Guwahati: Nestlé India has expanded its flagship food safety initiative, Project Serve Safe Food, in Assam on Wednesday by training over 2,500 street food vendors across ten districts in partnership with the Food Safety Department, Government of Assam, and the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI).
The latest phase of the initiative covers Kamrup Metropolitan, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Sivasagar, Jorhat, Cachar, Nalbari, Barpeta, Bongaigaon, and Nagaon, taking the total number of trained vendors in the state to more than 4,500.
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Launched in 2016, Project Serve Safe Food has so far reached more than 92,800 street food vendors across 26 states and four Union Territories.
The program focuses on improving food safety standards among street vendors by offering training in health, hygiene, safe food handling, waste disposal, and entrepreneurship.
“Assam’s food is an integral element of its rich culture. We aim to take it to everyone, residents and tourists alike,” said Anupam Gogoi, Food Analyst at the Commissionerate of Food Safety, Government of Assam.
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“This collaboration with NASVI and Nestlé India is empowering vendors with essential skills in food hygiene and safety,” he added.
Speaking on the initiative, Taruna Saxena, Head of Sustainability and Societal Initiatives at Nestlé India, said, “We are committed to enhancing India’s food safety environment beyond our own products. Project Serve Safe Food is helping street food vendors upgrade their skills in hygiene and food safety, which not only improves public health but also contributes to the growth and sustainability of their businesses.”
The training initiative in Assam is part of Nestlé India’s wider effort to build a safe and resilient food ecosystem.
In addition to Assam, the company has conducted similar trainings in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
Nestlé India and its partners plan to continue scaling up the initiative in the coming years to foster long-term behavioral change and safer food practices nationwide.