A surgical mask in plastic wrapping attached to packets of dosa batter he manufactures, is Kochi businessman Jesluck Peter’s formula to spread awareness about the use of protective wear.
Since the start of the lockdown, Jesluck had wanted to contribute in some way to help people who were most affectedEarlier, before the lockdown, he had been donating breakfast to the homeless in Kochi. “Many people, individuals, voluntary organisations and the Government also via community kitchens, were already distributing food and effectively too. Thinking of how best to help, I thought of supplying masks which are now obligatory in Kerala. So, why not distribute masks with our food packets and create awareness about its use?” he says.
Popular product
The dosa batter is currently his company Home Spring’s most popular product, which is why “it made sense” for Jesluck to attach masks to it. “This way, we will be able to reach the most number of people with masks,” he adds. At present, Home Spring sells around 1,500 packets of dosa batter (a kilo priced at ₹55) a day. He does not charge extra for the masks. When there was a shortage of masks, Jesluck sourced it from Palakkad at ₹12 a piece. He now has a supplier in Perumbavoor, near Kochi, from whom he buys three-ply surgical masks at ₹6 apiece. Out of a stock of 30,000 masks that he holds, he has distributed around 25,000-odd by attaching them to packets of dosa batter.
Home Spring, which manufactures more than 10 ready-to-cook products like chapati, Kerala parotta, idli-dosa batter and pathiri, kept production going despite the lockdown. “I wanted to keep my workers employed. Now, I am also using people who I know are unemployed. They work on rotation so that everybody gets work and wages too,” he adds. So far 20,000-25,000-odd masks have been distributed. He confesses he cannot go on indefinitely with this as it is a strain on his pocket however he wants to complete distributing 30,000 masks before he wraps up the project. “Like they say, till stocks last,” he says.
