Archive · 16 Aug 2026
Hospitality Degree Debate Grows Amid Maharashtra FDA Restaurant Crackdown
In Maharashtra, India, the food safety office called the FDA is checking restaurants more strictly than before.
The checks include inspections and even suspending restaurant licences when rules are broken.
This has started a big argument about who should be allowed to run a restaurant.
Some people think restaurant managers should have a special college degree in hospitality.
Others think people who learned the job by working in restaurants can be just as good.
They point out that experienced workers can take a food safety course called FoSTaC instead.
Restaurant managers also need to know about money, taxes, and buying supplies, so business graduates might be good too.
Food safety rules already let trained employees lead a restaurant, so a strict degree rule could push out good workers.
Almost everyone agrees that keeping food safe and helping workers learn new skills are the most important things.
Maharashtra FDA is conducting inspections, licence suspensions, and stricter compliance measures led by Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe.
Industry figures are debating whether restaurant managers should hold hospitality degrees or whether FoSTaC-certified and other graduates qualify.
An FSSAI notification dated February 15, 2018 allows a professionally qualified person or a FoSTaC-trained employee to head operations.
Critics say a degree mandate would overlook practical experience and skills in taxation, finance, licensing, and inventory that commerce graduates bring.
Some warn a mandate could raise hiring costs and extend recruitment timelines, while others say it could strengthen professionalism and industry standards.
- Who
- Maharashtra FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe and industry figures including AHAR President Vijay K. Shetty, Toscano COO Rohit Tokhi, Chef Reetu Uday Kugaji, and Bluebop founder Eesha Sukhi.
- What
- A debate over whether restaurant managers should be required to hold hospitality degrees or whether FoSTaC-certified and other experienced graduates should qualify.
- When
- Amid the FDA's current crackdown; the debate references an FSSAI notification issued on February 15, 2018.
- Where
- Maharashtra, India.
- Why
- Stricter enforcement actions such as inspections and licence suspensions have raised questions about who is qualified to manage restaurants.
Flexible Qualifications View
Formal Education Emphasis
Hospitality degree requirement
Flexible Qualifications View
Requiring hospitality degrees for managers is unreasonable; practical experience plus FoSTaC certification qualifies staff to lead operations.
Formal Education Emphasis
Formal hospitality education provides a strong foundation for leadership, though it should not become a barrier when a business has robust food safety systems and regular training.
Impact on jobs and hiring
Flexible Qualifications View
A rigid mandate could demoralise experienced staff, disrupt career progression, and increase unemployment in a sector that already struggles to provide stable jobs.
Formal Education Emphasis
A mandatory qualification could raise hiring costs and extend recruitment timelines, but it may strengthen professionalism and raise industry standards for businesses and consumers.
Alternative qualifications
Flexible Qualifications View
Commerce, accounts, and business management graduates with industry experience are equally, if not better, equipped to handle taxation, finance, licensing, and inventory management.
Formal Education Emphasis
Hospitality education covers food costing, budgeting, and operational consistency; specialised accounts and excise matters are handled by dedicated professionals.
- Regulator
- Maharashtra FDA
- FDA Commissioner
- Tukaram Mundhe
- Enforcement actions
- Inspections, licence suspensions, and stricter compliance measures
- Relevant FSSAI notification
- February 15, 2018 — allows a professionally qualified person or FoSTaC-trained employee to head operations
- FoSTaC
- Food Safety Training and Certification programme
- FSSAI training requirement
- One FoSTaC-trained individual for every 25 staff members
- Debate question
- Should managerial roles be reserved for hospitality graduates only, or also for FoSTaC-certified and other graduates?
- Voices in debate
- AHAR, Toscano (Red Apple Kitchen Consultancy), Chef Reetu Uday Kugaji, Bluebop