Nature for nurture: How GreenDay is strategising to raise the nutritional index of India

Founded by Prateek Rastogi and Aishwarya Bhatnagar in 2017, GreenDay incentivizes farmers to grow nutrition-dense crops enriched with essential micronutrients. The company is on a mission to make everyday staples healthier for consumers without requiring them to change their dietary habits.

Recently, GreenDay announced that India’s first MasterChef and culinary icon, Pankaj Bhadouria, has joined the brand as an investor and culinary advisor. This strategic partnership follows Olympic medalist PV Sindhu’s endorsement and investment, further solidifying the brand’s commitment to revolutionizing nutrition in India. As a celebrated expert in healthy cooking, Pankaj will lead new product development, focusing on creating innovative biofortified food products aimed at health-conscious consumers.

In an exclusive interaction with Adgully, Prateek Rastogi and Pankaj Bhadouria delve into GreenDay’s approach to bio-fortification, the impact of celebrity involvement on brand equity, and their plans for future product innovations. They also discuss GreenDay’s omnichannel distribution strategy and how the brand is paving the way for accessible, nutritious food across India.

From winning MasterChef to becoming an investor at GreenDay, how has your journey been? Could you share some moments that influenced your transition into the business side of the culinary world?

Pankaj Bhadouria: In 2010, I won MasterChef, and since then, I’ve been very active in the media through my television shows – I have done about 14 to 15 of them.

I have also authored five to six books. In this new age, where social media has become so powerful, we’ve been very active on those platforms as well. As a chef, I have been sharing recipes, food tips, and more. But then I realized that I have a responsibility towards my audience and people in general. My job shouldn’t just be about sharing recipes as a chef. I believe I need to look beyond that.

It’s been a good 12 to 13 years, and every position comes with a certain responsibility. While on the one hand, I try to educate people about which types of oils they should use or how to consume a particular dish, it’s also important to teach them how small changes can improve their lives and nutrition. It doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive. We should always turn to nature. Nature is our best teacher. If something grows in North India or South India, that’s what we should be eating because nature has designed it that way. Food evolves with the climate and soil, and that’s how it is meant to be. It’s essential to eat local, seasonal food. In North India, wheat is consumed more, while in South India, rice is more common. Why do we need to rely on pills for nutrition when our food should be enough to provide us with the nutrition we need?

That’s when I met Prateek, and we discussed how to improve nutrition. They are working on bio-fortification, but in a way that doesn’t involve adding anything artificial. I had encountered bio-fortified foods before, where someone told me to mix a sachet with rice to fortify it. My concern was, wouldn’t it all wash away when I rinse the rice? That’s when I realized that Prateek and his team were working at the seed level to retain the nutrition within the grain itself, even through milling and washing. I felt that this approach was heading in the right direction, and that’s how I decided to join hands with Prateek and became part of the team.

Since your MasterChef win in 2010, the culinary industry has experienced tremendous growth with the rise of numerous platforms. From your perspective, where does the cookery business stand today, and how do you see it evolving?

Pankaj Bhadouria: As I mentioned, the avenues available to us today are vastly different from what they were ten years ago. Thanks to social media, we can now reach millions of people in diverse and innovative ways.

For example, if I were to launch a product today, like Pankaj Ke Masala, it’s much easier to connect with my audience directly and say, “Try Pankaj Ke Masala.” Because they know I’ve created it personally, they trust the product. Or, if I’m part of a team that I believe in, it becomes effortless to share that vision with my audience, and they believe in it too.

The cookery business is expanding in many directions across different platforms. On one hand, there are cloud kitchens, and on the other, cloud bakeries. Many chefs are opening their own restaurants, while others are venturing into packaged foods or collaborating with companies to produce packaged or frozen meals.

So yes, the opportunities have multiplied, and the ways to capitalize on them in the cookery business have grown immensely.

As someone who has turned cooking into a successful career, what are your thoughts on the culinary arts as a business choice today? And what advice would you share with aspiring chefs or those looking to follow in your footsteps?

Pankaj Bhadouria: Culinary arts and business are two different things. Culinary arts is a passion, while business is a profession. It is important to understand the distinction. Culinary arts have evolved into a completely different field today. Students are no longer being taught the same courses from 50 years ago. They’re learning molecular gastronomy, the art of plating, and entrepreneurial skills. There are so many new things happening.

Culinary arts are about how you present your food – cooking, presenting, and sharing. But putting that into a business perspective or developing a business vision is a different challenge.

