By Sunil Sonker
Mussoorie, 28 Feb: Bachan Singh Negi, the peanut butter king who brought the taste of peanut butter to Mussoorie and people from across the country, is no more in this world. Political parties and social organisations of Mussoorie expressed grief at the death of 92-year-old Bachan Singh Negi, founder of Sunrise Food Products and Peanut Butter and Peanut Butter Man. He had been ill for a long time.
He used to make peanut butter with the British before Independence and, later, he started his own business. Along with peanut butter, he also sold roasted peanuts. He started providing peanut butter to different parts of the country including Dehradun. A magazine article on his peanut butter was also published in 2005. Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi also liked Negi’s peanut butter when he studied in Doon School.
In the last few years, companies like Amul, Britannia, etc., have started selling peanut butter by acquiring technology from abroad, but the taste of the peanut butter made by Bachan Singh Negi was different, due to which the demand for it was very high. His son, Vijay Negi, recalls that during the British period, Vincent Hill School belonged to the British. His father used to work there and he learnt the technique of making peanut butter. He started ahis own peanut butter making business in 1972. In 2005, a magazine had published his father’s interview, which pleased him enormously.
