Post by Arogya World India Trust

The most underrated public health workforce in any city are small restaurant owners. They may never appear in health policy conversations but every day they feed thousands and have immense influence on people’s health. In Bengaluru, the momo and biryani shops, the beloved Darshinis and small family restaurants influence what people eat between meetings, after college, during commutes, and on long working days when you miss your home-cooked food. That is why engaging them on nutrition is a city-level health action. Through our MyThali program, we recently engaged with 100 Bengaluru small restaurant owners in partnership with Nidan and The Karnataka Region Street Vendors Association. The focus of our training was to make every day fast food healthier without making it unaffordable, or difficult to prepare. We saw some immediate commitments from the owners to reduce their oil reuse and swap salt with vinegar where possible. Across 100 restaurants, nutritional changes will create about 15,000 healthier meals every day. These tiny changes have the potential of massive impact if we can repeat it across Bengaluru and other major cities. This is what innovation and a strategic approach in public health looks like. It’s local, practical, affordable and built around the people who already feed the city. If this intrigues you we would love to partner and bring this to your community and city.