Coke), Weng Weng (Vodka, Napoleon Brandy, Whisky, Orange & Pineapple Juice, Orange Slice) and B-52 (Kalhua, Baileys and Cointreau) For lunch or dinner, step into the 180 Degree for buffet that has a wide array of delectable delicacies, comprising

The Legend of Nachos According to the legend of the dish’s origin, nachos were first conceived by a man named Nacho when he was working as the maître d’ of a restaurant in Piedras Negras, Mexico. Right before closing of the outlet, a party of women came in for a bite to eat.

The restaurant’s cook was nowhere to be found, but that did not made the ladies leave disappointed. The maître d’ came to their rescue!. He combined the first three things he found in the kitchen: shredded Wisconsin cheddar, tortilla chips, and sliced jalapeños, and came up with a dish.

When the women asked him what this new improvised dish was called, he told them “Nacho Especiales.” And nachos took birth in that unknown restaurant and soon spread its taste across the world…

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various cuisines. There is a counter dedicated to salads and soups. There is a separate section for the three cuisines – European, Continental and Indian cuisines – served every day.

Rahul informed that there was a daily change of dishes in each section, for each meal – lunch and dinner — at the restaurant. He also disclosed that each section did have a live counter. At 180 Degree there is also a wide range of desserts to satiate your sweet tooth.

The comfortable and cosy seating arrangement at 180 Degree provides you with privacy to indulge in business discussions. “Since the place is in close proximity to the busy IT sector in Goregaon Link Road, which is also a business hub, there is usually a large business crowd for lunch, at 180 Degree,” observed Rahul.

For those who would prefer their favourite dishes instead of the buffet, 180 Degree also has an a la carte menu.

You could start with the Kathi Roll (roomali roti spread with green chutney, stuffed with spicy paneer sabzi) and Kumbh on Toast (baked bread toasts topped with cheesy mushroom mixture). For the non-vegetarians there is the Chicken Tandoori Pili Pili (chicken leg piece with luscious spicy yellow marination, simmered in the tandoor) or Chapli Kabab (combination of minced lamb and lamb chops, shallow fried). An interesting sounding curry at the restaurant is the Kumbh Palak (mushrooms cooked in rich spinach gravy, served with steamed rice). Besides, you have a variety of matka biryanis and rotis to choose from.

For desserts at 180 Degree, it is wise to savour the universal favourite, Angoori Rabdi and the Gulkand Gulab Jamun.

In the evening, the local residents also come in for dinner under the starlit sky at The Tipsy Terrace, where one find foot tapping music along with several delectable dishes in its live counter. There is dominance of red in the ambience and décor of The Tipsy Terrace. Machli Mirch Masala, Jhinga China and Kakori Kebab are some of the sumptuous options at this rooftop restaurant. Here you could enjoy the yummy dishes or you could take the buffet dinner from 180 Degree and sit here beneath the starry skies. n

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C OV E R S TO R Y

Organic Food Gaining Momentum

With people becoming health conscious and the awareness about the harmful effects of pesticides gaining ground, the preference for organic food is becoming more pronounced. The organic food market, which is expected to grow at a CAGR of 19 percent, has encouraged several retail giants and online retailers to foray into this field.

However, one has to concede that the growth of organic food products in the Indian context has not been as rapid as it should be due to the fact that India is still a very price-sensitive society. But with the increasing disposable income levels and the growing consciousness about the benefits of organic food, the organic food market in India is expected to grow impressively in the future. Ashok Malkani takes a look at the benefits of organic farming, the growth of organic food market in India, and the challenges and potential for the organic food market in India.

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Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

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C OV E R S TO R Y

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ith chemicals becoming the norm in the regular agricultural produce, and people becoming more health conscious there is now a slow but steady growth in the demand for organic food. There are warnings that GMOs (genetically modified organisms) and pesticides can cause cancer and other diseases. This is also making the people to slowly opt for organic food. Once found only in health food stores, organic food is now a regular feature at most supermarkets.

“Today, the organic food production is drawing attention globally. The demand of organic food products is growing by leaps and bounds, especially in the developed countries. In the last decade, organic farming in India has also attracted a number of farmers. Many of the farmers in India are cultivating organic produce successfully, but still it has to get a momentum. It requires full-fledged support of government institutions, ICAR research institutes, SAUs, NGOs, etc. Then only the movement of organic food production in India can be made successful,” said P Bhattacharyya, Prof.& Director, Project Investigator of DST&TRIFED Project at Amity Institute of Bio-Organic Research and Studies.

Besides pricing, there are other factors

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which are impeding the growth of the market of organic food products in India.

Bhattacharya added that there was no regulatory mechanism for organic products in the local markets in India, as this is still a new area. In the absence of a regulation, there could be as many fakes stacked up with authentic ones. He avers that the confusion becomes worse when products labelled natural are also sometimes thought of as organic. In many ways, organic food is still a niche concept in India.

By definition, organic food means fruits, vegetables, food grains and processed food products that have been produced with no pesticides or inorganic fertilisers. The term ‘organic’ refers to the way agricultural products are grown and processed. Specific requirements must be met and maintained in order for products to be labeled as ‘organic.’

The global organic food & beverages market has witnessed healthy growth rates in the past decade as a result of appreciable demand from the developed nations of the world. Globally, the Oceania and European region had major contribution in terms of demand for organic food & beverages.

Benefits of Being Organic Organic food products are spruced with a number of benefits. Some studies show

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

that organic food products are more richly endowed with beneficial nutrients, such as antioxidants, than their conventionally grown counterparts. In addition, people with allergies to some food, chemicals, or preservatives often find their symptoms lessen or go away when they eat only organic food products. Some of the benefits of organic food are given below: Organic produce contains much fewer pesticides. Pesticides are chemicals such as fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides. These chemicals are widely used in conventional agriculture and residues remain on (and in) the food we eat, which can create harmful effects on health.

Organic food is usually fresher because it is devoid of preservatives that make the food last longer. Organic produce is often produced on smaller farms near where it is sold, which gives it a sustainable character.

Organic farming is better for the environment. Organic farming practices reduce pollution (air, water, soil), conserve water, reduce soil erosion, increase soil fertility, and use less energy.

Farming without pesticides is also better for birds and small animals near the farm as well as for the people who live close to or work on farms.

Organically raised animals are not

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given antibiotics, growth hormones, or fed animal byproducts. The use of antibiotics in conventional meat production helps create antibioticresistant strains of bacteria. This means that when someone gets sick from these strains they will be less responsive to antibiotic treatment. In addition, in organic farming practices, generally the animals are given more space to move around and access the outdoors, both of which help to keep the animals healthy.

Organic meat and milk are richer in certain nutrients. Results of a 2016 European study show that levels of certain nutrients, including omega-3 fatty acids, were up to 50 percent higher in organic meat and milk than in conventionally raised versions. This may be because organic milk and meat come from cattle that graze on a natural diet of grass, while conventional meat and milk usually come from animals fed with grain.

Organic food is GMOfree. Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) or genetically engineered (GE) food are plants or animals whose DNA has been altered in ways that cannot occur in nature or in traditional crossbreeding, most commonly in order to be resistant to pesticides or produce an insecticide. In most countries, organic crops contain no GMOs and organic meat comes from animals raised on organic, GMO-free feed.

Growth of Organic Food Market Here it deserves a mention that organic farming is not a new concept of cultivation but has been practiced since ancient times in India and in central Europe. The Indian agriculture of ancient times thrived on organic farming. In

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traditional India, the entire agriculture was practiced using organic techniques.

When we talk of the modern era also we can find that organic farming has attracted intellectual discussion and work since decades. However, in the recent times, organic agriculture and organic produce are regaining importance as tangible market phenomenon.

Today, with reports of food adulteration emerging in the global media and consumer awareness towards healthy food increasing, the demand for organic food is gaining currency. Moreover, with the rise in disposable incomes among select but sizeable pockets of urban Indian society, we are seeing that a section of Indian consumers are increasingly willing to pay for organic food products.

“The organic food market in India has almost quadrupled in size in the last three years with domestic market standing at around Rs. 300 crore and export market at around Rs. 700 crore. The growing health consciousness and awareness about the organic products have helped clock further scalable reach and critical mass over the past few years. The market, which started off by occupying a handful of shelves at retail stores, has nearly tripled its shelf space over the last five years. According to industry estimates, organic food market in India is projected to register a growth at a CAGR of over 25 percent during 2015-20,” said Ravi Capoor, IAS, Chief Executive Officer, IBEF, in August 2015.

“In light of the health benefits associated with consumption of organic food and rise in the number of diseases on account of excessive chemical contamination of conventional food, the preference for organic food is growing

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

rapidly. The gradual emergence of organic food as an essential part of the daily diet among the upper class population in India is also an encouraging sign towards the bright opportunities available for this sector in the coming years,” he added further.

“With rising cases of food adulteration across the country, the demand for organic food products has gone up significantly. Growing number of upper middle class people in India are becoming increasingly concerned about the food quality, and are willing to pay a premium of 10-20 percent for organic food products. As a result, this segment is currently emerging as a major demand driver for the organic food products market in India,” observed Karan Chechi, Research Director with TechSci Research, a research based global management consulting firm. The major organicfood-producing states in India include Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh, the research firm noted.

“Though high prices of organic food are hindering widespread adoption, producers are increasing their focus on reducing the price differential between organic and inorganic food products in India. As demand for organic food products rises, increase in production and economies of scale would result in reduced cost of production, further driving growth in India’s organic food market over the next five years,” said Karan Chechi, Research Director with TechSci Research, in the TechSci Research’s report titled ‘India Organic Food Market Forecast and Opportunities, 2020.’

“In terms of exports, traditional markets like US, EU, Canada, Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand are among the prominent consumers of organic products from India. While Europe and North America continue to be the largest consumers of organic food, the organic food market in Asia is expected to account for the highest growth rate over the next five years,” Capoor noted.

According to the recently published TechSci Research report titled ‘India Organic Food Market Forecast and Opportunities, 2020’,the organic food market in India is projected to register growth at a CAGR of over 25 percent during 2015-20. The report stated that the growing health consciousness is the

Apr-May ’16

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Apr-May ’16

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C OV E R S TO R Y key factor surging the demand for organic food products in India. Other factors driving growth in the market include higher income levels, improving living standard, and favourable government initiatives aimed at improving the current scenario of organic farming in the country by providing financial and technical support to organic farmers.

Also, the availability of organic food products in India is rising gradually because of a steady increase in the number of retail and distribution stores in the country. We are seeing the establishment of exclusive organic food stores and outlets across urban India.

Organic food is priced comparatively higher than the conventional food, since the cost of production is higher in case of the former. However, for a price conscious country like India this impedes the growth opportunities of organic food market. There is no denying the fact that organic food products have a higher demand in developed nations as compared to India.

However, the Indian market for organic food products is growing impressively.

According to estimates, India has the highest number of organic farmers around the globe. In India, Mumbai and Delhi region remain the highest contributors towards the demand for organic food.

“Three years back, this market was approximately Rs. 70 crore. We are growing at a very healthy rate year on year.

In the last five years, the shelf space given to organic food has tripled. However, retailers in India are yet to realise the full potential of organic food products,” said Raj Seelam, Managing Director of Sresta Natural Bioproducts Pvt. Ltd, which claims that its brand 24 Mantra is the largest player in the realm of organic food, in India. Hyderabad-based Sresta Natural Bioproducts has plans to carry out organic farming on five lakh acres of land across the country, over the next three-four years.

“The company is working with more than 25,000 farmers in 15 states, covering 1.5 lakh acres of agricultural land and we expect to scale it up to five lakh acres over the next three-four years. We will work with around one lakh farmers after reaching the target of five lakh acres,”

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Seelam added.

