Consumer Food Purchasing in India
It is not surprising that food purchasing is very different for families in India from what we experience in the United States. Not only are families faces with shortages in some food stuffs, the food marketing system lacks the same sophistication that makes it so efficient for U.S. families to acquire food.
There are very
few grocery stores like the large supermarkets that make one-stop grocery shopping
possible. Even in very large cities of over two million people there will be only three or
four grocery stores that resemble the U.S. supermarket. So where do families purchase
their food?
Food is sold in specialized shops, stands or stalls that sell only one or two different commodities. For example if you want to purchase lentils or other dried legumes or pulses, you would go to the shop or stand that sold these. This might be in a neighborhood market area or it might be on the street strategically set up near a bus stop.
Shops that sell commodities requiring refrigeration such as meat and poultry will sell live animals and butcher them as needed. Milk is delivered daily. Delivery by bicycle is common.
Fruits and vegetables
are sold in open-air market stands located in the neighborhood markets.
The amount of food that is purchased for the family will be limited by the amount of space a family has for food storage. Since most families do not have refrigeration and may have to cook outdoors in a fireplace, only enough for the family’s daily use is purchased at one time. An exception might be rice which would be purchased in large bags if there is room to keep it stored in a dry place and the family has enough financial resources to make this large a purchase at one time.
When families prepare food it is usually in an open fire pit or if lucky they will have a tandori oven. The most common fuel is dried cow dung. Gas burners using butane are only used in more upper class homes.
Many
families do not have any cooking facilities. There are a variety of open air food stands
that sell prepared individual foods like somosa, a dough stuffed with a curry filling,
nan, a flat bread, or egg dishes. Some foods will be prepared in advance; some will be
prepared as they are ordered. These food stands can be likened to the food booths we find
at fairs and festivals in the U.S., as there is no seating available. Occasionally, there
will be a roadside restaurant which travelers’ use.
