Food Marketing & Technology magazine, India had an interaction with Prateek Mittal, Managing Partner of Crèmeitalia. He talked about the idea behind the providing various artisanal and authentic cheese to the Indian consumers with authentic Italian flavours with local manufacturing.
1. Please share a brief about Crèmeitalia and its journey so far?
Having immense love for Italian food and always looking to explore more within the world of cheese we as a brand began our journey in 2018, providing various artisanal and authentic cheese in the F&B industry. Crèmeitalia came about with the joy of cooking good food relishing each bite filled with goodness and a burst of flavor. The main aim is to bring such goodness right to your table at home. Using generation old techniques, our products are synonymous with those of traditional Italian farms. Fusing these methods with the highest standards of local production and technology, we focus on producing fresh, distinct quality and ready to consume artisanal cheese.
Due to the current pandemic situation, people turned towards home cooking and also over the past years, cooking at home has become a recreational activity. People want to make more than just the typical Indian meal and therefore bend towards cooking more European style cuisine at home, in turn experimenting with artisanal cheese to recreate restaurant style food at home.
The journey and response from the market has been great and therefore we have expanded into the retail space as well. Our products are available at Foodhall, Nature’s Basket across Mumbai, Pune, Goa, Delhi, Lucknow, Meerut etc.
2. The milk used in your products is imported from Europe how does it lend value addition to the products?
Milk plays a major role in the consistency and quality of the cheese. European milk has a rich and creamy texture which moreover is enhanced in the final product. This overpowers the taste and quality of the product. There is however a certain inconsistency of quality with local milk.
Most processed cheeses aren’t made with the entire milk fat and water content of the milk and are highly doused with preservatives to increase longevity. The quality of the milk makes a stark difference in the freshness of the cheese making it as pure and delicious as possible.
3. Could you elaborate on the processing and storage techniques that you use?
We at Crèmeitalia use age old cheesemaking recipes combined with state-of-the-art modern-day manufacturing technology. Storage and temperature play an important role in ensuring the shelf life and quality of the cheese. Being fresh cheese, a change in temperature can tamper in taste and overall quality of the cheese. The right temperature is must for storing the cheeses well. Always keep the cheese airtight once opened and consume as soon as possible. Fresh, artisanal cheeses are always best suited for immediate consumption. Do not freeze as this will spoil the texture and flavor completely. Always use clean and dry cutlery while slicing and eating the cheese.
4. How is the growth of the Indian cheese market? What are the factors that are impacting it?
The Indian cheese market grew phenomenally by 25.5% CAGR during 2014-2019 and has been growing rapidly since then with a worth of INR 125.4 Billion by 2024. There are various factor that have impacted such growth such as affluent and growing disposable incomes, urbanization and changes in lifestyle, dietary habits – changes in tastes and preferences, tourism in terms domestic and international travels, awareness and accessibility via advertising, modern trade, ecommerce.
5. How many varieties of cheese do you have in artisanal and authentic Italian?
Currently, we have ten variants of cheese and are constantly looking to innovate and expand into new products. Our product range comprises of most cheeses from the Pasta Filata family such as Fiordilatte Pizza Cheese, Fiordilatte Bocconcini/Cherry Mozzarella, Burrata, Stracciatella, Buffalo Mozzarella, Ricotta, Mascarpone, Scamorza Cheese and Sour Cream.
We have also launched Crèmeitalia exclusives such as Truffle Burrata, Pesto Burrata, Pickled baby Mozzarella, Truffle Scamorza and Green Peppercorn Ricotta.
international travels, awareness and accessibility via advertising, modern trade, ecommerce.
6. What is your target audience? How do you market your products?
We cater to the target group from 20-45 years of age with 61% focusing on women’s interest. Being a premium brand, we cater to Sec A,B.
We market our products through modern trade, general trade, e-commerce platforms, digital media, influencer collaborations.
7. What are the challenges you faced during the pandemic? How did you manage the production?
The pandemic has been a tough time for everyone in business. From majorly supplying to restaurants/hotels and with the partial shutdown of the hospitality business, we decided to venture into the retail and e-commerce space.
At the factory outlets, we are extremely cautious and are constantly on the lookout for safety and distinct sanitization processes. However, we have managed systematically and are doing well in terms of production and have expanded in different parts of the country.
8. What are your learning’s from the Pandemic?
The pandemic was truly a shock which came to everyone. In all aspects, we have been hit, not just in business but our personal lives too. However, these times were truly survival of the fittest. With the right decision at the right time, we shifted our focus and moved into the retail space.
As they say, “every cloud has a silver lining” we choose to look forward to the brighter side and move ahead in positive ways. We’ve had an overwhelming response, our products are available at multiple modern trade and general trade store across Mumbai, Pune, Goa, Delhi, Lucknow, Meerut and e-commerce websites.
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