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“Much changed in consumers' attitudes toward F&B since crisis”
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Monday, 11 October, 2021, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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 The pandemic upset the cartel of food and beverage industry despite being in the essential service sector during the national and global lockdowns. The result was supply chain disruption with difficult to access raw materials and factory workforce to sustain operations of manufacturing and marketing. Much has changed as consumers look for high quality safe and nutritious food products. In this scenario, Mother’s Recipe has transformed both in terms of image and product portfolio to cater to taste buds of all age groups, said Sanjana Desai, executive director, Mother’s Recipe, in an email interview with Nandita Vijay. Excerpts:
As a fourth-generation entrepreneur what is your vision to grow the brand?
Our effort is to become a national leader in the ethnic food business. To achieve this, resources are being allocated for increasing manufacturing capacity, brand building and supply chain management. We intend also to expand globally and be recognised as an Indian household name of integrity.
We aim to provide our customers with the best products of nutritious quality ingredients that exceed market demands. Simultaneously we strive to enhance our customer satisfaction and believe in continuous improvement as we grow as a company.
What has been the impact of the pandemic on the food and beverage processing industry?
The food and beverage industry is one of India's largest contributors to the FMCG sector, accounting for over 30% of total household spending in the country. But the pandemic’s indiscriminate nature has not only harmed people's health and quality of life, but has also affected the global economy, supply networks, across countries. The unexpected interruption has weakened the global food supply chain and the service sector in the food and beverage manufacturing industries, following the global and national lockdowns.
The food and beverage industry in India has faced several challenges as a result of Covid-19, including supply chain operations, safety, training, disaster management and response, awareness, re-forming business models, digitalisation and technological advancement, and other unanticipated consequences. Furthermore, the country's consumer behaviour toward food has undergone significant change. Companies have begun to resume as the country recovers from corona virus outbreak. However, the situation for the sector is long way from normalcy. Much has changed in consumers' attitudes toward the F&B sector since the crisis.
What were the challenges encountered during the pandemic phase and ensuing lockdowns and how was your company able to overcome these?
As said the pandemic and the related lockdown had a tremendous effect across the industry. Food was an essential commodity during the pandemic phase and even though demand had increased, our factories were partially functional as there were a lot of restraints on the availability of raw material, packaging material, and access to limited labour workforce. So the biggest challenges were supply chain, transport, logistic issues, and manpower.
During the pandemic, we witnessed a significant rise in consumption of our packaged ethnic food products as most households preferred to cook at home. Moreover, there was substantial rise in online sales. So keeping this in mind, we partnered with major e-commerce players, including Flipkart, Big Basket, Milkbasket and Grofers. As a brand, we were able to strike a fine balance between the demand supply on both on the ground and online platforms.
Which are the fastest growing products of the company?
Over the last 12 months, we’ve built a portfolio of Indian chutneys for samosa, bhel puri, pani puri and schezwan. Our portfolio also includes instant mixes, cooking pastes and ready to cook gravies.
Growth for the chutney range is huge, across modern retail, general trade, e-commerce, and government channels: CSD (canteen stores department). The biggest spike was in general trade, followed by e-commerce.
The brand has transformed both in terms of image and product portfolio. So long our brand was synonymous with pickle, over the years we expanded our product portfolio to meet changing consumers’ tastes and demands. Our focus is on creating categories that will be important for the future. We have few new launches lined-up, which we are very excited about. We are focussing on millennials.
Throw more light on the advanced manufacturing facilities at the three locations?
Currently, we have our state-of-art processing facilities at Sarole near Shirwal on the Pune-Bengaluru highway. This is certified under ISO 9001-2008 and ISO 22000-2005 (HACCP), Halal & Kosher & also registered with US FDA, Spice Board of India & Export Inspection Council. Stringent, hygienic standards and quality control procedures are implemented at various stages of processing to ensure that best quality products are released from our factory. Our in-house laboratory is equipped with latest, sensitive instruments, to check the quality of the products at every stage.
A strong R&D team focusses on consumers’ requirement to develop the products based on organised market research conducted by our marketing team. We ensure use of the best ingredients and right process of manufacturing. While purchasing raw materials such as fruits, vegetables and spices, considerable emphasis is given to quality for authentic taste, that the brand promises to its consumers.
How has the company fared in exports and any expansions of markets envisaged. Also which of the countries abroad are indicating highest response?
At present, the brand has a strong presence in India. Exports are to the Middle East, Australia, UK, Europe, US, Canada, and Africa. We have been one of the largest providers of traditional and authentic Indian food products, trading in 42 countries for pickles, condiments pastes, mango chutneys, ready-to-eat meals, blended spices, ethnic chutneys, papad, ready-to-cook spice mixes and instant mixes.
How are the ready-to-eat products: Canned & Retort packing versions faring because now the demand during the pandemic is for fresh food preparations?
We believe the demand is evolving as consumers seek authentic, convenient, and better packaged products. As a result, we need to continuously innovate in line with the growing consumer expectations to provide the finest quality & tastiest of products.
Due to safety concerns, customers prefer to dine at home rather than go out to eat. Understanding this, we have introduced new products that are convenient, healthy, and nutritious to satisfy the need of new-age customers covering ready-to-eat to instant mixes.
What are the new products on the anvil to cater to the millennial taste buds?
Recipe Sauces are the latest addition to our extended portfolio. These are a wide range of international flavours to spice up taste buds. The Recipe Sauces is a young brand that specialises in providing Desi Szechwan and versatile options of exotic sauces for a wide range of culinary experiences. With Recipe Desi Szechwan and Sauces, we aim to provide the millennial consumer with the freedom & versatility of cooking, experimentation with everyday food with a twist, which brings our exotic flavours. We ensure use of best ingredients and high standards of manufacturing. Our objective is to continue delivering the real taste of love, to millions globally. Also, we have already implemented our Direct-to-Customer (D2C) strategy by listing all our products on our e-commerce website for taste buds of all ages.
Sauces are an extremely competitive space so what led the company to focus on this and what are the varieties here?
Before bringing a new product to market, our R&D team conducts extensive research. According to the "India Chinese, Hot & BBQ Sauces Market Outlook, 2023" report, the overall market for Chinese, Hot and Barbeque Sauces in India is anticipated to reach more than Rs 700 crore in 2022-23. Due to increasing customers' appreciation for different cuisines, increased retail consumption, easy availability of sauces and many such factors, the market has grown with a CAGR of more than 15% during the review period starting from 2011-12 to 2016-17. The Chinese sauces include red chilli sauce, green chilli sauce, vinegar, soya sauce and Schezwan chutney. The share of Schezwan chutney which currently is more than 25% of the total Chinese sauce market is expected to increase in the coming five years. Hence, we got Recipe Sauces as the latest addition to our portfolio of food products.
What are the trends and challenges in the food processing space?
Current trend is a change in diet and lifestyle, making it health-conscious than ever. This leads to purchase of foods with no extra preservatives lest it could harm health. The market for products that do not carry the 'healthy' label is bound to decline. In order to remain competitive, it is necessary to eliminate artificial elements from products, this has emerged as one of the fundamental issues. Our products have no preservatives nor MSG or artificial flavour enhancers. As a brand, we focus on natural & traditional ways to preserve food.
The challenge is that the world is living with Covid-19 and the pandemic shows little signs of abating, particularly in 2021. Ensuring that industry safety standards are met, it is critical to sustain consumers trust in food manufacturers. All our products adhere to strict quality standards and international safety norms while retaining authentic taste.
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