The industry body has advised its members to rationalise menus by temporarily prioritising dishes that require lower gas usage or shorter cooking cycles
Highlighting that the ongoing geopolitical developments have led to severe disruption in the supply chain of commercial LPG, the National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) has urged all members to immediately adopt the following fuel conservation and operational continuity measures.
The industry body has advised its members to rationalise menus by temporarily prioritising dishes that require lower gas usage or shorter cooking cycles, suspend or reduce items that require long simmering, deep frying, slow cooking or multiple burners. Members have been advised to use pressure cooking wherever possible to shorten cooking time and pre-soak ingredients like rice, grains and legumes to reduce cooking time.
On the operational efficiency measures front, the restaurants have been urged to consolidate kitchen production through central kitchens where feasible, share resources across nearby outlets (centralised gravies, sauces, pre-prepared items) and ensure regular maintenance of burners and pipelines to avoid inefficiencies and leaks.
“The restaurant industry supports millions of livelihoods, from chefs and service staff to farmers and suppliers. During this challenging period, collective discipline, resource optimisation, and industry collaboration will be critical in ensuring that our sector continues to operate and protect jobs,” the industry body stated.
Local NRAI chapters have been advised to monitor LPG availability and report challenges to the national body. The official statement added that NRAI is actively engaging with relevant authorities to ensure that the restaurant industry is recognised as an essential supply and critical employment generating sector.
The Retailers Association of India (RAI) has urged the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and leading oil marketing companies to ensure an uninterrupted supply of commercial LPG cylinders to restaurants and food service establishments across the country.
“Recent communications from oil marketing companies, including Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum, and Hindustan Petroleum, indicate that LPG supplies are currently being prioritised for domestic consumers due to ongoing geopolitical disruptions affecting global fuel supply,” RAI added.
While the industry fully supports the government’s efforts to safeguard household energy security, the current restrictions have created serious operational challenges for restaurants and commercial kitchens that depend heavily on LPG for cooking operations.
