The olive opportunity

Entrepreneur V.N. Dalmia wants to popularise the use of olive oil as a cooking medium.

For most Indians olive oil is synonymous with massage. Most of us have had our share of an olive oil massage. But as Indians started travelling abroad, they realised that olive oil was a cooking medium too, especially in the Mediterranean region. Indians accepted it too, but limited it to salad dressing. They couldn’t comprehend that their puris and parathas could be fried, or the rogan josh bhunnoed, in olive oil. “But this is a misconception that needs to be clarified,” says V.N. Dalmia, the man behind Leonardo Olive Oil, the only brand of olive oil in the Indian market that is totally Indian, as it is entirely contract manufactured for him in Italy.

“Olive oil is not only conducive to Indian cooking, it is very cost effective too, as one needs to use only one-third of the quantity of any other cooking medium. And if it is being used for the purpose of frying, it can be reused three times,” adds Dalmia, whose own a restaurant, Filmi Masala in Gurgaon, alongwith Forum, is using only olive oil.

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Interestingly, Dalmia had once toyed with the idea of cultivating olive trees in India, but realising that it would take at least five years before the crop would be ready for harvesting dropped the idea. Now Leonardo, launched in the Indian market in September last, is being contract manufactured in Italy for the Indian market, and though right now even the packaging is done there, soon Dalmia plans to start a packaging unit in India.

The move will become necessary in view of the fact that many leading hotels in India, like the Park, the Oberoi, the Grand and the Intercontinental group, as also restaurants like Shalom and Kasbah are using Leonardo olive oil. Dalmia has a word of caution though: if using olive oil for salad dressing opt for the extra virgin quality, but for Indian cooking pomace olive oil should be the preferred choice. And it is a lot more healthy too.