🥣 Your Breakfast Habits Could be Costing Us Billions
Here's how one startup, which makes sales every 30 seconds, is trying to make Indian breakfast healthy.
If there's one proverb that we Indians really stand by is that one should have breakfast like a king.
Which is why chole bhature, kachori, and jalebi, are all part of our normal breakfast routines.Â
Sounds yummy, no?Â
But is all this good for us?
👀 The Problem With the Indian Diet
India is one of the top 20 most unhealthy countries in the world.
We've all studied the concept of a balanced diet, but in no way is our diet balanced.
It is mainly full of carbohydrates (the average Indian's diet is around 70% carbohydrates), fats and sugar.
The average Indian has 3-4 times the sugar they should, thanks to this unhealthy ingredient being added to a lot of our food items now.Â
Result: An increase in obesity, hypertension and diabetes.
In fact, India is the diabetes capital of the world.Â
Now, you must be thinking that not all of our food and breakfast items are unhealthy.
And you're right: we do have healthier breakfast options like idli and poha.
But the problem with them is that they often lack one key ingredient: protein.
So, 80% of Indians (yes, you too non-vegetarians) are protein-deficient.
The result of all of these things: increased costs and loss of productivity.
People with obesity, diabetes and hypertension pay higher costs for medical insurance premiums and have to go to the doctor more frequently.
By 2025, obesity-related illnesses are set to cost India $13 billion!
So, what's the solution?
Well, we could start by making our breakfasts healthier and more full of protein.
But getting an adequate amount of protein is very difficult, especially for vegetarians.
To get the right amount of protein for you, you need to have 8 cups of lentils (daal) or 6-7 cups of milk each day.
And that is not always feasible or affordable.
Enter: one of the most sustainable, easily available and homegrown superfoods, peanuts.
Did you know just having a handful of peanuts can give you 7 grams of protein? This is almost equal to that of one whole egg (5-6 grams of protein).Â
🥜 Unlocking the Secret of A Healthy Breakfast
This superpower of peanuts is what inspired six friends to come together and launch a healthy peanut butter brand: Alpino.Â
If you watched Shark Tank India, you already know about them!
Wait, but how can butter be healthy?
Well, all butter isn't bad for you. Peanut butter has 80% unsaturated fats that are associated with a lower risk of weight gain and obesity.
Not just that, studies show that people who add nuts or nut butters to their diets have a lower chance of developing heart diseases and Type 2 diabetes.
You see, the company's aim is to improve the health of the society as a whole by offering healthy breakfast options that are sourced authentically and made specifically keeping the Indian audience in mind.
So, they not only decided to popularise the protein-rich peanut butter in India, but they also decided to create an even healthier alternative without sugar, hydrogenated oils and trans fats.
And though they started out with peanut butter, their hero product (a jar of which is sold every 30 seconds), they have now branched out to providing other breakfast and healthy food options as well, like muesli, green tea and apple cider vinegar.
And they want to offer more such tasty superfoods to the Indian audience.
But does the audience want what they offer?
Well, India's health food market is growing and is set to be worth $30 billion by 2026.
And the average millennial spends around Rs. 4,000 per month on health and wellness products.Â
So, the opportunity is ripe for Alpino.
And they are already capturing the market's imagination with Rs. 5.5 crores from Amazon alone in a year and a 25% repeat rate.
The company had started out with an initial investment of just Rs. 5 lakhs in 2016 and is now growing at a CAGR of 125% and clocking in a revenue of Rs. 24 crores!Â
Full Disclaimer: Our founder Shantanu Jain has already invested in Alpino. You can join him in Alpino’s growth journey by investing in the company through Tyke.
Not convinced yet? Want to know more about the company’s plans, its Shark Tank journey and how it differentiates itself from competitors?
Join our AMA session with Chetan Kanani, co-founder at Alpino, on May 30 (Monday) at 7 pm.Â
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