Mohit Khattar, the former MD, Godrej Nature’s Basket said awareness around polluted ground water near industrial area, increasingly chemical laden environment in general or the harmful impact of chemicals in day to day food have added to the consciousness of consumers. “It definitely makes them want to change simple things around them. And one of the things they can change easily is adopting a healthier and more sustainable way of life. It is in this context that organic products are seeing increased acceptance and growing popularity,” said Khattar.

Godrej Nature’s Basket, which has been a pioneer in India in bringing and selling organic products like tea, pasta, and sauces across its stores, plans to

enhance its range of organic options further and make their availability more consistent.

Challenges and Potential “India is capable of growing all kinds of organic food products. Farmers should be educated to boost organic cultivation.

The government is spending crores of rupees on organic farming. Despite this, not many people are aware of organic farming,” said. Mohanbhai Kalyanbhai Kundariya, Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.

He asserted that “Organic farming not only protects land and water resources, but also improves farm income.” The Minister emphasised on the need to increase awareness about certified organic food products.

However, a study conducted by the government of India said, ‘The level of awareness about organic food products in India is extremely low and is limited to consumers in metro cities.”

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

The study suggested that companies in collaboration with the government should organise awareness and training programmes for farmers as well as consumers. “This would result in optimum utilisation of resources, cultivation of better quality food products and overall increase in productivity as well as consumption,” it added.

The study also recommended that organic producers should focus on pulses and other food grains to maximise earnings, besides tapping export potential in the Middle-East and South-East Asia, which have high concentration of high net worth individuals.

Besides, still being a highly niche market in India, the fact remains that organic food products’ market in the country is largely disorganised. “The market for organic food products in India is highly unorganised,” maintained Karan Chechi.

Furthermore, though organic food market in India is expanding but the farmers are unable to realise the full potential of the crops grown through organic farming. “It is because they are marginalised by the government which extended maximum support to corporate entities,” said G.V. Ramanjaneyulu, Director of Secunderabad-based Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA).

Addressing a seminar on organic farming at Andhra Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI), some time ago, Ramanjaneyulu said empirical data gathered from about nine lakh farmers across the country proved that the difference in yields of organic and conventional systems of agriculture was just about five percent.

Succinctly, organic food products in India need better marketing support by the government, and post harvest and supply chain issues also do plague the farmers engaged in organic food production. They need to be sorted out.

Some time back, Ramanjaneyulu emphasised on the requirement towards a significant movement in fertilser usage from NPK to organic manures and from chemical-based pesticides, which have high concentration of heavy metals, to eco-friendly substances. n

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BUSINESS

Street Food

Can Mean Smart Business Food has a burgeoning market. It always had, but nowadays this market is evolving fast. With changing tastes, the demand for different cuisines may differ but one food that is bound to remain favourite of millions of Indians is the delectable street food.

The spicy and tasty street food has become a part of the popular culture of modern India. Students or office goers, all of them revel in the spicy street food doled out by the vendors on beachside, on commercial and business areas, as well as near educational institutions. The recent entry on the scene of street food in urban India is that of food trucks. Not requiring heavy investment and having high rate of profitability, street food business in India is a tempting market to enter into. Ashok Malkani weighs the pros and cons of this potentially lucrative business.

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Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Apr-May ’16

BUSINESS

T

alk of savoury food that sets your taste buds tickling and the first thing that can come to many people’s mind is the street food.

Tasty and affordable! These two qualities make them a favourite of the masses.

This craving of the masses for street food is the reason why several enterprising individuals have entered into this field, catering to the lovers of street food.

The popularity of street food can be explained as a product of modern day urbanisation and the hectic lifestyles which goes with it. Nowadays many people do not have the time to cook in their homes. A great many of these people also do not have the affordability to regularly dine at a restaurant. For them street food is an affordable and tasty option to fill their belly. According to a 2007 study from the Food and Agriculture Organisation, 2.5 billion people eat street food every day.

However, street food is nothing new. It is famous all over the globe, and has been there since ages. In fact, small fried fish were a popular snack food item in ancient Greece. Evidence of street food purveyors was found by

the archaeologists who painstakingly uncovered the two thousand year old streets of Pompeii in Italy. Ancient China also had its own street food. Aztec marketplaces had vendors who sold beverages such as atolli (a gruel made from maize dough), and almost 50 types of tamales.

According to Wikipedia, a travelling Florentine reported in the late 14th century that in Cairo people brought

picnic cloths made of raw hide to spread on the streets and sat on them while they ate their meals of lamb kebabs, rice, and fritters that they had purchased from street vendors. Street food was popular then and is popular now, and it is likely that it would be popular a century or a millennium in the future.

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BUSINESS unhygienic pani-puri. Moreover, I never wanted to work for somebody else, I always wanted to create my own system rather than following somebody else’s.”

Favourite Street Food

times is expected to only increase further. And it is about time street food business in India becomes more organised and hygienic.

Street food in India is generally served from stand-alone outlets as well as pushcarts and, now, from food trucks too. Street food is of particular economic importance in India as it is a livelihood for many pushcart vendors, dhaba owners and their families. The diverse culinary influences in street food range from the Mughlai to oriental to the continental.

For most Indians, street food is a way of life. From school going children to blue and white collared workers to weekend family crowd, street food are loved by Indians from diverse age groups and socio-economic profiles.

Indians just love street food! Be it hogging on to chaat after coaching classes or going on a golgappa spree at a wedding, street food truly brings out the foodie inside us. India has a wide array of street food options like pani-puri, bhel, samosa, pav bhaji, rolls, kebabs, chhole bature, etc. which are relished by all age groups — from children to the elders.

Therefore spicy pani-puri, ragda patties, pav bhaji and many other delectable street food items, while satiating the taste buds and the appetite of the people, can also serve as sources of income for the enterprising. Street food in India has tempted many to enter the street food business.

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Take the case of Prashant Kulkarni of Chatar Patar. He quit his job at Infosys to venture into street food. He decided to combine his love for street food in general and pani-puri in particular, and his knowledge of business management.

Prashant turned the thriving hawker style street food business of India and made it into an organised one with a chain of stores across the country.

The Founder-Director of the 25 member strong company, which has 14 outlets across 6 states, said, “I stumbled into street food business accidentally when I suffered from eating roadside pani-puri. I got this concept of adding hygiene and health to the tasty panipuri from my own bad experience of

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Street food business can be very lucrative but if you are planning to start street food business in India you need to be aware of the favourite street food that most Indians would like to gobble up. Some of the popular street food in India are pani-puri, bhel puri, sev puri, dhahi batata puri, samosa, kachori, kebabs, chhole bature among others.

Then you have the Indian burger also called vada pav. It is a popular vegetarian fast food dish native to the western Indian state of Maharashtra.

It consists of a batata vada aka potato patty, sandwiched between two slices of a pav (bun), smeared with Indian sauces and veggies. Of course, the western burger can also be classified as street food. Street food has a fairly broad ambit. In fact, any food which can be had on street and is generally sold by the street vendors can be classified as street food. Sometimes street food is made synonymous with fast food.

There is also the kati roll, which is believed to have started its life in Kolkata, in the pre-independence era.

There are many stories about how exactly the roll came about. Some centre on harried office commuters who wanted something quick and portable, while others talk about British officials who were too fastidious to touch the spicy kebabs (cubes of meat marinated

Apr-May ’16

BUSINESS and cooked on a skewer, usually with vegetables). The famous kati rolls are made by wrapping warm parathas around meats, curried vegetables or cottage cheese and finished with an assortment of sauces.

Many Indian street food products, which were originated from one part of the country, have become popular in another part of the country too, over the decades. In fact, the popularity of street food is another of the reflections of the pluralistic culture of our country.

For example, the chole bhature of north India is quite popular in Mumbai and many other places outside north India.

Similarly, galauti kebab from Lucknow has a pan India reputation and idli sambar, masala dosa and uttappa from South India are very popular in other parts of India too.

Besides the above-mentioned delicious food products, the aloo tikki from north India, litti choka from Bihar, the famous Bikaneri kachori are some of the many other popular street food options that you can concentrate on when you are ready to enter the fast evolving Indian street food business.

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For Starting Street Food Enterprise Starting your own street food business needs you to look into various aspects of this business. Although intrepid foodies will travel far and wide for their fill, location in the food service business remains the key, and street food business is no exception to this rule. In fact, the success of street food business greatly

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

rests on appropriate location. If you are planning to serve slightly high-end or exotic street food in Indian cities, go for an up market locality, and if you want to serve affordable and familiar street food, it is better to choose a crowded middle class locality for your street food business.

Selecting the right location should be

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followed by solid research. Researching the street food business in India should be one of the first things you should do before starting your street food business. Also check out other street food players in your area. Learn what your potential customers would enjoy.

And then plan what to sell. Researching the market at beginning itself will save you a lot of time, energy and grief after

you start.

When starting a street food business in India, you are expected to face some legal complexities. They should not dampen your spirits. To sort them out effectively you may need the services of an expert, who can guide you through applying and obtaining the relevant licenses and permits. You could contact FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards

Authority of India) Consultant to solve all your queries relating to proper food licenses and the food safety standards in India that need to be followed.

Maintaining hygiene and food safety standards in your future street food outlet/outlets on a daily basis is also required. Nowadays, the eating out crowd in India have become more knowledgeable and particular about the cleanliness and hygiene of food, and thus you need to make sure that proper hygiene and food safety are maintained at your outlet/outlets, on a continual basis.

Handle your food properly and address your customers’ hygiene requests readily.

The Food Safety and Standards Act describes food contamination, food safety and hygiene for street food vendors in India. The Act delves on the standards for clean vending premises, food handling, storage & service. It also highlights on keeping food safe from infections.

For marketing your street food business you should rely greatly on word of mouth promotion.

Lastly, enter the street food business only if you have love and passion for it.

If your heart isn’t in it, it is unlikely that you would be successful in your street food enterprise. n

Food Truck Business

T

he street food is normally prepared and sold in carts. However, of late, food trucks have also become popular in India. Nowadays a number of entrepreneurs are doing impressive business through presenting wholesome dishes in vehicles.

This is the next level of your conventional street food business.

Food truck business can be a potentially lucrative enterprise in India’s food service industry, in today’s times. With good food truck business plan in place you can acquire impressive returns on your investment within a very short interval of time.

Many other countries are also following the trend of mobile food business. Several famous restaurants around the globe have begun this mobile food business so as to grow their business throughout of the city.

As far as the investment is concerned, a mobile food truck can be set up for as little as Rs.5-10 lakh in cities like Bangalore and Delhi. In fact, this amount would suffice to start mobile food truck business anywhere in the country. You can get the kitchen of

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the food truck installed with the help of local manufacturers or you can buy fully readymade food truck vehicle. It will be cheaper for you if you go for installation of kitchen by yourself.

In order to start a food truck business in India you need to have proper licenses.

These are: • Food Business Operating License or a shop and establishment license from FSSAI (Food Safety & Standards Authority of India).

• Eating House License provided by the Licensing Police Commissioner in your city.

• License from Fire Department in your city to ensure the compliance of all fire safety guidelines.

• Commercial Vehicle License from RTO in your city.

• Insurance for the vehicle and mobile kitchen equipments.

As far as marketing your food truck business goes, if your food truck serves awesome food, then word-of-mouth is enough. Unless you are sure of that, you

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

should employ other marketing techniques as well. However, it should be taken into account that running a food truck in India can get challenging at times as it is a nascent concept in India.

As a food truck entrepreneur in India you would often be needing loads of patience, proper planning and adaptability to the changing market conditions. But with proper implementation, you won’t have to struggle much. Even if you do struggle, have faith in yourself and in your business.

Besides garnering business from crowded streets during lunch hours, the food truck can cater to special events and corporate functions and also to the event planners.

Make it a point to employ or cultivate your networking skills to meet the people who can recommend your name as a caterer. Also try to creatively use the social media. You can inform your followers about your exact location through Twitter feed, or can interact with your guests and potential guests by allowing them to vote on your new menu items.

