The food sector has always been a booming industry forever! Now that we live in the startup era, the demand has boosted manifolds. Many entrepreneurs aim to build such a business due to the high probability of good revenue. Additionally, food start-ups are attracting a lot of customer bases.
To open a food startup, you must start researching to understand the food industry. Make sure to mix technology and innovation to stand out from the rest!
According to statistics, The food market is expected to grow annually by 7.23% (CAGR 2023-2027).
In this article, let me sail you through India’s 10 best food startups. Their journey will help you learn more about the challenges and their solutions.
Let’s start!
10 Best Food Startups in India
1. Faasos
- Founder: Jaydeep Barman & Kallol Banerjee
- Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Faasos is one of the top food companies in India. It is also known as food on demand. Further, it is owned by the online restaurant unicorn; Rebel foods.
Faasos is one of the earliest players and is a familiar name. Currently, there are more than 160 kitchens in India.
In addition, it is the only company that is running the three stages of the food and demand business successfully:
- Ordering
- Distribution
- Order fulfillment
Initially, it started selling only rolls, but now there are a variety of snacks, wraps, rolls, and Indian food items. Now, users can download the Faasos app from Google Play Store and App Store to order food items.
Click here to download.
2. Zomato
- Founder: Deepinder Goyala and Pankaj Tshaddah
- Headquarters: New Delhi
Zomato is a giant food chain in India. This company has branches in more than 24 countries and is spread in more than 500 cities in India.
According to statistics, the number of orders received by Zomato in the financial year 2022 was four 45 million. It is expected to grow to 696 million in FY 2023.
Additionally, Zomato is founded by 28 investors in total. Recently, it acquired Blinkit for $725 million in the year 2022.
Click here to download.
3. Swiggy
- Founder: Nandan Reddy, Shriharsha Majety, and Rahul Jaimini
- Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka
Swiggy is yet another flourishing food startup in India. It is a common name used by millions of people. The founder’s aim while creating this app was to provide convenient food delivery to people. More than 500 cities are enjoying easy food delivery through this app.
Not only this, but recently it has started 2 new ventures known as:
- Instamart: Swiggy installment is a quick commerce delivery. It delivers grocery items in 15 to 20 minutes at your doorstep.
- Swiggy Genie: Swiggy Genie can deliver any package on the same day.
On average, the weekly orders on Swiggy cross 1 million. Additionally, it generates revenue by providing online platform services, advertisement services, subscriptions, sale of food goods, etc.
Click here to download.
4. HungerBox
- Founder: Sandipan Mitra and Uttam Kumar
- Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka
HungerBox started to transform the food courts of the corporate sector. It started in 2016 and has managed to achieve a total of 200 million transactions.
Plenty of cafeterias and food courts in corporate offices, tech parks, and malls across the country make it the best restaurant startup.
HungerBox claims to be the first online food ordering platform in India, currently running at an excellent pace.
According to statistics, the estimated annual revenue of HungerBox is $173.2 million.
Click here to download.
5. Biryani By Kilo
- Founder: Vishal Jindal
- Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Biryani By Kilo is one of the most beloved food chains for ordering biryani online. It was started in 2016. The company uses world-class technologies to provide customers with the best quality hygiene and convenience.
The users can pre-book their orders delivered in 90 minutes for their customers. It also includes a proactive social cause in its business model: earthenware handis. These hands are specially crafted by hand in the outskirts of Delhi. This helps to employ craftsmen and artisans.
According to statistics, Biryani By Kilo generated a total revenue of 132 crores in FY22.
Being a new startup in India, it has generated a lot of revenue. A different concept, delicious food, and including the most loved food make BBK soar higher!
Click here to download.
6. Swadhika Foods
- Founder: Swarnamugi R Karthik
- Headquarters: Chennai
In the year 2015, Swadhika Foods was born. This company provides high-quality fruits and vegetables, frozen items, and ready-to-eat foods.
