Keen to learn more about inclusive workplaces? Want to be inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community? Learn more & request an invitation for a very special 2-hour session here!
Have you ever wondered how to register a food business in India? Do you have a food business you want to register? If yes, here are all the nitty gritties to get it registered.
Have you ever wondered how to register a food business in India? Do you have a food business you want to register? If yes, here are all the nitty gritties to get you started.
Given the popularity of our article The Rise of The Home Baker and the feedback received, we thought it would be good to do a follow up dealing with the actual nitty gritty of registering a food business that you start from home. Read on to find out more.
Starting your own food business from home is a trend that is fast gaining popularity. From pickles, to breads to cakes to jams, you name it and someone out there is making it for you. However, what does one have to do to actually register one’s business? I spoke to a few entrepreneurs and chartered accountants on this subject.
The first and most important thing that one must do before jumping onto this band wagon is to decide what type of business you want to run. You will have to decide the structure of your business depending on the size of it. You have three options:
Kishi Arora of Foodaholics chose to set up a proprietorship from day one itself. Kishi is a consultant as well and found that this method of business works well for her. She registered her business, her logo, and made sure all the paperwork was done before she started out working from home. The process she said took about a month and her lawyer and CA handled it for her. “I feel this should be done. The professionalism needs to be there,” is what she says. Kishi has now incorporated her mother’s food business into Foodaholics as well. “It was so easy to do this as I had already set up the proprietorship,” she added.
Brian Fernandes of Ferns Fine Foods Pvt Ltd took over this family business in 1995 when his father died. This business was originally started in 1937 by his grandmother who used to sell sweets, jams, jellies and then later pickles to the British soldiers who were stationed in Pune during that time. As time went by, Brian’s father and uncle set up a partnership and took over the business. When Brian’s father passed away, he stepped in. He decided to make it a private limited firm and build a new factory as well. This once again entailed getting the necessary permits/licenses and he was changing it from a partnership firm to a private limited company.
According to Mr. Ram Bhargava*, a Chartered Accountant with a reputed firm in Mumbai, these are the documents you will require if you decide to go down this road:
Apart from the above mentioned documents, the following might also be needed:
Once again, these are determined by the business size and turnover. Bear in mind that the type of business you choose will determine the license requirements. For instance, if you decide to set up a proprietorship, you do not have to apply for a different PAN number. Your personal PAN number will be your proprietorship’s PAN number. This is not the case for a partnership or a private limited company.
Subodh Sankar of AttaGalatta in Bangalore took a slightly different route when it came to registering the ‘bread’ part of his bookstore. Subodh and his wife started the bookstore and conceptualized it as a “venue for literary and artistic interpretations”. The bookstore started flourishing and they thought it would be good to have a “bakery on the premises.” He had already established and registered his business but still needed to get the necessary permits and licenses to see food in the bookstore.
His recommendation to any start up entrepreneur is to work with a professional agency “who will do all the running around for you. It is virtually impossible to stay on top of the statutory requirements, keep track of changes etc. Once you register your business you will have monthly, quarterly and annual obligations to meet.” He states that it is not easy to run a business and take care of this and feels that handing this part over to a professional helps a great deal.
Bear in mind that each state in India has different rules that apply with regard to filing returns, VAT etc. You can go online and check the requirements for the same. A general overview can be found here.
So there you have it. An overview of the documents required if you wish to register your food business and not just run it by word of mouth.
Important links:
Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
Central Board of Excise and Customs
*name changed on request.
Women’s Web now has an exclusive work-focused monthly newsletter + monthly meets for women at work. Just enter your email address below, and we’ll sign you up! As always, we value your privacy and do not spam or sell email addresses.
A food business image via Shutterstock
Melanie Lobo is a freelance writer. She grew up in cities across India but now calls Pune home. Her husband and son keep her on her toes and inspire her with new writing material daily. read more...
Women's Web is an open platform that publishes a diversity of views, indivisual posts do not necessarily represent the platofrom's views and opinions at all times.
Stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter or Daily Summary - or both!
Dushyanta clearly remembered everything. But he didn't have any intention to accept a poor woman from a remote hermitage as his wife and her son as theirs.
Dushyanta clearly remembered everything. But he didn’t have any intention to accept a poor woman from a remote hermitage as his wife and her son as theirs.
She sat motionless on the royal bed, her knees drawn up to her chin, staring vacantly outside the palace window.
She was sheathed in exquisite scarlet red silk, shot through with golden threads forming intricate traditional patterns. Chests of gems and jewellery were strewn all over the bed. The maids were fussing over whether a diamond-studded necklace would suit their queen or a gold choker would look better. Another younger maid was arranging her tresses in a coiffeur.
Actor Siddharth sent out a distasteful tweet in response to a tweet by Saina Nehwal, in what he thought were clever words, but this slur on any woman is not acceptable.
Trust me when I say I’ve run out of patience in stopping myself from calling this ‘liberal’, self-proclaimed feminist actor out umpteen times in the past.
Let me count them out for you.
Kavitha Murugan started baking as a hobby, and was so skilled at it that she converted it into a business creating decorative cakes, The Madras Patissiere.
We are told that every girl dreams of a big, beautiful cake – perhaps at her wedding, perhaps at a birthday – but we seldom get to know the stories of the gorgeous women who bake them.
With buttercream and roses and flours and eggs – Kavitha Murugan is weaving a strong dream with her soft cakes. She has been successfully running the brand The Madras Pâtissière for the past two years.
Energy, innovation, passion and travel: 4 words that define Anuradha Goyal. She is proudly living her life as a travel entrepreneur and blogger, and inspiring a lot of other people to do the same.
Inditales, which began as an individual travel blog in 2004, has since then become one of India’s best resources for authentic information about travel destinations, experiences and insights.
Anuradha has travelled extensively across India and also explored more than 16 countries in 3 continents. She loves to walk around cities, spend time in museums, hunt for vegetarian food wherever she travels – the other life of her life is books and reading. Her interest in digital entrepreneurship and innovation led her to write The Mouse Charmers – Digital Pioneers of India, published by Random House India, an insightful look at some of India’s biggest digital powered businesses, and her papers on business innovation have appeared in various journals and forums.