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FEATURE

The Case of Interactive Menus

By Swarnendu Biswas

I

n this digital age, restaurant business is expected to go through many significant changes. One thing now seems almost certain that the digital age would create more opportunities as well as challenges for the food service business as a whole.

In this age, those food service enterprises who would be savvy enough to quickly and intelligently explore and exploit the opportunities along with effectively tackling their associated challenges are likely to race ahead of the competition, those great many outlets who would follow the success stories of the first group are likely to be the part of hugely populated universe of competition, whereas those who would be bogged down by the challenges and let the opportunities of the digital age slip by time and again are not only likely to be left behind, but they may even be thrown out of the race.

One of the ways for the Indian food service industry to explore the opportunities of the digital age could be to go for interactive menus, involving the participation of guests and potential guests. While I was doing a feature story on Loofre.com some months ago, Rohit Mahajan, the Managing Partner of Loofre.com, broached the topic of interactive menus during our discussion, while talking about the company’s future plans. I came to know that the restaurant merchant aggregator will soon come up with an app based next generation booking engine. Through this initiative consumers will be able to not only book a table, but also place their orders and pay their restaurant bills through mobile.

“At the next stage of evolution of Loofre.

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com, we will be able to provide the menu of the outlets on the mobiles, and would also be able to provide the option for the guests to pay through their mobiles,” Mahajan affirmed.

The discussion sparked interest towards interactive menus in me, and I began ruminating on its various interesting dimensions...Nowadays the restaurants are placing their menus on their websites, which today can be accessed not only through the laptop, be also through the mobile. Restaurants can also place the same menu on their Facebook pages too. Many restaurants in India probably have initiated this exercise already.

sure most of them would be irrelevant, unpragmatic, bizarre or plain stupid ones.

The managements of the food service outlets need not pay any attention to those ones, but I am sure some of the suggestions would also be pragmatic and even innovative ones too(good quality, in any aspect of life, is a rare but a sure occurrence). The quality suggestions can be shortlisted by those food service outlets which would choose to undertake this comprehensive exercise, and those shortlisted suggestions to introduce alterations in the menu could be subjected to an online opinion poll by the food service outlets concerned.

Shortlist the Suggestions

The online opinion polls can be conducted through the outlets’ website or on their Facebook page, and as usual the guests and potential guests can easily access these opinion polls through mobiles too (I am assuming that by and large, only guests and potential guests of a given food service outlet would be interested in the opinion poll pertaining to that outlet). It would be better if the online opinion polls have more than one question(to ascertain the viability of the suggestions on more than one parameter) but not too many questions. Too many questions may bore the fickle attention span of today’s guests and potential guests.

For example, some of the questions of the opinion poll could be: Kindly tell us would the implementation of this suggestion (the shortlisted suggestion will be written) increase the popularity of our menu offerings in the short-run?

Now restaurants and other food service outlets in India can keep a tab on the preferences and dislikes of the guests through the help of the guests’ feedback form, and invite their guests and potential guests to give their suggestions on the food service outlets’ menu, on those food service outlets’ website or Facebook page.

In this way, a lot many guests’ suggestions can be garnered, and I am

Rohit Mahajan

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Online Opinion Polls

Apr-May ’16

FEATURE Would the implementation of this suggestion to change our menu help enhance the revenues of our restaurant in the long-run?

Does this suggestion gel well with our ambience, décor and culinary profile?

Would the implementation of this suggestion adversely affect the market position of our restaurant?

Would the implementation of this suggestion strengthen the existing market position of our restaurant?

Ideally, after every week a new shortlisted suggestion should be subjected to a fresh online opinion poll, so that the comprehensive viability of all the shortlisted suggestions for a food service outlet are ascertained by the management of the given food service outlet.

Expert Advice The suggestions which would generate favourable response through online opinion polls (what would construe a favourable response should be ideally judged by the food service outlets conducting the online opinion polls) could be placed before the Chef or

Apr-May ’16

part in the interactive menu development process, which can continue for months?

Ideally, the people whose suggestions would be included in the menu should get some lucrative rewards, which can be in the form of cash, or kind (for example, five free meals at the restaurant with the family).

Possible Benefits

Anisha Dhar

the team of Chefs of the concerned food service outlets. If the Chef or the majority of the team of Chefs of a given food service outlet gives green signal to those suggestions, then those suggestions should ideally be introduced in that outlet’s menu.

The incentive for the guests and potential guests who would be taking

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This hypothetical exercise, if translated into reality for the Indian food service industry, can help many players in the Indian food service business to gauge the market trends and their guests’ preferences and dislikes without opting for cost-intensive market research.

However, here it deserves a mention that often there is no single market trend flowing through a given strata of society in a given point of time, and the food service business in the context of Indian market is no exception to this general rule. At present, like always, the Indian food service industry is going through several market trends. They may not be always parallel, for they may overlap, but these trends often are distinct in character from each other.

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FEATURE For example, the market trend for a high-end fine dining restaurant in Delhi or Mumbai, which is focusing on Continental cuisine, would be different than the market trend for a casual dining outlet in Lucknow, focusing on Awadhi cuisine. That is why the consumer perceptions of the guests and potential guests of a given restaurant are required to ascertain the specific market trends relevant to that given restaurant accurately, for a general rule may not fit all.

At the same time, this exercise of interactive menus could help the guests and potential guests of food service outlets to plan their lunch or dinner in advance, in a more systematic manner, and thereby save on eating out costs. If the menus of the outlets are accessible to the guests, they can easily calculate their budget before they leave for their eating out. This can be extremely pragmatic for guests who are hosting parties or coming in groups. This in turn can lead to more footfalls in the outlets in the long-run, who are conducting this exercise of interactive menus.

Moreover, this exercise, though slightly exhaustive, can help the guests and potential guests of food service outlets undertaking the exercise feel more important, and who doesn’t want to feel that her/his views are being listened to and recognised? Thus customer engagement with the food service outlets may increase through this initiative.

Industry Feedback “It is a great way of reaching out to a large number of guests and potential guests in a more transparent manner.

This exercise can help people develop a connection with the place. It is the way of telling customers that we really care about what your understanding and passion for food is. Moreover, you get to understand the drift of the market trends. This engagement with people on one to one basis and connecting with them through this digital activity would be great,” opined Anisha Dhar, the Co-Founder, Eatonomist.com, when I discussed this idea with her. Here it deserves a mention that Eatonomist is a Gurgaon-based online food start-up providing delicious and calorie counted gourmet meals at your doorstep. According to Anisha, meals from Eatonomist do not include any preservative. Eatonomist doesn’t have a physical store and orders are taken

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Nupur Khanna

online and delivered from a centralised or distributed kitchen network.

Nupur Khanna, the Co-Founder, Eatonomist.com, believes that “this initiative won’t reap immediate benefits in terms of revenues but could turn out to be the tortoise in the tortoise and hare fable.” “This initiative will have a trickling effect and its popularity would spread primarily through word of mouth,” Nupur felt. “This would be a good step towards great customer satisfaction as customer will feel a part of the making and building of the restaurant brand. They in turn will feel responsible in their own way towards doing good for the restaurant concerned as they will have some sort of association with it,” Anisha averred.

While our discussions were going on, Nupur also suggested an interactive initiative of her own, which we would discuss in one of our future issues, as it is somewhat different from the topic under exploration here.

However, there is a flip side towards execution of this idea, which must be factored into. I also discussed the topic of interactive menus with my dear friend Praveen Patni, who is also the Vice-President of Ambrosia Bliss, a huge 280-seater restaurant or rather

This exercise of interactive menus could help the guests and potential guests of food service outlets to plan their lunch or dinner in advance, in a more systematic manner, and thereby save on eating out costs.

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

a restaurant complex at Connaught Place. He found the idea of interactive menus for food service outlets to be interesting one. However, he pointed out that this exhaustive initiative may entail additional employment by the food service outlets “to keep vigil on customer feedback,” which can borne additional costs.

If the exercise to incorporate the customer suggestions in menus is being conducted by the food service outlets on a regular basis, then additional regular staff would be required by those outlets, whereas if these customer surveys are conducted only during a given period of time of the year, or during specific periods of time of the year, then in that case the additional temporary staff’s costs only need to be borne by the food service outlets concerned.

While we were conversing, Ravi Tiku, the GM of Ambrosia Bliss, joined us.

He felt quite enthusiastic about the idea.

“I really feel this kind of initiative can do wonders, though not immediately, but in the long-term. If a restaurant’s management is serious about customer involvement it should not have problems in specially deputing a few professionals dedicated for this exercise,” he affirmed.

Rohit Mahajan, as was expected, sounded very supportive of this exercise.

“We see restaurants doing redo of the menu or ambience frequently. Why to have something in the menu without knowing the customers’ feedback? Now innovation in food will be the key to retain customers, which is expected to lead to increase in the restaurants’ revenues,” pointed out Mahajan, while adding that the idea behind interactive menus should “not only be to increase the number of customers but to get repeat customers.”

Overall, we can surmise that this particular concept of interactive menus can prove to be successful in terms of food service outlets’ bottom lines only if the cost of hiring the extra personnel for ascertaining the customer feedback accurately and dispassionately becomes less than the additional revenues earned through this exercise in the long-run.

I personally believe that adhering to the market trends accurately through customer feedback will give a huge impetus to the revenues of the food service outlets in the long-run, though many industry experts may differ from this view, which they are welcome to. n

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FEATURE

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AGRI

Jack is a Fruit

By Swarnendu Biswas

T

he jackfruit is a species of tree belonging to mulberry and fig family, which is known as Moraceae.

Its fruit is also known as jackfruit. Jackfruit’s origin can be traced to the southwestern rain forests of the Indian Subcontinent, which passes through the present day Kerala, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, coastal Karnataka, Odissa, and Sri Lanka.

One can safely say that India is the place of origin of this delicious and huge tropical fruit, which emerges when the summer matures.

Background Today jackfruit tree is widely cultivated in the tropical regions of the Indian subcontinent, and also in Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and Brazil. India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia are among the important producers of jackfruit in the world. Tropical lowlands present the friendly environment for the cultivation of jackfruit tree. The jackfruit tree’s height can reach up to 70 ft. Jackfruit is also massive in character like the tree which bores it. In fact, jackfruit is the largest tree-borne fruit in the world.

The weight of a jackfruit can vary between 3 to 35 kg, and the fruit can reach 90 cm in length and 50 cm in diameter. The jackfruit tree is quite prolific too; its production ranging from 100 to 250 fruits every year.

The jackfruit comprises of bulbs, whose numbers for a single jackfruit can range from fifty to hundreds. Their colour varies from orange to yellow. Each bulb comprises of sweet flesh surrounding a light-brown seed.

These sweet fleshy portion surrounding the seeds are eaten as ‘fruit. While the unripe jackfruits are green, as they ripen they turn light brown. They also begin emanating a strong and distinctive aroma, once they are ripe. The above-mentioned parts of ripe jackfruits are partaken as fruit.

Jackfruit has the distinction of being the national fruit of Bangladesh, where it is known by the name kathal. In West Bengal and in parts of north India also this fruit is known by the same name. The history of jackfruit is an ancient one, dating back to 6000 years. The etymology of the word jackfruit is an interesting one. It is derived from the Portuguese word jaca, which in turn was derived from the Malayalam word, chakka.

Culinary Applications Jackfruit is a tropical fruit, though its unripe version is consumed in India, Bangladesh and Indonesia in a similar manner like that of a vegetable. In Bangladesh, ripe jackfruit is consumed on its own, whereas the unripe jackfruits are prepared in curry.

In Bangladesh, the seed of jackfruit is dried and preserved, and then later used in curries.

Boiled jackfruit seeds are used in curry in Kerala and Orrisa.

