"ACHE DIN" promise for commuters of Indian Railways yet to take off-The branded food dilemma

Though we have been hearing about dramatic changes being brought about in the Railway Catering services by the new government in Delhi, nothing much seems to be happening to justify such a big hype. If this government monopolistic agency is to be believed introduction of branded packed foods to passengers in some luxury trains is imminent to avoid complaints about food quality which are overwhelming the Railways with respite. A layman still does not understand what is the problem for this premier transportation agency to change the mindset and attitudes of its employees to take the travelers for granted. First of all it is still not clear why Railways want to undertake catering responsibility, considering the past bitter experience of government undertakings in hotel industry which is no match to well run private hotel chains in the country. It should have best left the catering to private players with tight supervisory role for the Railways to get responsive service from them under a strict deterrent regime and protocols. It is sad to see that in spite of decades of promises of providing better catering services, Railways failed to deliver on them. Recent explanation from the "Babus" regarding the catering fiasco is reflected in the following media report. 

"Flooded with complaints about the quality of the food served on trains, Railways had decided to provide ready-to-eat food as an additional option for its passengers by October 30. Even as he admitted that determining the prices for the branded food items was a factor that has led to the delay in the launch of the new menu on mail and express trains, Railway Member (Traffic), D P Pande, said, "It is being resolved now." While Railways is averse to the high price demand of the food manufacturers, the latter maintain that the rate of pre- cooked food like pav bhaji, chicken biryani, rajma chawal served up in sealed packages will be a bit more than the prices of the standard meals available in pantry cars. "We have made them agree to our approved rate and now the policy is being finalised and expected to be rolled out in a month from now," Pande said. He, however, said that the option will be launched on a select few trains in the first phase and more trains will be covered later on. It would be made available on mail and express trains which have a pantry car. The service is likely to be initially launched on trains such as Karnataka Express, Frontier Mail, Paschim Express where the trial of these pre-cooked food items are already being carried out. A committee comprising health officials and senior rail officials has been formed to examine the quality, hygienic condition and protein value of the packaged food. Since these items are pre-cooked, the committee will have to certify about its bacteria-free shelf life, said a senior railway ministry official.  The branded food would be served to passengers as an 'add on' option along with the standard items as part of the catering service on trains. However, the national transporter insists that price of the pre-cooked food will be kept on a par with the standard meals currently available on trains. Given the high volume and branding opportunity, the companies are being told to charge reasonable rates, the rail official said. As to the trials, the official said that pre-cooked food by reputed brands like ITC, MTR, Kohinoor Foods, Quickmeal and Deleez were made available on a few trains and the response of passengers was encouraging. "Our aim is to ensure quality hygienic food for passengers. It must also be seen that the brands of meals or food items -- their quality, quantity, rate, hygiene -- are properly maintained," the official added."

This Blogger had suggested way beck in 2011 that the catering services can be best provided by established processed food manufacturers, many of them able to supply a variety of foods, centrally processed that can be just warmed before serving to the passengers. This can be done by providing a dedicated pantry car in each train to a selected player with responsibility to maintain the same with some rudimentary facilities to warm/heat pre-prepared packed foods. One gets nostalgic about old days when a passenger could walk through the vestibuled train to the pantry car, order for the foods he wants and eat the same in a relaxed manner. Such pantry cars should have a few tables and chairs and a menu that satisfies most of the customers. The success of any catering will depend on the ability of the caterer to provide what the customer wants at a time desired by him during the duration of the travel. For the sake of a few more seats in each train pantry car system was dismantled landing the organization in a mess vis-a-vis food service.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com                   

BRANDED FOODS-NEW FINDINGS ABOUT THEIR NUTRITIONAL DECLINE

Nutrition labeling in food packs was considered one of the most significant policy changes world over to make the process of making and marketing food more transparent. The right of the consumer to know exactly what is inside a sealed food pack is considered sacred and the front of the pack labeling is intended to serve this objective. Whether this mandatory step has improved the nutritional quality of foods in general is a subject matter of debate. Here comes a report that says the nutritional quality of branded foods turned out by the organized food industry has actually declined since 1990 which must be a cause for alarm. 

"According to a recent Duke study, the nutritional quality of branded foods has decreased over the past 20 years since nutrition facts were required on food products. Researchers at Duke's Fuqua School of Business and the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business determined that although taste has improved, the overall nutritional quality of supermarket branded foods has been on the decline. In 1990, the government passed the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act, which required manufacturers to include a "Nutrition Facts" label listing nutrients, ingredients and recommended daily values on food products. The study, which will be published in Marketing Science, examines a selection of food products before and after the NLEA to assess consumer trends and nutritional elements. Lead author of the study Christine Moorman said the NLEA may have unintended negative consequences. Consumers can develop a false sense of security knowing that the federal government regulates the nutritional standards. "Consumers say, 'I'm not going to worry or be as vigilant about it since the regulations are there,'" said Moorman, T. Austin Finch Sr. professor of business administration at Fuqua. "Consumers should be vigilant regardless of regulation. We hope that Duke students, and all consumers, pay attention to nutritional quality." The study also indicates that consumers consider taste to be more important than nutrition—a trend that the market has noticed. Branded foods have improved in taste over the past 20 years. The higher value consumers place on taste compared to nutrition prompted the researchers to suggest policy changes targeted at consumers and firms. "Public policy really needs to consider how to improve the value of nutrition when consumers care more about something else," Moorman said".

Can the industry be blamed for this dangerous trend that is seen in many countries as the food industry, growing at a decent pace, has captured the imagination of consumers, young and the old, by offering excellent products with tantalizing tastes and flavors. After all industry does not work for charity and the economic law necessitates that it works profitably within the frame work of safety norms that are in force. As long as the consumer does not insist on more nutritional products, overriding the sensory quality, the way industry is working to day will go on, no matter what is said and written about these issues. There is a limit how much the governments can do in improving nutritional quality of industry manufactured foods and such changes will have to be consumer driven.

V.H.POTTY
http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/
http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com