Background

We all know that nutritious food is fundamental; not just to one’s individual health but also to a society’s overall ability to grow, learn and flourish. In a developing country like India that is both vast and diverse in terms of its population, access to a basic right and cultural cornerstone like this becomes all the more essential. Even then, availing of reasonably priced, well-balanced meals continues to be a daily challenge for many. Food security isn’t only about availability. It also requires affordability and awareness. 

In recent years, food inflation has been seen to severely impact low-income families with numerous households being unable to purchase or consistently prepare nutritious meals. As per a report published by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 74.1% of Indians were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2021. This issue is a cause of many overlapping factors like limited food literacy, irregular access to needed ingredients and a lack of guidance that is both compassionate and practical when it comes to budget-friendly, healthy cooking measures. So while the country continues to make conscious strides in enhancing its agricultural output, the benefits of these are not equitably distributed; especially amongst disadvantaged and socio-economically marginalized communities. 

The Community Thali was founded to address these gaps by developing and encouraging practical, low-cost nutrition-based solutions. Inspired by the CPI (Consumer Price Index) basket of goods; which reflects the essential items an average household consumes, the project aims to create food resources that are not just nourishing, but also realistically affordable for low-income families. Through its efforts, TCT hopes to reduce barriers to something as imperative as nutritious eating and foster long-term food resilience, because every individual, no matter their circumstances, deserves the dignity of an economically viable and nourishing meal.