changeadminIn the sun-scorched arid lands of Africa stands the Baobab tree, often called the “Tree of Life” for its striking appearance, remarkable resilience and generosity.
This ancient giant lives for thousands of years with a massive, water-storing trunk, yielding a hard-shelled fruit containing a powdery pulp that is a nutritional powerhouse.
Rich in vitamin C, antioxidants, and minerals, Baobab fruit is ideal for gut health, energy, immunity, and whole-body wellness, as backed by centuries of traditional use.
Until Arusha Foods, Baobab fruit powder was largely unavailable in the Indian market, with no brands offering it, leaving a massive gap for this exotic superfood despite its proven potential.
The journey of Arusha Foods began in 2021, when its founder, Aditya Todi, travelled to West Africa for a timber venture.
As destiny would have it, in a fateful event, when locals cured his stomach ailment with Baobab powder, sparking his vision to fill that void with Arusha Foods along with his cousin brother, Arpit Todi.
Today, Arusha isn’t a one-trick pony—it’s a superfood-product powerhouse, bootstrapped, with Baobab as its viral North Star.
The company offers more than a dozen products, such as Lakadong Turmeric, Wheatgrass, Moringa, and Seabuckthorn, all under the mantra “food as medicine.”
Here’s the synopsis of Arusha Food’s journey, woven from Aditya’s candid chat with us. For the full conversation, refer to the Change Started YouTube channel.
The Pivot: From MBA Cubicle to African Outback
After his MBA from IIM Lucknow in 2020, Aditya began his corporate journey at B2B e-commerce startup Udaan. However, amid COVID-19 restrictions and work-from-home routine, “the job was becoming monotonous,” he confesses.
After this, he joined his father’s electronics manufacturing business, which included TVs, coolers, and LEDs.
The decision felt safe but stifling. “I wanted to do something of my own, more towards the branding and marketing side. But at that time, there was nothing for me… no idea I could narrow down.”
Later, a father’s friend from Gandhidham—India’s timber nerve centre —proposed a timber export business from Benin, a French-speaking West African nation.
In 2021, Aditya jetted to Benin, only to find the going tough due to language and other issues. “But it was manageable. We found a few people from India helping us.”
One evening, a stomach bug hit Aditya, and locals handed over Baobab powder, mixed with water to drink. “This is something you usually see in India—your grandma or mom giving a home remedy,” Aditya remembers.
Baobab Unleashed: The Gut-Reset Revolution
The powder not only cured Aditya’s stomach ailment, but it also sparked a curiosity in his belly to discover more about the Baobab fruit, from which the powder was extracted.
Aditya trekked to Baobab trees, and was enamoured with the upside-down majesty—its huge trunks, barren branches in the off-season, and a life span of 2,000-3,000 years.
The scientific name of the Baobab tree is Adansonia digitata, and there are eight recognised species of Adansonia. Six species are endemic to Madagascar, one to Australia, and one is native to sub-Saharan Africa.
Baobab is called the “Tree of Life” in Africa because it “needs very little water to survive, and it grows in the arid regions of Africa where nothing else grows”.
The tree can store up to 100,000 litres of water in its trunk, provides a home for flora and fauna, and its leaves are used for food preparation, while the trunk fibre is used for ropes.
Regarding the fruit of the Baobab, research indicates that it is rich in calcium, minerals, fibre, and notably vitamin C, with levels about five to 10 times those found in oranges.
Consumption of Baobab fruit helps improve digestive health, boosts the immune system, and provides antioxidant benefits.
Starting Arusha Foods
The curiosity led to a decision, “I believe in healthy living, healthy eating and all those things. So, I thought of creating a superfood brand with baobab as the hero product because it’s new too. Nobody else has ever sold baobab in the Indian market.”
Aditya adds, “My father told me the best way in business to start is to start selling it only. He asked me to import some quantity, start selling it, and then you can take a call. If the goods get sold, then you can narrow it down.”
Back in India, Aditya worked for more than a year to get things sorted, including FSSAI licensing, which took a year.
The initial batch of five tons of Baobab powder was imported from “a very good manufacturer in Mozambique, who exports to the US market”.
The U.S. baobab market is growing rapidly, driven by demand for value-added ingredients in energy drinks, smoothies, juices, gut tonics, and gut shots as nutritional boosters.
Finally, in April 2023, Aditya, along with his cousin brother, Arpit Todi, launched Arusha Foods with Baobab fruit powder as its first product.
The company launched promotions through Meta ads and Instagram Reels, which generated traction.
Feedback and Response: Shock-and-awe testimonials
The feedback from the customers was extremely positive, Aditya mentions, “People were really shocked to see what this product is and how it has cured their gut issues and improved gut health.”
Customers with constipation issues, acne, thyroid issues, low energy levels, and liver difficulties, among other problems, were cured, relieved and saw improvement.