In West Bengal, the unripe jackfruit is

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Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

known as aechor. It is used to make delicious curries. The jackfruit curry or kathal sabzee is a tasty dish in north India. In Indonesia, unripe jackfruit is being cooked with coconut milk to prepare a dish named gudeg.

In the Philippines too, the unripe jackfruit is cooked in coconut milk and is eaten with rice. As a fruit, jackfruit has a variety of other culinary usages.

In the Philippines only, ripe jackfruit is often used as an ingredient in its desserts like halo-halo and the Filipino turon. In the Philippines, the ripe jackfruit is also preserved by storing in syrup or by drying.

Of course, in the Philippines ripe jackfruit is eaten raw too. In Indonesia, the ripe jackfruit is dried and fried to prepare kripik nangka or jackfruit cracker. In this world’s largest archipelago, besides the consumption of ripe jackfruits in their raw form, they are also sliced and mixed with shaved ice to prepare sweet concoctions known as es campur and es teler. In Thailand and Vietnam, jackfruit is often canned in sugary syrup. In Vietnam, one can have jackfruit puree as part of pastry fillings. In some parts of Nepal, ripe jackfruit is used to brew alcoholic beverage. In Vietnam and Sri Lanka, jackfruit is processed into ice-cream.

India also has its own jackfruit usage.

Kerala has its jackfruit chips, which can be a wonderful accompaniment with tea or coffee in the evening. In Maharashtra, one can savour dried jackfruit juice. Jackfruit candy can also delight the children. In Mangalore, Karnataka, one can also savour the tea time snack named ghariyo, which is made with jackfruit. In West Bengal, ripe jackfruits are not only eaten alone but also eaten with rice, roti, and muri. Muri is frequently eaten

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AGRI

in Bengal. It is nothing but puffed rice.

In bakery and confectionery industry, jackfruit is put to various creative usages. Jackfruit cake and jackfruit jam can be wonderful delicacies from this mighty fruit that can add value to the breakfast.

In Goa, one can have ethereal jackfruit cake. Jackfruit juice or jackfruit shakes can also be refreshing beverages in summer. In 2014, a company named Unico Frutz launched jackfruit soft drink in India, which is a novelty of sorts in our country’s food & beverage industry.

More such endeavours in this direction are required to make the Indian food service industry to optimally exploit the huge potential of this healthy and tasty fruit.

Rich in Health Jackfruit is endowed with several health benefits. About 100 gm of edible jackfruit account for 95 calories. The fruit part of jackfruit contains fructose and sucrose which can give energy to the body.

Moreover, the fruit has sufficient dietary fiber, which not only facilitates digestion, but also plays a role in preventing colon cancer.

Jackfruit seeds facilitate healthy blood circulation. The antioxidants, phytonutrients and flavonoids in jackfruit can safeguard from cancer.

Jackfruit is also rich in Vitamin A. Besides these, jackfruit is also a good source of antioxidant Vitamin C. Here it deserves a mention that Vitamin C can bolster the immunity against infectious agents.

Jackfruit is endowed with significant amount of B-complex group of vitamins — vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), niacin, riboflavin, and folic acid. Jackfruit seeds are also richly endowed with digestible starch, protein and minerals. The fruit is also rich in potassium, iron, magnesium and magnese. Jackfruit is also devoid of cholesterol, which further improves its health quotient.

To top it all, the fact that jackfruit is filling, besides being nutritious, can help it to become a replacement for wheat and corn and other staple crops, whose yields can go down appreciably in the future due to climate change. So we can easily say that this ungainly looking useful fruit not only has a rich legacy, but also a potentially promising future.

It is about time our food service industry explores the culinary applications of jackfruit more exhaustively and creatively than it is doing now; an exercise which is not only expected to yield better revenues from the guests, but also better health to the guests. n

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BEVERAGE

Thumbs Up to the

Entrepreneur

By Swarnendu Biswas

B

isleri International has recently come up with four new and exciting drinks called Bisleri Limonata, Bisleri Fonzo, Bisleri Pina Colada, and Bisleri Spyci. This range of drinks is collectively presented within the brand Bisleri Pop. By March 2016, the four soft drinks were already launched in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, and subsequently the company will go for pan India presence of these products.

“It gives me great pride to announce our entry in the Indian soft drinks market, by launching Bisleri Pop which includes a line-up of four new and unique tasting flavours at an affordable price,” asserted Ramesh Chauhan, Chairman and Managing Director of Bisleri International, while adding, “Our widespread market reach along with our strong brand reputation gives

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us an added advantage. Bisleri Pop has products with flavours which are distinctive from any other beverages available in the market. And we know they are going to quench customers’ thirst for something deliciously different!” An year of effort has gone into developing these newly launched drinks.

Speaking on the launch of Bisleri Pop, Jayanti Chauhan, the Director, Bisleri International said, “We are committed to delivering innovative products like our new Bisleri Pop to meet the high demand for great tasting beverages. Our products from the Bisleri Pop range will bring a surprising twist to the soft drink segment. As part of the launch, we will also be launching a full-fledged brand campaign which will be a mix of BTL and digital. We have invested heavily in our digital space so as to capture the

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

imagination of the youth who will really appreciate the cool quotient of Bisleri Pop.” Though Bisleri International launched an energy drink named Urzza, some 20 months back (Urzza is now withdrawn from the market and a lot of re-designing on the brand is taking place), but this is the maiden venture of the company in the carbonated soft drinks segment.

Creating History However, Bisleri International’s Chairman and Managing Director, Ramesh Chauhan is credited for creating a soft drink brand that went on to achieve an iconic pan India reputation.

The brand’s name is pretty simple one; it is Thums Up, which came into being under Parle Group, in 1978. Perhaps no other entrepreneur in India has to

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BEVERAGE its credit of creating a soft drink brand of such an immense reach and such enduring popularity.

His timing of the launch of the brand couldn’t have been more right; it came in the wake of Coca-Cola’s end of the first innings in the Indian market, in 1977, which left a huge void to fulfill the demand in the Indian carbonated soft drinks segment. Even today Thums Up is ruling the Indian carbonated soft drinks market; it was the largest selling soft drinks brand in India till 2013, when Sprite overtook it. In 2014, Thums Up accounted for an estimated 15.5 percent of the Rs. 14,000 crore carbonated soft drinks market of India.

At the time of its selling to Coca-Cola, Thums Up was the undisputed leader in the Indian soft drinks market.

Not only he, along with brother Prakash Chauhan and then Parle CEO Bhanu Vakil, launched Thums Up for the Indian market, he also has had to his credit of successfully managing other nationally renowned soft drink brands like Limca (launched by the Parle Group in 1971), and Gold Spot (launched by

Ramesh Chauhan

the Parle Group in 1951). Chauhan is rightly regarded as India’s Cola King.

Parle sold Thums Up, Limca, Citra and Gold Spot to Coca-Cola in 1993, and twenty-three years after that much talked about sell, Chauhan has re-entered the carbonated soft drinks market with lots of promise.

However, the father of India’s soft drinks industry, who valiantly fought the competition from multinational cola giants for quite some time, has no

regrets about the much talked about sell of Thums Up. While looking back, he terms it as a “pragmatic business decision.” His hands were tied since at that time most of Parle’s franchisee plants decided to team up with CocaCola to avoid losses. Here it deserves a mention that Coca-Cola re-entered the Indian market in 1993. “In 1993, we had 62 plants all over India, out of which four were our own, and 58 were franchisees. As we had no share-holding in the franchisee plants, we had no control over their decisions,” reminisced Chauhan, without any feeling of sentimental remorse creeping through his voice.

Success with Bisleri Ramesh Chauhan followed the success story of Thums Up and Limca with Bisleri International. Today Bisleri is known as the brand that pioneered the concept of mineral water in the country.

Bisleri, a brand which has become almost synonymous with top quality bottled mineral water and soda, is today recognised as an important player in

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BEVERAGE the Indian beverages industry. Bisleri is today India’s largest packaged water brand. Bisleri International’s water passes through six stage purification process, and this exhaustive process is reflected in its quality.

“We perform multiple stages of purification to ensure that Bisleri serves the purest water to the consumers. We do not perform chlorination as it leaves carcinogenic residues in water, making it harmful. Instead ozonisation is done, which helps destroy all the bacteria and virus within seconds,” he elaborated, while discussing the purification and other quality control processes of Bisleri water.

Made with Bisleri water, Bisleri Soda has the potential to give a rocking kick while enjoying alcoholic beverages. According to him, “Bisleri Soda has an impact on both the sectors – institutional as well as retail.”

“Quality, trust and innovation are the three pillars behind the success of the brand Bisleri,” observed the feisty entrepreneur while adding as an afterthought, “Also because we have an SKU for every occasion, our consumers feel comfortable with the brand.” Today Bisleri International has more than 80 plants in India within its ambit, out of which 13 are owned by the company.

“We are planning to add 20 more plants before the end of 2016,” stated Jayanti.

Tepid Show for Urzza Though the mineral water and soda of Bisleri International have been success stories worth emulating, but the company’s till now brief flirtation with the energy drink hasn’t proved to be a successful one till date. Urzza from

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pubs and clubs). “Urzza is a power drink which has no caffeine or any other harmful ingredient. We will correct the positioning of Urzza, and then we will re-introduce it to the market,” stated Jayanti..

The Second Innings

Jayanti Chauhan

the house of Bisleri International didn’t make a mark in a market following its high profile launch, which perhaps induced Chauhan to withdraw the product after the exhaustion of the initial stock. Perhaps the fact that Urzza was directed at wrong marketing channels was one of the reasons behind its lack of impact.

Urzza was placed at grocery stores, restaurants and canteens, which are not the conventional platforms for the sales of energy drinks (energy drinks in India at present has the potential to give lucrative market dividends in high-end

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

The secret of a born entrepreneur perhaps lies in her/his resilience to withstand failures and more importantly, in her/his calmness to not get overwhelmed by success. Now, putting all his past laurels and failures behind, the septuagenarian Chauhan is brimming with enthusiasm about Bisleri International’s recent entry and his own re-entry into the highly competitive and often dicey carbonated soft drinks market of India.

“Bisleri Spyci is a cola with a masala twist. Spyci is a unique mixture of masala and cola made to suit the Indian palates. Bisleri Limonata comes with the zing of lime, Bisleri Fonzo is a fruit fusion of mango, orange and peach flavours,” explained Chauhan, while talking of his newly launched products. Chauhan reiterated that Bisleri Limonata is different from many other lemony drinks floating in the Indian market. According to a press release, Bisleri Pina Colada can surprise you with a fruity fizzy fusion, giving you a promising and refreshing taste. The new range of soft drinks is affordably priced at Rs. 10 for 200 ml bottle, Rs 15 for 300 ml bottle and Rs 20 for 250 ml can.

Will Bisleri Pop Fizz?

Whether Ramesh Chauhan will emulate his inspirational success story of the late 1970s, which has become part of the industry folklore, or not, in fact whether his Bisleri Pop would be a successful venture at all or not are questions whose answers are pregnant in the near future.

All we can say that today his challenges are of a different nature.

The time when he created a brand of international standard and stormed the market was a time much different from what it is now. At that time, Indian consumers didn’t have much choice of great brands, especially in the carbonated soft drinks segment, except possibly for Limca, Gold Spot, Thums Up and Citra. When Thums Up was launched in 1978, there was no

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BEVERAGE

competition from multinational cola giants like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, in the Indian market.

Then there was demand for good and somewhat unique quality with affordability (Indian mass market was then and still highly price-sensitive) in the cola market but there was an acute dearth of supply; a market need which Thums Up catered to intelligently. But now in 2016, the Indian soft drinks market has matured greatly; not only our consumers have become much more familiar with good quality brands, they also have a flood of choices to explore.

