Meet the Family


    Sandeep Agarwal

    Co-Founder, Herbalist

    When Sandeep isn't hanging out in trees, he can be found hiking mountains, or riding his Royal Enfield motorcycle. Endlessly exploring, his travels often take him to far flung places, and if we are lucky, he brings back exotic, rare foods for us to try once he returns!

    In his spare time, he manages Pure Indian Foods as Head Gheek and Curiosity Extraordinaire. He never lacks for ideas and has both Nalini and staff pacing to keep up with his constant thirst for trying new things.

    He is well-loved by staff for his punny jokes, riddles, fables, and stories.

    Sandeep also moonlights as:
    WAPF Chapter Leader
    NJ Food Processors Association Director

    Watch this video of Sandeep's adventures
    Nalini Agarwal Co-Founder of Pure Indian Foods
    Nalini Agarwal of Pure Indian Foods filling ghee jars

    Nalini Agarwal

    AKA Ghee Lady, Head Manufacturer, Hand-maker of all the things

    Nalini may be small in stature, but she holds the whole Pure Indian Foods world on her shoulders. We wouldn't be in business without her, as she is the hands lovingly making all the products behind the scenes.

    Sandeep and Nalini truly are a dynamic team. Nalini is especially patient and supportive about all of Sandeep's new product ideas! Sandeep is the gas, and Nalini is the gears that keep things running.

    To her staff, she is affectionately known as the "Ghee Lady."

    Uncle Mahender

    Located in Haryana, Sandeep's Uncle Mahender keeps the family ghee shop in India going, while Sandeep and Nalini produce ghee in the U.S. The shop has been in operation for over 100 years!

    Great-Great-Grandfather Lala Khoobram Agarwal

    In 1889, Grandfather Lala Khoobram Agarwal launched the family ghee business in northern India. After 5 generations and over 130 years in this business, we are still going strong and keeping his dream alive!

    Photo is actually of Grandfather Agarwal, since we don't have a photo of Great-Great-Grandfather. :)

    Family Business Since 1889

    In 1889, Lala Khoobram Agarwal, Sandeep's great-great-grandfather, launched a pure ghee business in the Haryana region of Northern India. The family ghee shop still operates to this day.

    In 1994, Sandeep immigrated to the U.S. and began a life here, with Nalini following in 1997 after their marriage in India. Sandeep worked in the tech and finance sectors. However, after working on Wall Street in New York for many years, Sandeep did not find satisfaction in his work.

    Inspired by his family values and with a desire to continue his family tradition, he left his hi-tech job, and in 2008, Sandeep and Nalini launched their homemade ghee manufacturing business in New Jersey, calling it Pure Indian Foods.

    Where We Are Now

    Pure Indian Foods is one of the most respected organic ghee companies in North America. Pure Indian Foods brought the Ayurveda Ghrita concept to a culinary level by introducing unique herb and spiced ghee products sold as food, which has been recognized by The New York Times.

    Today, the Agarwal family continues to build upon their proud heritage by focusing on quality and not on quantity. Each batch of ghee is still lovingly made by hand.

    The Pure Indian Foods brand today, reaches far beyond just ghee to encompass family recipes and treasured family spice blends; homemade condiments, chutneys, and sauces; the highest quality cold-pressed oils; and an entire line of carefully curated rare and exotic organic spices. No matter what you find at Pure Indian Foods, you can be sure it's of the highest quality.

    Our Vision

    We aim to offer great tasting grass-fed organic ghee products at reasonable prices that will help ghee achieve the same sacred superfood status in the U.S. which it has enjoyed in the Indian tradition for millennia.

    We are also committed to sourcing and creating products that generate income for small communities all over the world. We want to produce products in a way that is sustainable for both our environment and the people in it. What better way to do this than through advocating for the purest food available?

    Sustainability starts from the ground up. Literally. When it comes to our ghee, it starts with nutrient-rich soil, free of fertilizers and pesticides that grow luscious green grass for the cows to graze on. Sun, soil, clean water, and a cow turn organic grass into organic milk, which we then turn into organic ghee (which we like to call sunshine in a jar). The nutrients from the soil are pulled into the grass, which gets eaten by the cow, which transfers to the milk, which is then consumed by you!

    Being sustainable means considering every step of production. This is why we also work closely with small family farmers both in the U.S. (for milk for our ghee products) and in India (for our organic spices and herbs). In order to keep bringing you high-quality organic products, we know it's important to do our part in creating sustainable economies and markets for small farmers to share their products. With every purchase from Pure Indian Foods, you're helping small farmers continue to stay in business.

    Butterworld

    Sandeep is also the founder and chief curator of ButterWorld, a traveling exhibition showcasing unique, rare and historical dairy artifacts from around the world. His interest in dairy history grew out of his family’s ghee business and the culturally significant role that dairy plays within his Indian heritage.