Swadhika foods guarantee quality, freshness, and innovation while delivering the food items to customers. All the products are free from preservatives and 100% natural.
Additionally, there is a variety of all-natural products, an in-house quality testing lab, and an experienced technical team that involves in organic processing and takes strict hygiene actions.
Interestingly, the Indian Frozen food market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 8% by FY 2027.
The demand for such food items is increasing daily; hence, this startup is achieving high revenue growth.
Visit the website.
7. Dum Durrust
- Founder: Souvik Gupta
- Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka
Dum Durrust comes with a core idea of ‘Dum’ cooking which is a slow process. For the same reason, you will find a tagline on the website that says, ‘We don’t deliver instantly; give us time!’. Interesting, right?
This company was founded in 2012. All the dishes follow the Dum process. Moreover, everything is served in clay pots to offer authenticity. The team has been working hard for the past 8 years to understand the different taste palettes of the country.
The menu is not just limited to biryani but also covers:
- Korma
- Nihari
- Raan
- Haleem
- Meat curries
- Dal
Visit the website.
8. Box 8
- Founders: Anshul Gupta and Amit Raj
- Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Box 8 is an exciting venture that started in the year 2012. There are more than 120 stores located in the country across Mumbai, Pune, Delhi-NCR, Bangalore, and Hyderabad. Moreover, they aim to deliver the package in under 28 minutes.
Box 8 is to prepare hot desi meals in boxes and deliver them at pocket-friendly prices. Moreover, a good variety of food contains biryani, desserts, salads, sandwiches, parathas, and much more.
According to statistics, the estimated revenue is currently $104.8 million annually.
Click here to download.
9. FreshMenu
- Founder: Rashmi Daga
- Headquarters: Bengaluru, Karnataka
As the name suggests, all the products are freshly delivered to their customers. The wide variety of different foods includes burgers, sandwiches, fruits, vegetables, meat, wraps, thalis, breakfast platters, and much more.
It is located in 4 cities in India, Mumbai, Bangalore, Gurgaon, and New Delhi. There are 27+ Freshmenu kitchens in India.
The company is known to provide more than 13,000 orders daily nationwide. Interestingly, all the cuisines are prepared by highly experienced chefs. Moreover, there is a fresh food menu every day.
According to statistics, the total valuation of FreshMenu is $258K as on Jan 30, 2023.
Click here to download.
10. Dineout
- Founders: Ankit Mehrotra, Sahil Jain, Nikhil Bakshi, and Vivek Kapoor
- Headquarters: Noida, Uttar Pradesh
Dineout started with the concept of pre-bookings at your favorite restaurants. Founded in 2012, it held diners to reserve a table with convenience. In 2018, The company evolved to provide more features in one platform, such as:
- Connect people with restaurants offering them discounts and deals.
- Cashless payment experience to earn cashback on each payment.
- Providing membership: Dineout Passport with additional benefits.
According to statistics, around 8.5k table bookings were made every hour in 2021 on this platform.
Click here to download.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are multiple successful food start-ups in India. These Indian food startups have evolved with time and provide excellent features to their customers. If you’re considering starting the same, learn more about the industry and pull up your socks!
This field is up-and-coming and ever-evolving.
I hope the above-mentioned Indian startups’ list and the information provided help you in the best way possible.
Adios!
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Frequently Asked Questions
Ques.1 Which is the most famous food startup?
Ans. Many food startups such as Swiggy, Zomato, Biryani By Kilo, Swadhika Foods, and more have gained huge popularity.
Ques.2 Does the food industry have a bright future?
Ans. Yes. The food industry is going to boom immensely in the future.
Ques.3 What is a cloud kitchen?
Ans. A cloud kitchen is a virtual kitchen where you can receive orders online instead of offline stores.
Ques.4 Is it difficult to begin a food startup?
Ans. The food industry is quite challenging to enter. However, with a proper business plan, resources, and consistent efforts, eventually, you will be able to settle in.