For example, as I mentioned, it’s easier to sell a product. If you can make that product artistic, you might have a winner. This is especially true for bakery products, as they often look beautiful and can be sold based on their artistic value. But culinary arts as a whole is a vast ecosystem with many specialties and departments, each working in unique ways.

Food, however, is something that will never go out of business. While the hospitality and tourism sectors suffered greatly during COVID, the food business boomed. Why? People stuck at home, unable to travel or have their help come in, started ordering food. Suddenly, the food industry multiplied. Women at home began cooking and selling food, sending out tiffins, and making specialty dishes. Delivery partners were eager to help deliver this food to customers.

So, food as a business never went out of demand, and we learned that during COVID. Even today, many budding chefs are running their own kitchens, doing great business by supplying meals to working professionals, catering for events, or preparing packaged meals with pre-cut ingredients. These “meal kits” save customers time by providing everything they need in the right quantities, ready to cook.

The possibilities in the culinary industry today are endless.

Could you tell us about your upcoming projects and the plans you’re most excited about – such as the association with GreenDay and more?

Pankaj Bhadouria: Life is quite exciting because there’s always something new happening every day. I still consider myself a student, always learning and discovering new things. What the future holds for me are more discoveries, like better nutrition, which was a real eye-opener for me.

It was fascinating to see how something as basic as nutrition could be improved at a fundamental level, right from the farm. For example, when Pradeek told me that if you scan the QR code on a bag of atta, you can trace the story of the farmer who produced it, that was incredibly interesting to me.

Looking ahead, I’m excited about the possibility of working together to create products like wheat-based pastas and noodles, foods that people love to eat. We might even explore prepared food options, such as bakery products made with bio-fortified ingredients that are easy to prepare and share with consumers.

These are just some of the ideas that we’re considering for the near future. But as they say, whatever happens, happens – the future is unpredictable.

Could you walk us through the inception of GreenDay? What was the core idea behind it, and what motivated you to venture into the better nutrition segment?

Prateek Rastogi: In the early days of our career, we lived close to farmers in rural areas of Uttar Pradesh and worked alongside them. We saw the immense potential of Indian agriculture, as well as some of the challenges. Early on, we realized that while our country has great agricultural potential – we’re the second-largest agri-producer in the world – the food we produce doesn’t meet our nutritional needs.

India faces widespread micronutrient deficiencies. Over 80% of the people suffer from zinc deficiency, more than 50% from iron deficiency, and on the Global Hunger Index, India ranks 111 out of 125 countries, behind neighbours like Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. This stark contrast exists despite our status as a leading agri-producer.

The problem lies in the types of seeds we use. Most of our agriculture relies on high-yielding varieties and hybrids, where the focus is on crop yield, neglecting nutrition. This yield-centric approach has led to a system that overlooks the nutritional value of food.

We realized that the future had to focus on solving our country’s nutritional deficiencies through food. That required building a bio-fortification supply chain – from bio-fortified seeds to farming practices, to farmers who would implement them, and a procurement system to bring these crops to market. Our goal was to address micronutrient deficiencies through food.

Initially, we spent several years building the GreenDay supply chain, the agricultural arm of the business, which now includes nearly 100 rural procurement centers. Between 2020 and 2024, we focused on scaling the business by working with farmers. In 2024, once we had the necessary capacity, we launched Better Nutrition as an FMCG brand to bring these bio-fortified products to urban consumers.

We’ve also partnered with influential figures like Pankaj Bhadouria ma’am and PV Sindhu to help champion our mission and raise awareness about the benefits of bio-fortified produce.

How have you positioned GreenDay in terms of pricing, and could you elaborate on the target audience? What are your plans to make GreenDay or Better Nutrition accessible to different consumer segments?

Prateek Rastogi: In the long run, our goal is to make bio-fortified or nutrient-dense produce highly affordable and accessible to the Indian masses. We believe that nutrition shouldn’t be a luxury but a basic right for all Indians. That’s why we’ve built an agrarian supply chain, allowing us to buy directly from farmers and keep prices low.

At the moment, however, since we haven’t yet achieved economies of scale, these products are still relatively expensive. Each time we produce these items, we pay a premium to our farmers to ensure that their earnings improve when they farm with us. This results in higher prices for consumers currently.

For now, we’re targeting more health-conscious, educated individuals who are aware of the benefits of better nutrition. We hope they will start using these bio-fortified foods as an alternative to the more generic options available. Over the next five years, as we scale up, we aim to bring prices in line with other leading brands, making these products affordable for every Indian household.