Though Chauhan maintains that “Coca-Cola and Pepsi are not our direct competitors; our drinks are exotic in nature,” but the reality goes that no new player entering the Indian carbonated soft drinks market can afford to ignore the vast market presence of these two soft drink giants.

Succinctly, in the 1970s, the Indian carbonated soft drinks market was nascent, now it is not only stable but is also somewhat saturated. In fact, it would not be unduly cynical to say that with the rise of health consciousness in sizeable pockets of urban Indian society, the Indian carbonated soft drinks market is showing signs of initial stages of decline. Will the great entrepreneur be able to create new market routes in this saturated market? However, according to him, the fact that the Indian CSD market is saturated gives Bisleri Pop a distinct advantage. “Presently, India’s

48

CSD market is exhausted with no new flavours; hence it was a good opportunity to enter the market at this time,” he asserted.

One thing he is not likely to be worried of is the price of his newly launched soft drink products. The products from Bisleri Pop are affordably priced. The mini cans from PepsiCo and Coca-Cola are there in the Rs.15-20 price bracket, but they have less quantity than Bisleri Pop’s products in their cans.

However, if Chuahan wants to penetrate the vast untapped rural market, lesser quantity options should be adhered to.

Though today simply good quality with affordability alone is not expected to make a product become a runaway winner in the Indian market, but today innovation and experimentation are perhaps more crucial in the Indian food & beverage industry than they were ever before. Thums Up was a unique product by the standard of the Indian market of the late 70s, but whether Bisleri Pop’s array of soft drink products will be judged as unique by India’s market standard of 2016 is a million dollar question. It is followed by another million dollar question; whether these products of Bisleri Pop, even if they attract huge popularity in the initial phase, would continue to garner enduring appeal in the market?

The Market Requirements Nowadays more and more urban Indian consumers are looking for uniqueness or

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

a ‘different feeling.’ This is the general consumer perception in urban India that is fast evolving, but in the Indian food & beverage industry there is an additional catch; here a mass market product attempting to acquire enduring mass appeal is more likely to be a winner if its taste is refreshingly different and at the same time suited to the modern Indian palates.

In fact, the success of McDonald’s and Pizza Hut and many other multinational QSRs in India is primarily because of their ability to place global products, tailored to Indian tastes.

One can say that in the realm of mass market products pertaining to the Indian food & beverage industry, the enduring success now seems to lie in cleverly amalgamating Indianisation with innovation, and the carbonated soft drinks segment catering to mass market seems to be no exception to following this rule.

One can say that in the mass market sub segment of the fast evolving Indian food & beverage space, a product being refreshingly different tend to create the initial mass attraction and facilitates the product to stand out from competition, but its ability to cater to modern Indian tastes translates this initial mass attraction into enduring popularity.

If Chauhan’s Bisleri Pop can really meet the challenge of providing a refreshingly different feel to its target consumers and at the same time cater to the modern Indian tastes, one can say that he can give a stiff fight for market share, not only to the established carbonated soft drinks’ market of the multinational cola giants, but also to the markets of the plethora of regional players who have mushroomed in India’s carbonated soft drinks market during the last few years. However, to get a fair market share, he cannot just rely on retail; he needs to tap the Indian HORECA segment more vigorously and end the oligopoly of Coca-Cola and PepsiCo there.

And if he wins the battle this time around...no it is not important that many sceptics about his second stint in the Indian carbonated soft drinks market will eat their words, what is more important that then his name among the global marketing gurus will be assured.

As a journalist, I can only call for a Thumbs Up to his new innings. n

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PROFILE

Presenting a

Regal Dining

Experience

By Sharmila Chand

Manish Tambi, the Managing Director, Virasat Heritage Group, Jaipur, hails from a small town near Jaipur. He completed his education from the same place and later went to Delhi for his MBA. Inquisitive and finicky as a child, he has had a tendency on working on his whims since then.

After completing his MBA and having got a fair share of market response through sales and marketing jobs in the capital, he came to Jaipur while contemplating the idea of his own restaurant.

He began his journey as a restaurateur with a simple fine dine vegetarian restaurant. He kept improvising things with his vision,

Sheesh Mahal

50

perspective and far sighted business approach.

After a struggle of a couple of years he finally came up with the Virasat Heritage Restaurant, the royal dining concept place, which offers a king/queen like dining experience that we know today.

The Virasat Heritage Restaurant endeavours to offer an authentic Rajasthani gastronomic experience. In fact, the entire character of the place is conceptualised keeping in mind the rich heritage, enthralling culture, enticing customs and an amazing array of delicious cuisine of Rajasthan.

Every concept of the place spotlights the variant traditions of the regal state of Rajasthan. It ardently works towards offering a royal experience; encompassing traditional dining, herbal feet washing, turban tying, and live performance of the folk artists while you are treated like the king and queen of the world long gone by…

In fact, Virasat Heritage Restaurant is not a restaurant in strict sense but a restaurant complex. It includes four restaurants within its ambit, which are Sheesh Mahal, Swarn Mahal, Bajot Shivir, and Rajwada.

Sheesh Mahal is the product of the imagination and dexterity of 60 artists, for more than three years. Only 10 people at the most can dine here at a time. While talking about Sheesh Mahal, Tambi said, “Virasat’s Sheesh Mahal earnestly tries to deliver in-the-cloud experience which is surreal and worth treasuring all your life.”

Herbal feet wash, turban tying, light and sound show during dining that will narrate you the architecture and technique that

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PROFILE went into the designing of Sheesh Mahal in more languages than one are some of the highlighting features of the wonderful experience called Sheesh Mahal.

Dining at Swarn Mahal is also an experience worth cherishing.

The restaurant defies the modern traditions of eating out.

Ditching the table-chair sitting it encourages you to unwind yourself over the low-level sitting singhasans and bask in the royal glory.

Caprisoned in lustrous furnishings and placed over a cushy platform, the king-like seats are a perfect replication of the maharaja’s dining style. The paintings on the walls depict the tales that reminisce the regal heritage and offer a window to look into the lavish lifestyle of royal families. The flickering lights of the chandeliers illuminate the hall and accentuate the roof with elegance and sophistication.

Set as a grand assembly, Swarn Mahal looks and feels like a courtyard of a Rajput ruler with intricate decor, well-lit ambience and an embellished roof. Here also you can experience the old ritual of feet washing through herbal water before you are offered the food in thals made of silver.

At Bajot Shivir, one can relish authentic Rajathani delicacies under the Swiss Tent set up. Here the live performances of the Kalbelia dancers and renditions of folk artists uplift the ambience.

“The USP of the place is the quaint and basic dining set up that brings to life the old-world charm and reminds you of the cultural festivities of small towns. Here you can indulge in the mouthwatering array of Rajasthani food served in thals of earthen aroma

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Swarn Mahal

and dip yourself in the world of this desert land with a turban over your head tied by the special artists,” observed Tambi.

Among these four restaurants, Rajwada is a multi-cuisine fine dining restaurant, whereas the other three restaurant’s culinary character focuses on Rajasthan’s rich cuisine. Rajwada serves North Indian cuisine, Rajasthani cuisine, Chinese and Continental cuisine, and also South Indian cuisine.

The excerpts of the interview with the creative restaurateur follow:

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PROFILE How important is it to have good interiors in the restaurant?

How much significance you give to the décor and ambience of the restaurant as compared to the food?

At Virasat our decor and ambience play an instrumental role in offering people authentic Rajasthan’s gastronomic experience. We have strived hard to create the right environment, besides offering quality food and service.

What are the top three traits or skills you look for in your Head — Food & Beverage Manager?

He/ she should be skilled enough to deliver consistent quality. The person should also have sensitive taste buds and a pleasing personality.

Is it getting difficult to hire good trained manpower these days?

Rajwada

First and foremost, please spell out some key challenges for you towards opening a new restaurant?

For me the key challenges were hiring proper management, achieving the real authentic taste of our culinary genre, and living up to the first hand expectations of customers.

What, according to you are the trickiest issues to tackle these days in the Indian hospitality/food business?

I think it has to be the perplexed state of mind of some of our guests. Their mind often flickers between pricing, services and tempting offers from various service providers. The challenge of delivering excellence to a confused customer is a tough one.

This particular industry often open floodgates for meeting varied people, which I enjoy.

If you could change one thing about your position or business, what would it be?

I would want to be more cuisine specific; pertaining to my specialty. It is my passion to deliver the most authentic Rajasthani gastronomic experience to travellers.

What kind of pressures have you encountered at work?

Delivering excellence always has been a challenge.

Not really for Virasat. We train and polish our staff on our own.

Can you suggest any tip or insight to strengthen your team?

Keep them devoted and energetic all the time.

What are your future plans to expand your brand?

We the team of Virasat dream to be 500 times in future of what we are today.

We plan to take the Virasat experience at another level with more such properties at bigger and better locations wherein people can live and revel the royal life experience.

Our dedicated team is working towards it and we should achieve this goal very soon.

Please comment on how the food trend in the Indian food service industry has changed over a period of time?

People have become experimental when it comes to exploring tastes and trying new things. Food inhibitions have faded.

What has helped you the most in image building of your brand?

It is through chasing aspired brand positioning continually for years.

What do you enjoy the most about being in this business?

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Bajot Shivir

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THEME CUISINE

The Flavours from Canton C

antonese cuisine has originated from Guangdong province, which is a coastal province in southeast part of Mainland China, adjacent to Hong Kong and Macau. It is the most widely served style of Chinese cuisine in the world.

The word Cantonese refers to the name Canton, which is a city in southern China, officially known as Guangzhou today. Broadly speaking, ‘Cantonese’ refers to the region around Guangdong province and Hong Kong.

Cantonese cuisine is distinguished by simple dishes that are all about clear, natural flavours, reflecting the region’s abundant seafood and agriculture.

Cantonese cuisine is generally lightly cooked, not usually fried and the flavour of Cantonese cuisine is generally mild, fresh, natural, and slightly sweet.

While cooks in Sichuan and Dongbei may be very generous with spices, Cantonese cooks use very few heavy spices, thereby facilitating the main ingredients to manifest themselves more potently.

Also unlike the cuisines of northern and western China, lamb and goat are not so frequently presented on the Cantonese table. Pork, beef, chicken, fish, and seafood are the primary sources of proteins in Cantonese cuisine.

By Sharmila Chand main seasonings used in Cantonese cuisine. There are other seasonings too used in the Cantonese kitchen, like chili peppers, five spice powder, black pepper, and star anise, but they are used sparingly.

Rice vinegar accentuates the flavour of vegetables, as does a little sprinkling of salt. A pinch of sugar gives food a mildly sweet taste that is characteristic of many Cantonese dishes and snacks. Several sauces are important condiments in Cantonese cuisine. The most widely used sauces in this cuisine include hoisin sauce, oyster sauce, plum sauce, sweet and sour sauce, and soy sauce.

An emphasis in Cantonese cuisine is on preserving the natural flavour of food. A Cantonese Chef would consider it a major culinary blunder to produce an overcooked or highly seasoned dish.

For example, when they cook fresh sea fish, though it is not served raw like

Seasonings Used in Cantonese Cuisine Garlic, ginger, and scallion are the

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Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

that of Japanese sashimi, but to preserve and enhance the delicious flavour, the Cantonese steam it and add just a little soy sauce, ginger and bits of chives. Like the Japanese, Cantonese delight in the natural flavours of fresh sea fish.

Cooking Methods Stir frying and steaming are the two most prevalent cooking methods in the Cantonese cuisine. But here stir- fried dishes are not as common as in Sichuan.

Cantonese like to boil soups, braise or roast meats, and sauté food too. These cooking methods are aimed to preserve the flavour of the dishes. Cantonese cuisine also has popular deep fried food that are often eaten as snacks, desserts, or breakfast food.

