The concept of India Food Court was developed in 2015 when a Malayalam news daily, Mathrubhumi, collaborated with Kudumbashree for their Mega Consumer Festival at Thiruvananthapuram. The idea was conceptualised to provide a common platform for marketing the diverse food traditions of India under a single roof. With its grand success, the second food court was organized with SARAS Mela held at Kollam in 2016. The warm response to the fusion of art, craft, culture, and food has made these food courts an annual occurrence and are now organized jointly with SARAS melas in collaboration with the Ministry of Rural Development. To date, the national resource wing of Kudumbashree, known as Kudumbashree NRO, has organised more than eleven such food courts which has witnessed the participation of more than 1200 entrepreneurs from 15-20 States and UTs across India.

The success of the India Food Court lies in its unique approach in following a common protocol of operation where a healthy, hygienic environment is ensured at every level of programme conduct. Further the uniform standards, personal and kitchen hygiene practices, maintenance of clean dining space, scientific waste management, proper medical checkup, compliance to legal formalities, and food and fire safety norms. etc. are some areas of emphasis that are taken care of through proper training sessions before the start of the food court event. The participating entrepreneurs are provided with a detailed orientation on the standard norms, dos, and don’ts of the food court that helps them in familiarisation with the professionalism required in running a food service business. In addition, India Food Court adheres to the green protocol and therefore tries to not use plastic or other non-biodegradable materials as much as possible. The art and design of the stall is also done using natural materials such as jute and coir.

For facilitation of such food courts, Kudumbashree NRO has developed a human resource pool. The team includes master chefs and trainers from AIFRHM (Adebha Institute for Food Research and Hospitality Management, a yuvashree enterprise under Kudumbashree, formed to aid this process), support staff, mentors and development professionals from Kudumbashree NRO. Additionally, another set of HR supporting the entrepreneurs are the Cafe mentors, who have been identified and trained by Kudumbashree NRO in foodservice administration and management.

During the past twelve India Food Court events, the entrepreneurs have generated a collective revenue of upto 5 crores. With such platforms, the women from SHG network have gotten a chance to convert their traditional knowledge on food into economic activity. The units participating in such platforms have realised the higher profit margin available in the foodservice business. The exposure has helped women in developing professional knowledge on business operations, stock management, marketing techniques, hygiene, food quality, customer relations and customer service.

Ultimately, the model aims at creating acceptability for SHG based foodservice unit and products, mainstreaming them by providing support under the national brand of Aajeevika India Food Court with an effort to serve ‘India on your plate.’

The initiative has set new entrepreneurship culture in the cafe and canteen sector that has resulted in creating awareness towards the importance of such platforms for our SHG women and creating an end-to-end cycle of prosperity from SHG to SHG.