iD Fresh Food Invests Rs 40 crore to Launch Giant Home Kitchen

On World Idly Day, one of India’s largest fresh food brand, iD Fresh Food, announced the launch of a Giant Home Kitchen – a state-of-the-art and one of the world’s largest Idly and Dosa batter preparation and packaging plant in Anekal, Karnataka. 

The Bengaluru-based brand, which has become a household name across Indian homes for its soft idlis and delectable dosas along with a range of authentic South Indian foods, has made a CAPEX investment of close to Rs 40 crore, to set up the facility. 

Spread across 80,000 sq.ft. area, the new plant will address the growing demand for their star products Idly & Dosa batter and Parota in India. The strategic investment reflects the brand’s ambition to further strengthen its market leadership in the fresh foods segment and the potential of its Idly  and Dosa batter and Parota to boost the company’s overall revenue. Over the years, iD Fresh has established itself as the clear market leader in the idly &dosa category and is currently catering to over 45 cites, across 30,000 retail stores in India, UAE and US. 

Commenting on the launch, Musthafa PC, Co-founder and CEO, iD Fresh Food said, “We are extremely excited to introduce you to our Idly batter factory. Since March 2020, we have witnessed a 5 percent and 38 percent growth in demand for our Idly & Dosa batter and Parotas, respectively. The new facility marks a key milestone in iD’s journey - not just due to its sheer size but the fact that it is a fully-automated kitchen. At its highest functioning capacity, it will be able to produce 1 lakh kg batter and 3 lakh Parotas in a day. It takes us a step closer to our vision of building a better and healthier world for our future generations. In the next phase of operations, we are working on leveraging renewable energy and reducing our carbon footprint in order to make a positive social impact.”

Elaborating on the consumer trend, Rahul Gandhi, Chief Marketing Officer, iD Fresh Food said, “Over the last year, we have seen a rise in consumers making conscious lifestyle choices, be it their health or the food they're consuming. While the lockdown initiated the home cooking trend, we believe it has given way to a perceptible cultural shift – the younger generation and busy nuclear couples are discovering the multiple benefits of eating healthy, fresh, and easy-to-cook food. They are appreciating the fact that they don’t have to compromise between healthy, delicious, and quick when it comes to their everyday meals.”

Once the pandemic eases, the company plans to invite schools and the public to the giant home kitchen to witness the state-of-the-art technology used in making the food.

Commenting on the experience of building the world-class plant, Abdul Nazer, Co-Founder and Director, iD Fresh Food said, “When we started iD, we made the products the conventional way using equipment we use in our homes. However, as the company grew, we needed a more efficient solution to cater to the burgeoning demand for our products. For our new factory, we partnered with companies in Europe and the US to build customized equipment to control all aspects of making batter and parotas. After three years of trial and error, we have the machinery to handle the processes seamlessly.”

“Building the factory came with many challenges. We didn’t have a reference or even a consultant. However, since we knew our requirement and have close to two decades of experience in making idli-dosa batter, we were able to ideate, innovate and build a world-class setup. It has been an experience of a lifetime,” added Nazer.

The brand’s other fresh, home-made style foods include Squeeze and Fry Vada batter, Whole Wheat Chapatis, Natural Paneer, Curd,Grated Coconut in a Coconut, Smart Sip Tender Coconut and three blends Instant Filter Coffee Liquid among others. 

Funded by Premji Invest, Azim Premji’s investment arm, and Helion Venture Partners, iD Fresh has revolutionized the fresh food and food packaging market since its inception in 2005 in a 50 sq.ft. kitchen. The brand is synonymous with 100 percent natural and nutritious food prepared in hygienic kitchens, not laboratories. All iD Fresh products are prepared without using any chemicals, preservatives, synthetic stabilizers, artificial colours, or flavours.