When most people think of Green Trails, they picture trekkers bending down on trails, filling up their eco-bags, doing their part to clean the mountains. And yes, that is part of it. However, the truth is that Green Trails runs much deeper at Indiahikes. It isn’t a campaign we run on the side. It’s at the heart of how we think, how we work, and how we make decisions every single day.
This story is a good example. On the surface, it’s about masalas. But really, it’s about what Green Trails means to us.
A Problem Hiding in Plain Sight
For years, something small had been bothering us: single-use masala packets.
Every week, close to a thousand trekkers trek with Indiahikes. That means three meals a day, across kitchens in the Himalayas. And behind those meals? A mountain of masala packets.
Most masalas come in 200 g or 500 g packets. Even when we managed to buy in larger packs, manufacturers rarely went beyond 2–3 kilos. For us, the numbers added up shockingly fast. Just eight masalas we used regularly meant nearly 11,000 packets a year.
The worst part? These packets are made of multilayered plastic — non-recyclable, non-biodegradable, impossible to repurpose.
We knew this had to change.
First Attempts That Didn’t Work
Our first idea was straightforward: buy loose masalas without packaging.
But when we tried it, we immediately ran into problems. The loose masalas were adulterated. We couldn’t trace their source. And as far as food quality went, it was a big red flag.
We experimented with buying raw ingredients and taking them to mills for grinding. But again, adulteration crept in. Plus, the process was slow and unsupervised.
It felt like we were stuck between two poor choices: good quality but unsustainable packets, or bulk masalas of questionable quality.
That’s when our founder asked a question that stopped us in our tracks: “Why don’t we make our own masalas?”
A Radical Shift: Making Our Own Masalas
At first, the idea felt absurd. We are a trekking organisation, not a restaurant. We don’t have chefs, we have mountain folk trained to cook for trekkers. And here we were, talking about roasting, grinding, and blending 20–30 kilos of spices at a time.
But the more we thought about it, the clearer it became: both quality and sustainability were at stake. And those were two things we could never compromise.
So we took the plunge.
Two Weeks in the Indiahikes Masala Factory
We started small, with jeera. Debadrita, our Head of Food Experience, moved to Dehradun for two weeks. She hand-picked the jeera herself, roasted it, ground it, and instantly, the difference was obvious. The aroma, the freshness, the purity — it was nothing like store-bought masalas.
That success lit the fire.
For two weeks, our office turned into a masala-making unit. Our team handpicked chillies, turmeric, coriander, and nutmeg from trusted vendors. They spent hours on the terrace, sun-drying ingredients, and when the rains didn’t cooperate, they roasted carefully — because even a small slip could change the flavour.
Day after day, cinnamon, fennel, fenugreek, star anise, pepper, cloves, bay leaves, and more went into the grinder. The office was filled with fragrance. Clothes carried the aroma of freshly roasted spices.
By the end, we had enough masalas to last through September — including blends like chai masala, chole masala, and sambar powder. Packed in airtight containers, sealed and labelled, they were shipped off to all our slopes. Not a single plastic packet needed.
The Results Were Immediate
First, the quality improved dramatically. Pure, fresh spices in every meal.
Second, consistency. Whether you trek in Uttarakhand, Himachal, or Central India, you now taste the same Indiahikes food.
And third, the biggest win — we had completely eliminated 11,000 single-use plastic packets. Nobody will ever thank us for this, except the mountains. And that’s enough.
Trekking With Purpose
For us, this felt like a milestone — no less significant than when we introduced bio-toilets years ago. That too started with trial and error, but today they’re part of every trek, quietly protecting fragile mountains.
This masala initiative is similar. On the outside, it may look like a small change. But its impact will last.
So when you trek with Indiahikes, know this: every meal you eat carries not just flavour, but intent. It’s cooked with spices we source, sun-dry, roast, and grind ourselves — consciously, for your health, and for the mountains.
And this is only one story. Behind the scenes, we’re working on many more — from sourcing paneer without plastic packaging, to finding alternatives for sauces and noodles.
Green Trails is not just about what trekkers see on the trail. It’s about what happens in the background. And every one of these choices brings us closer to the kind of trekking we believe in — trekking with purpose.