Food processing industry has gained significant pace in the last decade owing to the advent of multiple technology options which made cooking easier and faster. Besides, there have been improved packaging options with an increased variety of fast-foods. Indian society is getting more westernized and is getting used to packed food, entailing an increase in the demand. The packaged food industry is growing at a CAGR of 4.52 percent, which shows industry bloom. However, all these years, the industry was full of snacks and fast food items with higher fat content. With the recent pandemic strike, people have begun to look for healthier options with high protein and minerals, and Makhana is an ideal alternative.
Mr Makhana’s presence in the market has provided the consumers with savory items containing low fat and high protein content. The founder of Mr Makhana, Rishab Jain, says, “We had a little bit of traction due to the pandemic, I would say. It is unfortunate but opportunistic. This is because people themselves looked it up, and by that time, we were luckily in the industry. We were promoting our products”. The two major differentiating factors of Mr Makhana in its target
market is the provision of products that are hygienic and good in quality. Besides, the product quality and packaging are backed by ISO 22000 and FSSC certifications that help the company to stand out against duplicate products.
Geographical Presence
Mr Makhana is a leading manufacturer in its niche market of packed Makhana, both raw and seasoned. The company founder Rishab says, “We were the first to commercialize Makhana as a snack. It is a heavy Capex business because Makhana is very expensive from what it was and now what it is”. Mr Makhana believes that improvisation is crucial to innovate and keep up to date with the consumers’ rapidly changing tastes and needs. Looking at the high demand, the company began processing Makhana in different flavours.
Inducing R&D and innovation into place has further allowed the products to be rich in vitamins, proteins and minerals. Being a food item more famous in the Northern parts of India, Mr Makhana has their largest consumer base in northwestern parts of India, mostly in smaller volume packs. These regions include Delhi NCR, Rajasthan, Punjab, etc. In spite of this fact, the easy availability, good taste and food value have made the product famous in western regions like Goa, Pune, Mumbai and Bangalore and West Bengal in the east. The company has a good market presence in big box stores pan India with high volume packaging.
We were the first one to commercialize makhana as a snack
Future Prospects
Mr Makhana is vertically intergrating by creating a parallel supply chain for raw makhanas. The R&D is in full force in terms of flavoring and working consistently to improve the nutrition macros of Mr Makhana products. Along that, we are also working toward by-products of Makhana such as Makhana Kheer, Makhana Cereal and Makhana protein bars. The R&D is under the pipeline and we are aware that some other brands have come out with similar by-products but we believe that until unless there is absolute quality and proper value addition, we wouldn’t come out with an average product. We do not sell anything as a premium or healthy product just because it has makhana, it is the process, affordability and innovation that we strive for.
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