Common Cantonese Dishes Signature dishes of Cantonese cuisine include plain boiled chicken, plain boiled shrimps, piglet barbequed over open oven, beef with oyster sauce, snake soup, oil fried shelled fresh shrimps, plain steamed sea food, braised shrimps and sea cucumber.

Certain fermented, dried, or cured ingredients are essential elements in Cantonese cooking’s mild flavours. Jiang yao zhu or fishy dried scallops are often added to clear soups or the rice porridge congee. La chang, a sweet, fatty dried sausage that looks like a cross between a Slim Jim and a pepperoni

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Recipe of Sweet & Sour Pork Ingredients

1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into small pieces 2 1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar Kosher salt 2 teaspoon of soy sauce 1 tablespoon of corn starch 3 tablespoon of ketchup 3 tablespoon of sugar 3 tablespoon of peanut or vegetable oil 3 cloves garlic, minced 2 carrots, thinly sliced 3 scallions, cut into ½ inch pieces 3 cups of snow peas, cut in half

Method

Toss the pork with 1/2 tablespoon vinegar and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Mix the remaining 2 tablespoon of vinegar, the soy sauce, corn starch, ketchup, 3 tablespoon of sugar, 1/3 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt in another bowl.

Heat 2 tablespoon of peanut oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. Add the pork and slowly stir until it turns mostly opaque, in about 2 minutes.

Remove the pork with a slotted spoon

stick, is added in sticky rice.

In Cantonese cuisine, Xian dan, the wobbly black salted duck eggs, liven up congee with their funky alkaline flavour.

And mei cai — salt-pickled Chinese cabbage — is typically cooked with pork fried rice.

All these flavours are brought together with a variety of techniques that includes steaming, stir frying, shallow frying, double steaming, braising, deep frying, and roasting. The latter is a technique known in Cantonese as assiu mai (or shao wei in Mandarin) and includes all forms of roast meats in its ambit.

Steamed white rice is being used as a staple food in Cantonese cuisine. It is commonly served with barbecued meats, steamed fish, or stir fries. Rice is also the main ingredient in elaborate chao fan, fried rice dishes.

Although deep fried dishes are not the mainstay of Guangdong culinary legacy, there are quite a number of them which are popular around the region.

A youtiao is a long, golden-brown deepfried strip of dough. Youtiaos are usually eaten for breakfast with soy milk.

Then there is zhaliang, which is made

Apr-May ’16

and transfer to a plate. Discard the oil and wipe out the skillet.

Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of peanut oil in the skillet, then stir-fry the garlic with a pinch each of salt and sugar, for 5 seconds. Add the carrots and scallions and stir-fry until crisp-tender; for 2 minutes. Add a little water if the garlic starts to stick to the skillet. Add the pork, snow peas and soy sauce mixture; stir for about 3 minutes until the pork is cooked through and the sauce is thickened.

by tightly wrapping a rice sheet around a youtiao (deep-fried dough stick).

Zhaliang is popular in Guangdong and Hong Kong. It is usually partaken with soy milk.

Bao zai fan consists of rice cooked in a ceramic casserole dish of sorts topped with other ingredients and served in the cooking vessel. Popular varieties include spare ribs (pai gu bao zai fan) and Chinese sausage with preserved meat (la wei bao zai fan). Then there is congee— rice porridge—a breakfast staple often eaten with such intensely flavoured items as fermented tofu or preserved eggs.

Noodle Dishes Cantonese cuisine also has its share of noodle dishes. Shahe noodles are a kind of rice noodles whose birth can probably be traced from the town of Shahe that is now a part of Guangzhou. They are broad and white in colour. Their texture is elastic and a little chewy.

They do not freeze or dry well and are thus generally purchased fresh in strips or sheets that may be cut to the desired width. Shahefen is popular in Guangdong, Guangxi and Hainan, in southern China. n

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RESTAURANT

Enjoy Cantonese Cuisine at

Royal China

By Sharmila Chand

R

oyal China in the capital is all about royal, classy, delicious and beautiful. It is indeed one of the few restaurants in the capital that can claim to serve authentic and exquisite Chinese food.

The restaurant is located on the 16th floor of Eros Corporate Tower, in Nehru Place, New Delhi, affording spectacular views of the Lotus Temple and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. The long windows facilitate the spectacular views.

The food at the restaurant is a combination of traditional and contemporary elements of Cantonese cuisine. Specialising in Cantonese cuisine, Royal China in New Delhi is known for its Crispy Aromatic Duck with Pancakes, Prawn Chung Fun, Seaweed, Black Bean Chicken among others.

These are names of only a few delectable signature dishes of the restaurant. The team has also come up with the new menu, which includes business bento box, children’s menu and kitty party menu for ladies.

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Chef and His Delicacies At the time of my visit to the restaurant, Chef Eric Khoo Thiam Haut was heading the culinary show at Royal China Delhi.

For him life behind the stove is fun and his work gives him inspiration to keep innovating new flavours.

Authentic Chinese cuisine is Chef Eric

Aashita Relan

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Khoo Thiam Haut’s USP. When I asked him about any ingredient he cannot cook without, his reply was ‘life.’ Like life, his answer did manage to astonish me.

He was confident that if he is alive he would find substitute of any ingredient that was not available at the time. This positive-minded approach coupled with his culinary experience and a strong knowledge of ingredients has resulted in signature masterpieces that make every menu he works on a delight for all the senses.

He has an experience of more than 32 years, having served as a Chef in various places and many high-end food outlets around the world. His culinary journey in India began from Royal China, New Delhi.

While talking of Crispy Aromatic Duck, Eric Khoo Thiam Haut asserted, “Generally other restaurants normally prepare only Peking Duck. We specially import our duck as Indian duck meat is not juicy enough.” The restaurant’s crispy seaweed is also a very uncommon dish in

Apr-May ’16

RESTAURANT

Chef Eric Khoo Thiam Haut

Indian restaurants.

While talking about their Shanghai Dumpling, the Chef observed, “These hot steamed dimsums are prepared in a very special way with soup oozing out, and are very delicious.” The signature desserts of the restaurant are Chocolate Buns, Honey Noodles and Toffee Banana.

The lavish bar at Royal China Delhi features everything from flavoured martinis to Royal China creations of special cocktails to an international range of beers, single and double malt whiskey and an impressive range of non- alcoholic

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beverages. Signature drinks at the restaurant are Wasabi Bloody Mary, and Orange and Pepper Caprioska.

The Lady Behind the Show In India, the global brand of Royal China has presence in New Delhi, Mumbai and Pune. Aashita Relan is the brainchild behind the Royal China restaurant in Delhi.

The young Director and Owner of

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

Royal China Delhi said, “Our motto is to serve authentic Chinese food, prepared by our foreign Chefs, while also keeping in mind the constantly evolving and emerging trends and tastes from around the world.”

“In Royal China Delhi, we have tried to create a destination restaurant where we take great pride in ensuring that all the ingredients that we use are extremely fresh and authentic,” she pointed out. n

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C H EF VO I CE

Thriving on Practice and Passion

By Sharmila Chand

The journey of Ghanshyam Thapa, the Executive Chef, Kylin Premier restaurant in New Delhi, began with street cooking with an outlet called Nikasi, located on the centre of the south part of Delhi. He has come a long way since then…

“As a beginner, I was always keen to learn the intricacies of culinary art as I was very passionate about cooking. I was a helper in the kitchen but I always tried to give my extra to the team by taking initiatives in different ways,” he recollected.

His second innings began at Gourmet Gallery. From there he has never looked back. He has 22 years of experience in the hospitality industry, and over the years, he has worked with several reputed brands like Orchid Lounge, Chandigarh, Raddison MBD Noida, Park Royal InterContinental Nehru Place, The China Kitchen at Hyatt Regency Delhi among others.

He is always keen to learn things. “I was and am very passionate about pan Asian preparation in different ways,” he asserted.

Thapa is with Kylin Premier since the last two years. He is not only maintaining standards but adding new items to the menu as per the market needs. “I am still learning from my dear patrons by sharing words with them,” he pointed out. The excerpts of the interview follow: How do you define yourself?

A Chef who believes he is born to make others happy through his cooking.

What is your philosophy of cooking?

To make fresh, hygienic and non fussy food is my belief. I believe in using the best possible ingredients in cooking to get the authentic taste. I always try to make something healthy and fresh rather than making dishes which are high in calories.

Had you not been doing this then what would you have been doing?

I would have been in the Army.

What or who is/are your source/s of inspiration?

My guests and my seniors in the industry are my sources of inspiration.

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What have been the most rewarding moments in your career so far?

thing is practice. I always practice my recipes before and focus on new recipes for my presentations.

The most rewarding moments in my career are when I see smile on the face of my guests.

What is your definition of success?

Can you cite a particularly challenging situation that you had faced in your career?

When I was working in The China Kitchen at Hyatt Regency Delhi there were eight Chinese Chefs from different states. None of them knew English. But with the help of an interpreter, I handled the situation well.

Which skill is the most crucial for your job?

As a Chef I believe the most necessary

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My definition of success is to be able to smile after a tough day. If you smile that means you are satisfied. If you are satisfied that means your job is well done and that brings in professional success.

What is your professional strength?

My professional strength lies in building a strong team.

What is your favourite holiday destination?

My favourite holiday destination is Goa.

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How do you de-stress yourself?

I de-stress by spending time with family, and by going out to watch movies.

If you had to describe yourself in one word what would it be?

I think the word confident describes me well.

How do you rate yourself as a Chef?

Four out of five.

What is your favourite cuisine?

It is Italian cuisine.

What is your favourite spice?

Fresh red chili is my favourite spice.

And what is your favourite equipment?

It is chopper.

What is your favourite restaurant or food joint ?

The China Kitchen at Hyatt Regency Delhi, and Kylin Premier.

Who are your favourite diners that is the kind of guest you would most like to feed?

Those are the guests who tell me to prepare my favourite dish for them.

What is your hot selling item?

Teppanyaki Chicken Finger with Spring Onion & Fresh Red Chili is my hot selling item.

What is your work philosophy?

It is working hard & learning from mistakes.

Tell us about an important lesson learnt in the kitchen?

Over the years, I have learnt how to interact with team mates from different countries and how to keep team members happy.

Where do we see you ten years from now?

You may see me open my own restaurant on the theme of cafĂŠ style oriental food.

What is the position of Chefs these days, in India?

India has a fast growing market with new restaurants opening up. The market presents a favourable scenario for Chefs in India.

What are the main problems and challenges faced

by Chefs?

I think it is to get good ingredients and maintain a trained team.

What would you recommend to someone interested in working in your field?

It is a fast growing field. One should work hard and as well as smart here.

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OPERATIONS

Food Safety at

Wedding Celebrations Dr. Saurabh Arora

I

n the wedding celebrations, one of the most important attractions for the guests is the food. Indian wedding celebrations are an elaborate affair. In India, the multiple wedding related functions spanning a minimum of three days require multitudinous menus.

Wedding caterers need to offer unique and exquisite cuisines but they also need to keep food safety in mind while preparing food products. The safer the food experience, higher would be the demand for the caterers. Therefore if you wish to be a wedding caterer par excellence you need to ensure that your food is tasty but also is completely safe.

Wedding feasts therefore, require a huge amount of planning right from procuring the best possible ingredients to handling, storing, preparing, serving and transporting food while maintaining hygiene and preserving its freshness.

You also need to consider the number of people you are catering for and the time at which the food is to be served so it

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does not get a chance to allow bacterial growth. If you are serving cold food products you must know for how long the fresh cut fruit desserts, salads, cold fish, ice-cream, etc. can be safe to eat without refrigeration.

Procurement Food preparation plays a vital role in keeping away possible hazards pertaining to right from raw materials to final dishes.

Caterers that follow food preparation norms as laid down in the FSSAI regulations are much more likely to keep their consumers safe as well as their own reputation than who donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t.

