In conversation with Rohit Mehrotra, CEO of Organic Tattva, he elaborates on their work with farms to process food organically, their food safety parameters, range of products, aims for the industry, and more.
Q1. What are some of the trends that Organic Tattva have picked on from 2024?
In 2024, we noticed an increasing awareness among consumers about adulteration of food and harmful effects of pesticides and chemicals. Over the years, many people have turned to a healthier lifestyle, avoiding processed foods, opting for home cooked meals, choosing cleaner food options, reading labels etc. Consumers also demand more transparency from brands on where the food comes from and the ingredients used in them.
Influencers are also picking on this and it is now becoming a trend. Consumers are now more educated on what kind of food they should be consuming, what they should be aware of while looking at in labels, what kind of oils to use, and more. The awareness in general has become more heightened over the years.
Q2. What is the process of developing a processed food from concept to kitchen, while ensuring that it stays organic?
We work directly with over 10,000 farmers who grow organic crops for us. The farms are certified and our field staff regularly visits them. Farmers are trained on how to grow organic crops, what bio-fertilizers to make, and use. They are provided with day to day support on ground to control pests and improve soil health. We provide farmers with bio-fertilizers to ensure that crops are grown under organic practices.
We test all products that come in our factory, for 250 pesticide residues and heavy metals. The testing is done at the farm level by a third party testing body. Only once the test passes, we procure the lot. All the cleaning, grading, milling, and processing is done in our factory premises in order to have full control over quality standards.
We have a full traceability and transparency system in place. Each product pack has a QR code. Consumers can scan the QR code and enter the batch number of the product, which will show the 250 pesticide residue test report to the customer as well as the origin of the product. Organic Tattva is the only brand following a transparency system like this.
Q3. What are some of the challenges in meeting organic certification standards in the realms of processed food?
Sourcing of raw material becomes an issue. This is because as a principle we always test every product for 250 pesticides. Otherwise, we do not procure it. A lot of products are very difficult to find in organic.
Certification standards keep changing from time to time and we have to be very proactive to make sure we are compliant with domestic and international organic standards.
We offer day-to-day on-ground support and supply bio-fertilizers to our farms to ensure crops are cultivated, following strict organic protocols. We have independently certified farmer groups through accredited certification bodies for compliance with USDA and India NPOP standards, ensuring that all records are maintained and organic protocols are strictly followed. In addition, our team conducts regular internal audits to monitor farming activities and maintain high standards.
Q4. What should the go-to-market strategy be for an organic brand? What are your sales channels? What is the revenue comparison of e-commerce Vs traditional channels?
We have always focused on multi-channel approach, such as Modern trade, Ecommerce and Quick commerce. With Modern trade, we are present across 9000 stores in India. On Amazon and other ecommerce sites, we have over 20% market share and even 40% + on some key products. Quick commerce has been a big boost for us, with over 40% market share on Blinkit. We are one of the top organic brands overall at all quick commerce platforms. We plan to continue this trajectory and enter into tier 2 tier 3 cities and increase our brand presence over all different platforms.
Q5. What are the different ranges of products that you offer? Are you planning on expanding your product range in 2025?
We offer the entire Dry grocery basket, which is Organic Rice, Organic Flours & Cereals, Organic Pulses, Natural Salts & Organic Sugar and Jaggery, Organic Whole, ground and blended spices, Organic Super foods, Millets and Health foods. We also have value added products like Organic Tea, Oils, Ghee, Honey, Dry fruits, and Ready to cook Instant mixes.
Q6. How do you see the Organic market developing in the coming years? What are the pain points in this industry that you have been able to tap into with your work?
Organic is a category which is growing very fast. Consumer awareness has increased along with the demand for clean and pure products.
However, price is a pain point with customers. There is a premium that organic foods have over conventional, but that is also because of the raw material costs. Its much more difficult to grow organically, therefore the premium comes from the farm level. Moreover, retailers charge a higher margin for premium and niche products than regular conventional products. As a brand, we want to make organic affordable for all. We are working hard to streamline our supply chain to be able to provide the best and most affordable prices to our consumers.
Biggest challenge is convincing customers that what we offer is really organic and pure. There is a lot of skepticism in consumer’s mind as to what brands speak vs what they offer. Consumers are misguided by false advertisements and claims. However, we are very transparent with our consumers. Each lot of each product goes through stringent testing and food safety standards. Our strength lies in our authenticity and our commitment to providing highest quality food to our consumers.
We offer a vast range of products that meet your everyday grocery needs. It is an entire basket of dry groceries that each and every Indian household requires. We work directly with farmers and have our own projects where we procure from. We support farmers as well as sustainable farming practices.
