Uttarsanda (Gujarat): Uttarsanda village in Gujarat is famous for its 'Namkeen food' varieties around the world. In the run-up to the Diwali festival there is a huge demand for snack items and sweets made here. The increased demand has kept the village buzzing with a lot of activities. With just a few days left for the biggest Hindu festival, the villagers here are finding it hard to have their food on time. They are working day and night to meet the growing demand of 'Matthias' and 'Papads' from across the State. Uttarsanda's 'Papad', 'Matthia' and 'Chora' are made from black gram, which is very popular among the Gujaratis. A large percentage of non-resident-Indians (NRIs) hail from Gujarat. Thus, the products made here are sent abroad to meet the ever-increasing demand there. "Eighty per cent of Uttarsanda's population have relatives living abroad. People from England and America buy our Matthias and Papads and distribute to people known to them in those countries.

    This is how our popularity has risen there," says Ismailbhai Vora, a Manager, Cottage industry, Uttarsanda. A lot of attention is given on maintaining a good standard. Special emphasis is laid on preservation and packaging of the products. "There is a lot of demand for Papad and Matthias from public. This is because of quality. We have to keep them dry for a longer period, add preservatives and take special care in packing," says Devendrabhai Patel. People come here from far off places and buy for themselves and their relatives living in India and abroad. More than 20 per cent of the total prepared items are exported to UK, Australia, America and Gulf countries. "Gujarat is famous for Matthias and Namkeens. Everyone loves them. We buy Matthias and Namkeens from here and send it to our relatives in Mumbai and abroad," says Samir, another customer. Every year, during Diwali more than 30 crores of rupees (over six million dollars) are earned as profit by by the traders here.
-Oct 26, 2005

Indian spices to make a presence in US with 'Flavourit'

     Cochin: Gourmet stores across the US now have an Indian spicy smell. With an eye on the high-end food chain stores, India has gone for a marketing blitzkrieg with 'Flavourit' branded spices in straight, liquid, paste and in powder forms. Indian spices are a hit with the UK and the Gulf markets, but the US markets with stiff Food and Drug Administration (FDA) norms have been slow to open up. The Spices Board, an apex body and regulator of the spices market, has stepped in with 'Flavourit' to bridge the gap. The launching pad is California, land of Silicon Valley, and home to thousands of Indian software professionals. "We are starting with California. We are expecting that once this becomes a little known there we will spread it to other states in the US and simultaneously probably we will also entertain inquires from other countries in the EU or the Middle East or the Far East," said C. J. Jose, Chairman, Spices Board. The products were launched this week and range from organic spices and flavoured teas, black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, fennel, mustard, thyme and vanilla to herbal spices. Curry pastes such as Tikka masala curry paste and Tandoori Curry paste add to the variety.

    The spices are acquired directly from farmers, who at the instance of the board have taken to environment friendly farming practices, such as organic cultivation and integrated pest management in production. Jose said that the market response has been good so far, and they have orders worth 75,000 dollars to start with. "At the moment we find the response very encouraging. We have orders worth 75,000 dollars to begin with and we've got some advance payments. So, we expect that in California they have seen some potential for popularising it among gourmet stores, that is food stores that sell high quality material, and also chain stores and and restaurants," he said. The Indian spice industry had recently suffered a setback following an embarrassing incident of poisoning in the UK and also the discovery of lethal carcinogens in many spice products. However, the industry bounced back with the introduction of world-class technology for stringent quality control in spice export. The formidable Asian economy already has a three tier quality check in place, which includes compulsory tests and pre-shipment inspection, but adding cutting edge technology to the entire process has greatly helped restore buyer confidence and made India possibly the world's safest spice market. 'Flavourit' is processed to meet the stringent International food safety standards as per the requirements of the EU and US FAD, and will be exported bearing the Spice Boards certification. Annually India exports around 0.25 million tons of spices.
-Oct 19, 2005