Aditya deduces, “Later, we realised everything is linked to your gut only. If Baobab resets your gut, makes it stronger, everything else falls in place – the nutrition gets absorbed better. Whatever one is eating before was not getting absorbed, but now it is getting absorbed”.
There were also customers, such as NRIs and foreigners, who had previously consumed Baobab in Africa but were missing this fruit in India.
Baobab Cultivation in India
Aditya clarified that the reason for importing fruit pulp from Africa is that even if we plant Baobab trees in India today, it takes 25 years for them to bear fruit.
Additionally, the kind of quality and know-how that Africans possess, including the right time for the tree and the right way to process it.
To get 1 kg of powder, you need 10 kg of fruit. So, to get 10 tons of powder, you need 100000 kg of fruit, which makes sourcing it in India difficult.
Even though there are some Baobab trees in Mandu, in Madhya Pradesh. “The knowledge transfer will take time. Therefore, one has to import it from Africa.”
Aditya quips, “If Baobab becomes viral like peanut butter or Moringa, when more people start to consume it, then maybe in 20 to 25 years, we can see a possibility of getting the fruits in India.”
The Indian climate can suit Baobab because many places have a tropical climate or very hot weather.
“And the good thing is that whenever you grow a Baobab tree, it takes care of the entire ecosystem, it will prevent soil erosion, and it will take care of flora and fauna.”
Creating a Superfood brand: Beyond Baobab
The feedback validated the nutritional effectiveness, demand and most importantly, the power of food as medicine, which is nature-tested and generation-proven.
After Baobab’s product market fit, it became Arusha Food’s hero product. Afterwards, customers started asking about superfood products such as Moringa, Wheatgrass, Seabuckthorn, etc.
Aditya adds, “Gradually, we came up with more superfoods, and now we see that our customer lifetime value has increased, our cart value has increased.”
In the second year, Arusha Foods launched Lakadong Turmeric and A2 Ghee. Then in the third year, it added more superfoods: Moringa, Wheatgrass, Ashwagandha, Spirulina, Black Seed Oil, Seed Mix, and White Muesli.
“The idea was basically to cater to all the human problems and come up with natural products, something that people haven’t known much about and something that can give them multiple benefits.”
However, Aditya is cognizant that Baobab will be the hero product and, at the same time, wants to build a community of people who consume superfoods.
“Right now, our focus is more on scaling baobab powder at the same time scaling other superfoods – like 50 per cent focus is on baobab, and the remaining 50 per cent is distributed among other products.”
“We believe in the power of food as medicine. That’s our philosophy in Arusha Foods.”
Numbers Game: Bootstrapped Blitz
The company has shown steady growth over the years, driven by Baobab as the main product.
In the first financial year (2023-24), Arusha Foods made ₹45 lakhs (Baobab solo). In the second financial year (FY), it was ₹95 lakhs (~90% Baobab), and in the last FY, Arusha did revenue of ₹160-170 lakhs (75-80% Baobab).
The majority of the sales come from the Arusha Foods website (75-80%), while products are also available on Amazon.
Though the company is bootstrapped and not looking for funding, Aditya also added: “We are looking to onboard someone in our team, maybe as a CMO, co-founder or someone who can scale the D2C brand from 1 to 10.”
Hurdles and Hacks
As the majority of the sales are from the company’s website, primarily driven by social media ads, it is leading to “rising customer acquisition costs.”
Aditya shared that his biggest challenge is “making Arusha Foods’ product stand out compared to the competition.”
“Once a product gets sold, then it’s not an issue because we know the person will come, he will refer to 10 more people, but getting that new customer for the first time is difficult.”
Another challenge for the company is to address scepticism among some consumers about whether the Boabab is 100% natural and free of contamination.
Aditya informs that the company spends considerable time educating customers not only about the benefits of Baobab powder but also of the fact that it is bio-harvested, organic and free from pesticides.
Reason behind the Name
The name Arusha Foods is derived from a city in Tanzania, home to the nearby Hadza tribe.
The tribe is a jungle-hunting group that relies on Baobab as a major source of nutrition. According to UK-based research, the Hadza tribe have the world’s healthiest guts.
In Hindi, Arusha also means “ujwal chamak” (radiant glow), thus connecting Africa with India.
The Road Ahead: Superfood Dynasty
Arusha Foods is slowly scripting a legacy of bringing an ancient Baobab fruit to India that meets the modern D2C hustle, heals the gut, and builds trust.
The company stands as a testament to fitness enthusiast Aditya Todi’s vision of turning one African gut-healing powder into India’s superfood beacon.
Furthermore, it also demonstrates that in a world of synthetic quick-fixes, nature offers the best solutions – one scoop at a time.
Here is the video of our conversation with Aditya Todi, founder of Arusha Foods.
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