The first step is to procure raw materials only from licensed vendors as that helps prevent chemical and physical hazards from entering vegetables, pulses, rice, spices, etc. Furthermore, raw milk must be only supplied by certified vendors because toxins produced by staph bacteria can appear in unpasteurised milk and cheese, and these cannot be

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destroyed by cooking. Similarly, procure meat and chicken only from vendors that have been certified by the veterinary surgeon. Only those colours, additives and flavours must be used which are approved by food regulations. Use only branded packaged oil for cooking.Taking these precautionary steps prevents hazards from entering food products right at the beginning.

Venueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Suitability If you are planning to cook food at the wedding venue then it is in your best interest to ensure the cleanliness of the food preparation area. Are the walls, ceilings and floors clean? Is the venue designed to prevent the entry of pests and vermins? Are there sufficient food preparation surfaces to handle vegetarian and non-vegetarian food products so that the possibility of cross-contamination is greatly reduced?

Keep in mind that the venue must have enough space to prepare, store and

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serve food according to the volume of the food prepared.

Any food for human consumption cannot be prepared under unhygienic or unsanitary conditions. Doing so in India can invite a penalty. Besides if there is an outbreak of food poisoning, it can permanently mar the reputation of the wedding caterer. This is especially true in this age of powerful social media.

The Crucial Role of Water Keep in mind that the kitchen area in the wedding venue must have a running supply of potable water and the water supply must be chlorinated or ozone water. Water is also needed to thoroughly clean vegetables and meats and also to clean and disinfect food preparation surfaces, cooking and serving utensils. So the water supply should be sufficient and safe as unsafe water can cause a number of water- borne diseases. All drinking water, and water used for preparing beverages and ice must be stored in a sanitary condition in containers that should have taps for withdrawing it.

Right Temperature Maintenance If there is no kitchen at the wedding venue and you have to transport the food from another location then you must ensure that you have the required equipment to keep the food hot. If re-heating is required then you must have heat sources that ensure that food reaches a temperature of up to 70°C as that temperature is required to destroy or minimise bacteria.

Food that is in hot holding equipments must not be mixed with food that is already on display as the previously served food might have been on display beyond two hours. It goes without saying that food that is left uncovered will attract flies, and contaminants like dust particles will find their way into food. Besides being properly covered, hot served foods must also be stirred constantly so they remain evenly hot. The practice of using higher quantity of oil to keep food hot for longer periods must not be used as excess oil in food can pose a health hazard.

Dealing with High Risk Food Fresh fruits, salads, confectionery items, chutneys, cream, cold platters become easy target for microbial contamination. These are high risk food products and if they are not consumed within two hours of preparation then they must be refrigerated at 5°C or lower as bacteria begin to multiply when the temperature of food is above 5°C. If caterers use their own refrigerated van then it must be parked close to the venue. In case there is no way to refrigerate high risk food at the wedding venue or close to the wedding venue, then you must time the delivery in such a way that such food products are consumed within two hours of their preparation. Or change the menu, if food safety is compromised.

Cold desserts like ice-cream, rasmalai, etc. are quickly perishable and are subject to microbial contamination if not stored appropriately. If electric freezer is not available then perishable cold desserts must be stored in ice-cream carts or in insulated ice-boxes packed with dry ice. High risk food products and cold desserts also need to be handled with care when serving them as they can get contaminated easily and so gloves should be worn at all times while serving them.

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OPERATIONS Food poisoning outbreaks can occur in commercial kitchens when workers don’t handle or store food properly.

Transportation of Cooked Food

Thawing and Cooking Temperatures Wedding caterers who use frozen food products must ensure that they are thawed thoroughly before they are cooked. Meat and chicken might not be cooked to the centre if they are not thawed fully.

It is best to thaw food products in the refrigerator or in a microwave. Do not leave food outside on a surface to thaw.

The food products requiring cooking must be cooked in a way so that their internal core temperature reaches 70°C, as this temperature is required to decimate bacteria. In fact, meat and poultry must be cooked to a temperature of 74°C to make them completely safe.

Caterers use calibrated probe thermometers to check that correct cooking temperatures are reached. Probes are disinfected before and after use. It should be remembered that undercooking food like meats allows bacteria to survive and this can cause food poisoning.

Similarly, slow cooking and slow reheating at temperatures ranging between 20°C to 50°C can cause bacteria to grow faster. Also cooking food much in advance of the consumption time increases the risk of bacterial contamination.

The Role of Equipments Another important aspect to keep in mind when cooking is to use separate equipment and utensils for vegetarian and non-vegetarian cooking, and for cooked and uncooked food, so as to prevent crosscontamination. Knives, tongs, cutting boards, etc. must be separate for raw and ready-to-eat food and they must be cleaned and sanitised between each use.

Check to see that cooking equipment is made of steel, brass and not of aluminium

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or other corrodible material. According to experts cooking utensils must be flat bottomed as that helps to distribute heat evenly so that all parts of the food are cooked at the right temperature.

Health and Hygiene of Kitchen Staff Most wedding caterers employ additional temporary staff for cooking and servicing if the catering order is big. It should be remembered that anyone handling food in the kitchen or in the service area must be suitably trained and supervised.

Sometimes food can be contaminated by S. aureus bacteria by food service workers who handle food without washing their hands. Maintaining personal hygiene is extremely important and emphasis must be laid to train all staff to follow all hygiene rules like washing hands before handling food and after toilet use, and not smoking, coughing, sneezing, scratching, or touching hair or nose when handling food.

It is an FSSAI requirement for all workers, whether permanent or temporary, to undergo a health check if they handle food. If a food handler has any cuts or abrasions, a skin infection or has recently had diarrhoea then he/she must not handle food in the kitchen, serve food or work as waiter, as the food can be contaminated or infection can be passed to the wedding guests through him/her.

Moreover, as a wedding caterer of repute you must provide clean uniforms, aprons, gloves, caps for the cooking and serving staff. Hair of the staff handling or serving food must be tied back neatly.

Disposal towels and anti-bacterial soap must be available for washing hands of the staff handling and serving food.

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When transporting food to the wedding venue, caterers must use food grade, easy to clean, and covered containers.

Cardboard boxes are hardly suitable for transporting food safely and hygienically.

Moreover, the vehicle must be clean and must not be used to transport other goods so as to avoid the risk of contamination.

When transporting the food, the temperature needs to be controlled to ensure food is kept hot at above 60°C or cold at below 5°C. For short journeys, insulated boxes with cold packs can also be used while for longer journeys a refrigerated vehicle is ideal. Once it arrives at the venue the temperature must be checked and food must be re-heated to the adequate temperature.

Food poisoning is possibly the caterer’s worst nightmare. As a wedding caterer if you have ensured proper handling, storing and transporting of food then there should not be any danger of food poisoning. After the wedding is over you will know all has gone well if you get calls from wedding guests to cater food for them too.

Dr Saurabh Arora is the Founder of www. foodsafetyhelpline.com — a website and mobile app for the food industry to stay up to date, understand and implement the requirements of the FSSAI. He has invented a patented nano technology based delivery system for curcumin, the active constituent of turmeric. He has a number of national and international research publications and patents to his credit.

Heading the testing laboratory and research business at Arbro and Auriga for close to 10 years, he has designed and setup four state-of-the-art testing laboratories in New Delhi, Baddi and Bangalore.

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HYGIENE

Facilitating a

Hygienic Kitchen

By Jyotismita Sharma

H

ygiene doesn’t come on a platter, especially in the commercial kitchens. A number of elements must interact with each other seamlessly to produce the perfect recipe for a hygienic kitchen, which is a must for ensuring food safety in restaurants as well as guest satisfaction. Out of these multiple factors, two players in this process stand out – the importance of clean utensils and pest control. While cross-contamination through utensils is often neglected, pest infestation is a widely acknowledged and yet a difficultto-control problem.

Clean Utensils to Reduce Contamination If you want to reduce the risk of contamination in kitchens, keeping the knives or graters clean is absolutely essential as these cutting equipments can act as transmitters of harmful bacteria from one food item to another.

Produce that contain bacteria would contaminate other items through the continued use of knives or graters because the bacteria would latch on to the utensils and spread to the next item, according to a new study.

Unfortunately, many people are unaware that utensils and other surfaces can contribute to the spread of bacteria, said the study’s lead author Marilyn Erickson, an Associate Professor of Food Science and Technology at the

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University of Georgia in the US. “Just knowing that utensils may lead to cross-contamination is important,” Erickson said. “With that knowledge, consumers are then more likely to make sure they wash them in between uses,” she observed.

Erickson has been researching produce for the past 10 years. Her past work has mainly focused on the fate of bacteria on produce when they are introduced to plants in the field during farming.

In 2013, she was the co-author on a study looking at the transfer of norovirus and hepatitis A between produce and common kitchen utensils. In that study, she found that cutting and grating increased the number of contaminated produce items when that utensil had first been used to process a contaminated item.

This study, published in the journal Food Microbiology, is similar in that it considers the influence that knives and graters have on the transfer of pathogenic bacteria to and from produce items. It is important to realise that these germs can spread in your kitchens as well.

While it is known that poor hygiene and improper food preparation practices can lead to food-borne illnesses, but considering what practices in the kitchen are more likely to lead to contamination has not been examined extensively. The

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study also found that certain fruits and vegetables spread pathogens to knives to different degrees.

“For items like tomatoes, we tended to have a higher contamination of the knives than when we cut strawberries,” Erickson said. “We don’t have a specific answer as to why there are differences between the different produce groups.

But we do know that once a pathogen gets on the food, it’s difficult to remove,” she pointed out.

However, knives and graters are not the only utensils the commercial kitchen guests should be worried about.

Brushes and peelers can also play a very important role on the transfer of dangerous kitchen bacteria, the experts said.

Countering Pest Menace: No Single Strategy Once you know how utensils can help spread bacteria to the food in your plate, it may not be very difficult to get rid of the problem. But a greater challenge to keeping the kitchen hygienic comes in the form of pests that can infiltrate almost at their will and have the potential to contaminate the edibles; resulting in food-borne illnesses. So ubiquitous are the pests that it is practically impossible to keep the kitchens completely free of some or the other types of pests. Therefore a single strategy to beat the pest menace may

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HYGIENE

often fail. But a combination of different strategies may at least help control them, if not eliminating them altogether.

And an effective application of multiple pest management strategies requires an understanding of different types of pests on the part of those in charge of the commercial kitchens, be it of bakery, a food processing unit or that of a restaurant. They should also evaluate the economic and safe ways to

controlling pests. In fact, controlling pests in commercial kitchens requires the cooperation of all the employees involved as each employee can advance the cause of pest control in kitchens and the associated areas.

Therefore, the new employees should also be adequately educated about the pest management programme in place at the food service outlets or units and it should be ascertained that how they

could contribute to that programme.

The importance of pest control must also be underlined as food can act as a carrier of diseases caused by pests; who have the unique ability to fit in compact spaces and survive in adverse conditions.

The ‘many roads’ method is necessary in pest control because the pests vary in their shapes, sizes as well as in their ability to contaminate surroundings.

This journey in the kitchen starts with adopting the best hygiene practices and other prevention techniques. But it is not always a straight road and one may have to change course frequently, and eventually opt for mechanical and chemical pest control methods whenever required.

Pests and Their Control One of the ways that the pests use to enter the kitchen is through the supplies.

So it is important to use only reputable suppliers for all deliveries and check them before they enter the kitchen. If you notice signs of pest infestation in the shipments, such as gnaw marks on cardboard containers, it is better to refuse them. To avoid infestation on stored

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HYGIENE

Some Effective Preventive Pest Control Measures • Make sure there are no cracks in the doors or walls. All potential entry points must be taken care of. Use of silicone caulk to seal cracks and crevices in baseboards, moldings, cupboards, pipes, ducts, sinks, etc. can be useful.

• Garbage should be stored in sealed packets and they should be cleared as frequently as possible. The garbage cans should be clean of food residue.

