Essential biscuits

October 4, 2020 10:41 AM

"Like many other Indians, Malik had less than four hours to make transformative decisions, ones that would have ramifications for himself, his family, his colleagues, and his employer, all without a road map. Yet his were more impactful than most: The product he makes is among the most universally consumed in India." Alia Allana wrote about Parle- G biscuits and the varied Indian experiences of the COVID-19 lockdown in June 2020 for the Atlantic.

"Across the country’s varied culinary landscape—where what one eats can signal class, caste, religion, ethnicity, and income—Parle-G biscuits are neutral. Wealthier Indians dip them in milky tea, poorer ones in water. A pack sells for as little as 2 Indian rupees, or about 3 cents, and can be found at five-star hotels as well as in the fields of rural India.

posted by ChuraChura (11 comments total)

Thank you for posting this, ChuraChura.

I am an Indian-American person who grew up eating Parle-G biscuits. I think this article does a great job of using this particular product as a lens through which to view Indian industry, the effects of the pandemic in India, and in particular how the "informal economy" is not just a fringe thing but is actually massively intertwined with more formal employment.

the company “never imagined a scarcity of labor,”

This, toward the end of the article, plus the subsequent notes on automation/training, caught me. I have heard from experts that, in India, it's tough to get business leaders to invest in work automation, because labor is SO cheap. I wonder whether the pandemic will cause a significant shift.
posted by brainwane at 12:49 PM on October 4, 2020 [7 favorites]

I'll find out.
posted by infini at 1:27 PM on October 4, 2020 [3 favorites]

In the meantime, I've heard many migrants aren't bothering to come back due to the opportunities explored whilst back home + smartphones and city savviness combined put them in an opportunistic position back home.
posted by infini at 1:28 PM on October 4, 2020 [2 favorites]

ps. they baked them bigger in my youth, somewhere along the line around 15% got trimmed off in size.
posted by infini at 1:30 PM on October 4, 2020 [3 favorites]

On top of its inherent importance and interest, I like this as a balance to the thread on Subway bread and traditional food and luxury and necessity. The cracker barrel in the US also represented cheap reliable available un-marked food, IIRC. I shouldn't forget modernity's upside while teetering on its downside -- for one thing, it would be too possible to lose the benefits of modernity and keep its problems.
posted by clew at 2:32 PM on October 4, 2020

I think this article does a great job of using this particular product as a lens through which to view Indian industry

Agree. I'm not sure if "enjoyed" is the right word but I feel that I've learned a lot more about various not-mine economies and sociopolitical systems through reading some of the "How did COVID change XYZ thing?" narratives.

When the lockdown came through where I was, the McDonald's drive-through became the only place in town to get pre-prepared food that wasn't a gas station (other than the one supermarket). It's also really interesting to look at what is considered "essential" and how that trickles into other linked economies.

Thank you for posting this.
posted by jessamyn at 2:49 PM on October 4, 2020 [2 favorites]

I thought we already did this, but my feeling of time and chronological continuity has been shattered by this horrible year and being under lockdown. I recall reading a longform article about these biscuits, but I don't know if it was this article or, indeed, whether the "I" who read it is meaningfully the same "I" who inscribes this message, tapping at a shiny slab like some demented magpie. Reading about these biscuits has made me time-sick. I long for the buttery pogácsa of my childhood, and my childhood, and summer mornings.

It's raining now and I have to go out, bemasked and beshrouded, and engage with people I don't care to see. Some hot pogácsa would be really good right now.
posted by Joe in Australia at 3:07 PM on October 4, 2020 [4 favorites]

More than half of those employed in this complex chain are informal workers, who get paid after each day’s labor. Eighty percent of India’s workforce works this way, lacking job security, health-care benefits, or any other safety net. The sudden loss of income and the shutdown of public transport forced huge numbers to leave the cities for their distant homes on foot. In one survey of more than 11,000 migrant workers, almost 80 percent reported having less than $2.60 on hand; half had food

As it became clear that work would not resume for a while, Prajapati decided to walk with his family back to his village, 600 miles away. They set off with a small plastic bag full of essentials, Prajapati carrying his 3-year-old on his shoulders. At one point in the journey, the older boy was exhausted and unable to walk farther, so his mother offered him a Parle-G. The glucose biscuits were easy to carry, offered a quick source of energy, and had a level of standardization, meaning they could be trusted. Three days later, through a combination of walking and hitching rides with essential-goods trucks, the Prajapatis reached home, having survived largely on food from volunteers along the way, as well as Parle-G biscuits.


My god
posted by gt2 at 6:43 AM on October 5, 2020 [3 favorites]

Three days later, through a combination of walking and hitching rides with essential-goods trucks, the Prajapatis reached home, having survived largely on food from volunteers along the way, as well as Parle-G biscuits.

They were lucky.

A lot of people trying to get home didn't make it.

There is no official count, and no desire by the government to collect that data.
posted by His thoughts were red thoughts at 7:08 PM on October 5, 2020 [1 favorite]

At protecting ourselves against infectious deadly disease?
posted by infini at 1:38 PM on October 6, 2020

His thoughts were red thoughts, that’s a heartbreaking and infuriating set of articles, thanks for linking them. (tl;dr government response to being shown evidence that their policy killed people, maybe lots of people, is to explain that they aren’t keeping any data on that.)
posted by clew at 4:30 PM on October 6, 2020 [1 favorite]