Here's an article in the Outlook which at first glance is quite amusing but
on further thought presents a great business idea for someone in Goa.
Innovator Lalit D. Meisheri
Innovation: dehydrated food
Pulao Par Avion!
Mom's kitchen to NRI plates: the in-between is cut-'n-dry
Smita Mitra
"Prithi Chauthani is glad her son, a student in the US, still gets to eat
the food cooked by her every day. Magic? No, tech actually. Prithi takes her
son's favourites, this month it's biriyani, to Lalit Meisheri, who processes
them into ready-to-eat, single-serve packs.
All her son has to do is place the packs in boiling water and, voila, out
pops piping-hot mom's biriyani! The food was about 7 kg when Prithi took it
to Meisheri. After being processed, it weighs less than 2 kg and is easy to
transport by air. And all it costed her was Rs 2,000. "His birthday is
coming up and he is sure to have friends over," she says, beaming. "I hope
they like my biriyani."
More than 3,000 mothers like Prithi, from across Mumbai, come to Meisheri to
send food to loved ones abroad. What sets Meisheri's service apart from
other "heat and serve" products is that the food retains its nutritional
value, flavour and taste and there are no preservatives added. The service
is so customised that Meisheri often has mothers show him exactly how much
their sons and daughters eat at each meal so that he can tailor the food
packets accordingly and avoid wastage.
The idea was seeded when a friend complained to Meisheri about how her
daughter had lost six kilos after going to study in the US. "I thought that
it was important for our children to be well-fed when they are studying," he
explains. And so the first "meal pack" was born. He has since dehydrated all
kinds of dishes: from khichdi, biriyani (and its raita accompaniment), gajar
ka halwa to idli and rajma. His busiest month is August, just before the
students depart for their fall academic semester.
Meisheri, an IIT-Bombay alumnus, started with seasonal fruits and vegetables
because he "wanted to reduce food spoilage during transit from villages and
also cut transport costs by reducing the bulk of the produce being
transported". He claims his process of dehydrating food at room temperature
retains its micronutrients-unlike the other heat-based dehydration methods.
Meisheri is unwilling to go into detail about his methods, but a panel of
doctors from Southampton Hospital in the UK has authenticated his claims
about the food retaining its nutritional value. The Indus Entrepreneurs
(tie), a global non-profit organisation that recognises innovative
entrepreneurs within the South Asian community, has adjudged his method to
be a "bonafide new dehydrating technology".
But the real test for Meisheri comes from those who know their food. The
Birlas, for instance. Meisheri recounts the dinner test that Rajashri Birla,
the wife of the late Aditya Birla, put him through recently. "They sent me
dishes from Swati Snacks (a Mumbai eatery) to dehydrate and used the food
packs I made from them to serve a meal at their home," he says. The Birlas
had their guests rate the food: most of the dishes received ten out of ten
with a few scoring 9.8! To Meisheri's surprise, he soon received an order to
dehydrate 150 kilos of foodstuff. "The Birla family was going to Spain for a
holiday and they wanted authentic home food during their vacation." He then
started getting big orders from the rich and famous, and even has those with
religious strictures, such as Jain businessmen, queueing up for meal packs
for holidays and business trips.
Other savvy former "clients" are entering the "heat and serve" industry
using his method. Pankti Chheda used to sup on Meisheri's food packets while
completing her Masters in Global Business Analysis in the UK. Once she
returned to Mumbai, she started Heat 2 Eat, aimed at Indian students across
campuses, promising to not only deliver home-cooked food, but also dishes
from iconic Mumbai restaurants. In three months, she already has about 80
regulars. Similarly, local Mumbai joints like Samrat and the Kamat group of
restaurants are hoping their legendary dishes, like the pav bhaji and south
Indian fare, can be marketed abroad using this technique. Meisheri is
excited about how his method is finding new takers, but is happy to stick to
the research side of things. "I'd rather other people handle the business
part." Not that the end-users of his goods mind-they clamour for more
home-cooked, authentic Kolhapuri mutton curry in Connecticut.
Article Ends.
Imagine Cecil Pinto Goanet entrepreneur taking the tastiest food in Goa
restaurants and shacks and doing what Lalit Meisheri does. Imagine Frederick
Noronha Goanet marketer splashing the menu on Flipkart and other media and
then using his postal expertise and connections to deliver the packets in a
cost efficient manner to single Goan workers in the Gulf, to Goans in US,
Canadian and Australian small towns that do not have access to Goan cooking
and food, and to Goans elsewhere who smack their lips for authentic Goan
dishes from 'back home'.
Heck, if I were in Goa I would not be putting this idea out in cyberspace
for free! I would be doing it myself.
I'd even be a good customer if they actually do this.
Roland.
Toronto.
Roland Francis
416-453-3371
roland.fran...@gmail.com
Open mind, sharp wit, soft heart.
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