• Keep ripe fruits in fridge.

• Dishes must be cleaned at the earliest or at least they should be submerged in soapy water.

• Any food spill must not be allowed to stay unattended for long and all food and beverage items outside the fridge must be properly stored in sealed containers. Kitchen should be clean and free from cooking grease and oil.

• Blocking all sources of water for pests is very important. Therefore, besides fixing leaky plumbing, one must also see that standing water doesn’t accumulate anywhere.

• Make sure that the kitchen is not very damp.

• Screens on all floor drains, windows, and doors can be installed to discourage pests from entering the kitchen. food, it is better to place the supplies after delivery as quickly as possible into storage. Moreover, do not forget to keep powdered milk, sweetened beverages and nuts, etc. in refrigerators immediately after opening the packets or use, as these food items easily attract pests.

Another important way to prevent pest infestation is to refuse pests food, water and a hiding place. For this, quick repairing of any leakage in water taps, cleaning up spilled food and disposing of garbage quickly and correctly is important. Besides, keeping garbage containers tightly covered, maintaining a regular sanitisation schedule is very important. As for the recyclables, they should be kept in pest-proof containers, away from the building.

To control pests in kitchens, one must first be able to identify them.

Pests found in kitchens can be broadly classified under rodents, cockroaches, flies, microorganisms like bacteria in food stuffs, and spiders. All these pests are different from each other in terms of their habits and therefore one single control treatment for them can hardly be effective.

Rodents or simply the house mouse, are perhaps amongst the deadliest of pests. They not only contaminate food but also disrupt the basic hygiene of a kitchen. Rats very easily reappear once the use of rodenticides is stopped.

Therefore complacency must not seep in while checking them.

Rats are not difficult to find because of their restless nature and the damage they cause to stored goods. They are

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fast and agile with a strong olfactory system and tremendous acrobatic skills.

All these factors make it difficult for people to catch them. Moreover, they are generally very suspicious by nature and new rodenticides fail against them after use for few times, as rats do not come near them.

However, by applying a good combination of mechanical and chemical control methods, their population in kitchens can be brought under complete control.

Flies or houseflies develop in warm moist environment. Their growth is faster near fermenting materials.

Garbage, rotting vegetables, moistened dust flour or any place where water accumulates provides a good breeding condition for flies.

A kitchen can have all the abovementioned conditions. Therefore there are many kitchens, which are always under the threat of infiltrating flies.

Their rapid rate of reproduction is also a big problem towards their control.

Flies affecting kitchens are of more than one variety. For example, fruit flies are associated with materials that are acidic or sour in taste, whereas the metallic coloured bottle flies are found on meat scraps.

In a bakery, flies can be abundantly found in mixing room, ingredient scaling area, and dishwashing area. Areas where sugar, eggs, lard, grease, milk, etc. are handled should receive particular scrutiny. In cake and pie bakeries (where fruits are used) the fruit line and peeling rooms tend to offer conditions for flies’

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breeding.

Electric fly screen (Electrocutor) is one of the easiest ways to keep them away while mechanical measures are also effective.

Cockroaches are perhaps the most resilient of kitchen pests. Their capacity to survive all kinds of chemical and mechanical control is stronger than any other pest. Cockroaches have survived the ice age and they can keep themselves alive in extremely inhospitable environments.

The peculiarity about cockroaches is that unlike any other pest they are shy of light and humans. They rarely come out of their shelter during daytime.

They strike after the shutters are down.

Cockroaches never make shelters.

They easily fit themselves in cracks and crevices in walls and floors.

Chemicals have proven their potential against them but not completely.

They maintain their effectiveness only when they are used regularly and are changed before the cockroaches develop resistance against a particular composition or type.

Cockroaches have unmatched resistance power and scientists believe they will be the potential survivors of post nuclear war era. Therefore, when it comes to cockroaches, prevention is possibly the best cure.

Succinctly, for preventing cockroach infestation, it is important to make sure that all food items are sealed along with the cracks, crevices and empty and unused idle gaps in the kitchens.

Spiders are a different kind of pest.

They do not infiltrate the kitchen until and unless other pests like flies, cockroaches, etc. are present in the kitchen area. Nevertheless, they create situations, which can make a place suitable for their presence, as they have specialisation in capturing other pests.

Spider’s cobwebs can be vacuumcleaned easily. Spiders such as the Brown Recluse, Black Widow and the Hobo Spider require immediate control efforts.

These spiders should be controlled with urgency because their bites could have serious repercussions on us.

Thus it is clear that while a pest infestation can cast a death blow on the hygiene of kitchen, a well sanitised premise can facilitate in keeping the pests away and help prevent food contamination. n

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PRO D U CT PR E V I E W

Your Food Solution from Karamat

The Meaty Affair Favola Farm Premium Whole Deboned Pre Roasted Ducks from Fortune Gourmet Specialities Pvt. Ltd. are perfectly roasted to a tender and flavourful finish. One needs to just heat and serve it as a main entrée or shred it and use it in salads, pasta or pizza.

The meat is very smooth with undamaged skin, and free of feathers. It is also low in fat and cholesterol with a tender meat structure.

Favola Farm Ducks are raised on free range farms where their diet consists of an all-natural blend of corn and grain making their meat more fatty and flavourful. Their USP is consistently high quality. Fortune Gourmet Specialities claim to be the largest importers of cheese, exotic meats & seafood in the country.

Fortune Gourmet Specialities Pvt. Ltd. sales@fortunegourmet.com

Glass of True Class Paşabahçe claims to be one of the top three leading glass manufacturers in the world, with 6 factories located around the world. The company has presence in more than 140 countries. The company’s product range varies from Soda Lime glasses to Crystalline and from Handmade to Borosilicate oven glass.

Besides being a market leader with a well-rooted history of 80 years, Paşabahçe is also Turkey’s ‘love mark’, and is regarded as the symbol of quality and trust. Thanks to its original designs and the variety of its categories and products, Paşabahçe comes across as a trendsetter company for its industry. It has over 100 registered designs. Looking beyond cost-oriented strategies and low prices, Paşabahçe is known for quality glass and durability. Paşabahçe serves a gamut of industries, offering its products to retailers, wholesalers, and also to restaurant and hotel chains.

Paşabahçe glassware is now available in India, with CerraGlobe. CerraGlobe is the authorised importer and stockist of Paşabahçe.

CerraGlobe enquiry@ceraglobeinc.in

Food Solution India Ltd. is committed to bring excellence in the field of cooking. FSIL brings to you customer-friendly cooking systems and products that yield consistent results in less time. The manufacturing unit of Food Solution India Ltd. spans an area of 7000 sq yards and is located in Vamaj near Kalol, Gujarat, India.

There is an array of products under the company’s brand Karamat, which include soups, marinade paste, chutney mix, sauce, kebab mix, gravy base, biryani paste, idli mix, dosa batter mix, pav bhaji mix among others. From the most basic of Indian flavours, Karamat gives Chefs a wide range of products to choose from.

These powdered or pureed products when added to water help the Chefs to come up with authentic and palatable food in mere minutes!

The products under the ambit of Karamat do not involve artificial colours and preservatives and are made with fine quality ingredients.

Within the ‘Gravies and Curries’ section, Karamat has White Gravy Base, Red Gravy Base, and Brown Gravy Base. Each of these gravy bases can give 5.5 kg of yield from 1 kg pack. Preparing sumptuous gravies through these user-friendly gravy bases can save on cooking time.

Brown gravy can give your dishes a spicy flavour and a distinct aroma. An onion-based gravy; it forms the core of Indian and Mughlai delicacies. Red Gravy is tomato-based gravy, which gives a rich flavour and bestows an appetising colour to the dish. A recipe resulting from years of culinary expertise, Karamat’s Red Gravy Base contains the right combination of each and every requisite ingredient.

It is ideal for Indian and Mughlai cuisines.

One can prepare ethereal koftas, kormas and khoya kaju with Karamat’s White Gravy paste. Here it deserves a mention that white gravy is cashew nut based gravy, which can add a rich consistency to your dish and can endow it with a delicious aroma.

Both Brown Gravy Base and Red Gravy Base from Karamat are available in no onion, no garlic options.

Food Solution India Ltd. info@fsil.in

Steel of Substance Metinox India was established in the year 2015. The company is one of the principal exporters of kitchen utensils that are designed with precision by the experts. These kitchen utensils are popular for their attractive look and flawless sheen, which can leave the onlookers impressed at the very first glance. Premium quality stainless steel is used in the manufacturing of these utensils to make them long lasting. Since the kitchen utensils from Metanox India are 100 percent rust-proof, they are hygienic to use.

Metinox India sales@metinoxindia.com

The information published in this section is as per the details furnished by the respective manufacturer/distributor. In any case, it does not represent the views of Hammer Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

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BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

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COMPANY MOD KITCHEN EQUIPMENTS PVT. LTD. MOSAIC HOUSEWARE PVT. LTD. NEENA ENTERPRISES PL & SONS RANS TECHNOCRATS (INDIA) PVT. LTD. RELIABLE EQUIPMENT REMINGTON STEEL ARTS SHAMSONS FOODS SIAL PARIS SOLUTIONZ CONSULTING PVT. LTD. STEC HOTELWARE SURESH KUMAR & CO. IMPEX PVT. LTD. SYMEGA SAVOURY TECHNOLOGY LTD. THE NEW INDIA ELECTRIC & TRADING CO. THE SCS AGRIBUSINESS CONSULTANTS PVT. LTD. TRAFS 2016 TROPILITE FOODS PVT. LTD. VENUS INDUSTRIES WINTERHALTER INDIA PVT. LTD. PRODUCT PREVIEW BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY

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Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

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INTERVIEW

The Peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Person Sheikh Mohd. Parvez, F&B Manager, Hotel Marine Plaza Mumbai, has been in the hospitality industry for over 25 years now with expertise in F&B operations, sales, event management, quality management and training & development.

Prior to joining Hotel Marine Plaza Mumbai, a unit of Sarovar Hotels & Resorts, he was associated with renowned hospitality brands like Hilton, Le Royal Meridian, Grand Hyatt, and Holiday Inn Hotel & Convention Center. The excerpts of the interview follow:

By Sharmila Chand

What do you enjoy the most about being a Food & Beverage Manager?

I most enjoy the operations part where I get to meet our guests and the staff, which helps in a major way to keep things in control and get the feedback of the guests and share the same to the staff serving these guests. It also helps in monitoring the standard, pushing up the revenues and doing on the job training.

What do you dislike the most in your job?

I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t like the lack of consistency & when the standards are not being met.

Is your job challenging?

Of course my position is challenging as it deals with five major aspects, which are revenues, marketing, attrition, competition & economic slowdown.

If you could change one thing about your job, what would it be?

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I would like to bring more balance between professional and personal life, which is the need of the hour.

What kind of pressures have you encountered at work?

The major pressure is economic slowdown followed by high staff attrition.

Can you suggest tips or insights for F&B Managers to strengthen their team?

Imparting continual training, enjoying the work, and commitment & integrity are essential attributes for strengthening the F&B teams in food service industry.

How is your experience at the present job? What are the challenges of working here? How is it different from other places? What excites you the most here?

In my present job the best part is that I am involved in not only the department that I head but also I have

Hammer Food & Beverage Business Review

the opportunity to learn the working of other departments as and when necessary.

The most exciting part of my present job profile are the people, company and good location. Here I get to learn and experience different areas of the hospitality business on a regular basis, and in return this helps me to better develop myself professionally as compared to other places where I worked in.

What is the USP of your F&B outlets/ brands?

Good location and high quality food and service attract our guests again & again to our F&B outlets.

Anything else you would like to say?

On conclusion, I would like to say that the government should be a bit liberal towards the hotel industry in terms of boosting the industry through easy taxation & licensing policy.

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