Vinita Bali: Top Business Woman and Champion of Malnutrition

Ranked among the Financial Times’ Top 50 Global Business Women, Ms. Vinita Bali, CEO of the large Indian food producer Britannia, exudes business acumen. Beyond bottom lines and profits though lies an engaged social citizen who has made empowering future generations through access to better nutrition a personal cause.

With technical advice from the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN), an alliance driven by the vision of a world without malnutrition, Britannia, an Indian company that sells a range of bakery and dairy products, is now fortifying its biscuits to help fight child malnutrition. Half of total product volumes that the company sells are enriched with nutrients like iron, essential vitamins and minerals and at no extra cost to consumers.

The company estimates that it reaches an estimated 176 million children from 3 to 12 years old.

Ms. Bali committed herself to the cause of fighting malnutrition in 2007. At this time, in partnership with the local non-governmental organization Naandi Foundation and GAIN, Britannia developed an iron fortified biscuit to supplement a program supported by the Andhra Pradesh State Government providing daily lunches to 150,000 schoolchildren in Hyderabad.

In October 2009, Ms. Bali set up a non-profit body - the Britannia Nutrition Foundation - to secure every child’s right to growth and development through the right to nutrition. The foundation aims to grow into a credible authority on child nutrition matters in India, increase resources for related programs and research, and educate at risk populations about child nutrition.

Britannia Industries is also a member of the GAIN Business Alliance, a global partnership to explore new business models, best practices and sustainable approaches in the fight against malnutrition, and Ms. Bali is a member GAIN’s Board of Directors. She has also developed partnerships with other organizations dedicated to the cause including the Clinton Global Initiative, the World Bank Institute and the World Food Programme.

Learn more about Britannia's efforts to fight malnutrition in India

Listen to video interview with Vinita Bali