Ep. 228 - Plant-based IP and Innovation in India with Ashish Jogi, Co-Founder and CEO of Fudtekey Solutions

My Food Job Rocks!

Ashish Jogi connected with me through Siddharth Bhide. You might remember him when we interviewed him at JUST but now he’s at the Good Food Institute in India, an organization that we also have interviews with. The plant-based scene in India is growing and Ashish is one of the people helping companies over there launch products.

We talk a variety of topics ranging from Intellectual Property, product development, food trends, and of course, current issues such as the pandemic. How do they look at things differently than we do at the United States? Though we are the forefront of alternative meat here, do Indians, whoa r emostly vegetarian strive for the same protein experience we do? I really liked the answer in this interview.

Disclaimer, I did this interview really early so if I sound like a mess, I was tired! We do this call with me in Texas and Ashish in Mumbai. Enjoy!

Show Notes

I used to be an IP lawyer and used to work for Novartus. A pharma giant company How did you start the company?: My wife actually started it. She’s a food scientist How hard is it to get IP: Really hard How did you get your first client?: Abuli, my wife, worked with DOW Chemicals and worked with a cchef who wanted to make his own product There are over 100 startups in India Good Dot Big Idea Ventures Plant-based Egg India What plant-based products are Indian replicating?: We’re a bit different than other countries I thought beyond meat tasted like actual meat but I didn’t like it because I don’t taste like meat Plant-based dairy is trending because of lactose intolerance and environmental concerns Siddharth Bhide – Used to work in JUST Egg, now at Good Food Institute What plant-based proteins are interesting in India?: Oat milk, chickpea protein, but now people are blending their own Why Does Your Food Job Rock?: I meet with people who are full of enthusiasm and ideas Cell-based meat in India: Plant-based is more easy to convince in india than cell-based. It would be a mixed result How is GFI helping the ecosystem?: They are building networking opportunities and resources. Such as processing and materials Biggest Challenge in the Food Industry Right now: Manpower in the industry post-COVID. No one wants to be in Mumbai because of the pandemic In terms of the supply chain, certain things are open, and certain things are not. This will be a problem in terms of supply. All industries are important but how do we live with it? Do you think technology will spread to cities?: It’s difficult because there’s no technology infrastructure outside the cities Do you have any advice for someone to go into the food industry?: Make sure you love food, curious about food, how it’s made Website: fudtekey.com