A hit with startup execs and working IITians, all about the meal replacement SupermealX

When Rob Rhinehart, founder of Soylent, decided it was time to introduce the world to 'a meal in a glass', he inspired many others. One among those was Delhi-based Harsh Batra. In 2013, Batra was working at Ethos Data when he read about Soylent.
"In March 2013 I read about this on Twitter," says Batra, speaking to ETPanache over the phone. "I was already into eating healthy. I wasn't into cooking and I didn't have time to go shopping for groceries to make salads. That's when I heard of Soylent."

Batra's version of Soylent

According to its official website, Soylent is "a food product (classified as a food, not a supplement, by the FDA) designed for use as a staple meal by all adults".

The 32-year-old, currently a director at Ethos Data, says that the concept is straightforward as there is already scientific information about the nutrients that our bodies need. As Batra says, Rhinehart only implemented the data that was available. Soylent hadn't been made available to Indians then so Batra decided to create his version — SupermealX.

SupermealX, which got its Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) approval in September last year, is the perfect default meal that makes consumers perform at their peak, according to Batra. However, responding to a post on the product's Facebook page, the SupermealX team admits that, "Other than consuming the product ourselv s for the past 24 months, we do not have any separate studies on the subject." Two-thirds of Batra's meals since 2013 have been SupermealX.

While Batra says his product meets Indian dietary requirements, it is not for everybody. He says, "Some people respond well to it. Some don't. If you are lactose-intolerant, it is probably not the product for you. People have no patience to let their body adapt to it."

Before going on the liquid diet, Batra did a blood test. A month after being on the liquid diet, he took the test again. He noticed a decrease in his bad cholesterol levels. Batra is fairly physically fit so he didn't notice any sudden weight fluctuation but he did notice a relative decrease in appetite.

Sticking to a liquid meal diet

In December 2015, SupermealX shipped their initial orders to 12 cities in India. The product's core customers appear to be entrepreneurs from Bengaluru and working IIT graduates. SupermealX comes in a packet and can be ordered with a 'tsunami mixer' that facilitates the creation of the drink. "It took a while to source all the ingredients," says Batra.

The entrepreneur also put his parents on the initial SupermealX diet. They didn't take to it because they did not like the taste, but Batra stuck to it. For Batra, the current mix ticks the three boxes. One, his body responds well to it. Two, there is no spike in his blood sugar level post consumption. Three, he likes the taste. SupermealX comes in one flavour — vanilla.

The philosophy is Soylent, but the formulation is our own, says Batra. "Soylent put out the list of ingredients, but they didn't say how they are binding them together. I had to figure that out."

Appreciating food

Batra says consuming SupermealX has enhanced his appreciation of food. "Our plans with friends and fami ly revolve around food. Being on this diet made food more fun. When I ate, it was a delight," he says.