With Pankaj Bhadouria and PV Sindhu as investors, how do you see celebrity involvement helping GreenDay build its brand equity? What impact do prominent figures like them have on the brand? Are there any more associations that you are planning?

Prateek Rastogi: When you look at bio-fortification as a process or a science, it’s really quite remarkable. We are increasing the nutritional value of agriculture, making farmers the backbone and beneficiaries of this process, and delivering highly nutritious products to urban consumers without requiring them to change their dietary habits – and all at affordable prices. It’s a beautiful science, but as with any new development, consumer awareness is essential. This is where influential voices in our country, like Pankaj Bhadouria and PV Sindhu, are helping us carry the mission forward. For example, Pankaj Bhadouria has spoken about responsibility, which aligns perfectly with the vision behind this company. We believe we have a duty to our country to improve nutrition in everyday staples at home. This shared mission unites Pankaj Bhadouria, PV Sindhu, and our team – we all deeply believe in it and are putting in daily efforts to ensure the message reaches everyone.

Could you share some insights into GreenDay’s marketing strategies? Are there any advertising campaigns in the pipeline following the announcement of these celebrity associations, and how do you plan to raise awareness?

Prateek Rastogi: With new sciences like bio-fortification, people may develop certain myths or apprehensions about adopting the technology. As marketers, our primary goal is to help people navigate through these misconceptions and build awareness about the bio-fortification process.

We’ve noticed some consumers confuse bio-fortification with genetically modified organisms (GMOs), but bio-fortification is 100% non-GMO. It’s simply the result of cross-breeding different varieties of crops to enhance their nutritional value. So, a big part of our marketing is educating people about this distinction and letting them know that bio-fortified products are not only nutritious, but also very healthy and tasty.

We’ve put a lot of effort into discovering crop varieties that are not only rich in nutrients, but also delicious, and that’s where people like Pankaj Bhadouria play an important role. They’re educating the audience about the benefits of these products, ensuring that consumers understand they can enjoy these nutritious foods without compromising their usual dietary habits or taste preferences.

What is GreenDay’s approach to omnichannel distribution? Are you ensuring that your products are accessible to consumers across various touchpoints, both online and offline?

Prateek Rastogi: It is 100% an omnichannel strategy that we have adopted. We first moved to e-commerce platforms, and we’ve been present on Amazon, Flipkart, and JioMart, where we’ve received phenomenal responses for our products. Recently, we’ve expanded to quick commerce platforms.

We are launching with BigBasket in their top ten cities across the country, and we’ll also be available on Swiggy Instamart soon, with discussions in progress with Dunzo. Additionally, we’ve partnered with two prominent modern trade platforms. We are already present in Lulu Hypermarkets and have partnered with Le Marche retail chain stores across Delhi-NCR. This is just the beginning, as we are rapidly gaining interest from various modern trade platforms and expanding onto them.

Similarly, we are seeing growing traction from general trade partners who want to distribute and stock our products. However, that’s something we plan to focus on starting next year.

What does the future roadmap for GreenDay look like? How do you envision the brand evolving over the next few years?

Prateek Rastogi: From a crop or product life cycle standpoint, we’ve already been working with wheat and rice as two primary crops. Recently, during this Kharif season, we’ve also expanded to prominent millets, such as bajra and ragi, which are now bio-fortified. Our bajra is an iron-rich millet, boasting one of the highest iron contents found in bajra, while our finger millet (ragi) is called “Calcium Finger Millet” due to its high calcium content.

Additionally, we’ve cultivated maize with a particularly high content of pro-vitamin A – at least 300% more than traditional maize. We are also working to increase certain essential amino acids, such as lysine and tryptophan which are typically lacking in our diet, focusing on crops like maize. Beyond that, we are bio-fortifying pulses such as arhar (toor dal) and masoor dal, increasing their zinc, iron, manganese, and boron content through soil fortification.

This is truly an exciting space, where science and nature come together in the most wonderful way. Along with Pankaj Bhadouria, we are also curating the next line of products, focusing on kitchen ingredients – everything a mother, chef, or homemaker needs to make meals more nutritious at home.

We are targeting products beyond staples, such as bio-fortified wheat-based noodles, pasta, and millet-based alternatives. Our goal is to make kitchen ingredients that simplify the job of mothers and homemakers while ensuring healthier, more nutritious meals.

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