The Coronavirus pandemic has had an adverse impact on the F&B industry in the country too. There are currently 44 COVID-19 positive cases in Maharashtra, and out of these eight are in Mumbai. There is already one fatality in the form of a 64-year old person who had a travel history of Dubai.
Rajesh Tope, the health minister of the state has said that we are currently in phase two and we need to contain this pandemic at this stage itself. Stage 3 is when the virus is spreading within the community. However, in the case of Maharashtra, most people who have tested positive have a travel history to one of the countries impacted by this virus.
To enable this virus from spreading any further, there is a semi-lockdown in place. While the metro and local trains continue to function but educational institutes, gyms, sports complexes, malls, cinema theatres, places of worship, beaches have been shut down. Now the authorities have also asked to put a stop to pubs in Mumbai and have urged private companies to extend work from home to their employees.
National Restaurant Association of India has issued an advisory in which they have appealed to its members to shut down their operations till this virus is controlled. In a statement, they said, “We find ourselves in an unprecedented situation where we are compelled to make difficult decisions which have massive financial implications on our businesses but we are doing this in the larger benefit for our teams, guests and communities.”
Explaining that the decision was a tough one to make, the NRAI said, “We intend to work with all stakeholders in the ecosystem — from landlords to various departments of the government, banks and financial institutions and seek their support in mitigating our losses as far as possible”
NRAI has shared that five lakh people are employed in the F&B sector and they are at high risk. Some of the restaurants are going the extra mile to train their staff and to sanitize their kitchen. Some restaurants such as SOHO in Juhu and Starbucks are checking body temperature of people before letting them enter the premise.
Talking about the measures taken by restaurants, Nikita Poojari, Director at Shiv Sagar, said, "In the wake of COVID-19. our restaurant is taking all the precautionary measures. We have taken all the measures to keep our kitchen, staff hygiene and service wear equipment clean, hygienic and sterilized. Our every outlet are disinfected on a regular basis. Even all the staff members are undergoing daily temperature scans. We have also made Hand sanitizers and mask available for all our patrons".
Annie Bafna- Founder & Director of The Nutcracker shared, " We check the staff daily for any sign of cold cough or flu enters the premise. Thankfully we have had none so far. Allowed staff to take some time off and reduced numbers at the cafe so it’s not overcrowded. All kitchen production areas cleaned with sanitising liquid multiple times through the day. All kitchen team in masks and all raw food handling in gloves. All door handles, bathroom handles sanitised every half hour. All tables sanitized after each guest leaves. Guests made to sanitize hands as soon as they come in. Since walk in guests are reduced ensuring they are seated with some distance".
Apart from sanitizing and ensuring that the staff is in the pink of health, Sagar Neve, Director at Esora even shared that they have a place that can be used to quarantine staff in case a need for the same arises. He said, "We also have a place in Dahisar east and where staff can be self quarantined".
There has also been a significant drop in the footfalls of the restaurants. While no one was ready to give a figure on record but most people agreed that their business has been down by 50-70 per cent over the last few days. A lot of restaurants have also decided to voluntarily shut their restaurants to ensure the safety of their staff.
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