The packaged food industry is all set to double its size from the current $15 billion to $30 billion by 2015, according to a study by the industry body ASSOCHAM. The study titled ‘Craze for ready-to-eat food among young Indians’ found that the rise in income, a fast paced urban lifestyle and modernization of the retail trade are the possible factors responsible for the change.
Packaged foods include products like canned processed food, frozen processed food, meal replacement products, condiments and bakery products. Some of the newer categories in this segment are processed dairy products, frozen ready-to-eat foods, diet snacks, processed meat and probiotic drinks. The key players in the packaged food market are Hindustan Uniliver, ITC, Nestle, PepsiCo, Dabur, Cadbury, Haldiram, Britannia, Godrej and Parle Agro.
It was stated that here is a large gap between the rural and urban consumption of packaged food. As expected urban consumers consume about 78% of all packaged food, while rural residents consume just over 22%. Infact 82% of workforce prefer packaged food rather eating outside or at a roadside dhabha in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad.
The study further stated that Indian food processing market is expected to show fast paced growth in next five years, clocking an annual growth of 40-60%. Key drivers for this demand include changing demographics, increase in income levels, urbanisation, growth in organised retail, improvement in packaging, easy access to freezer facilities and increased demand for frozen non-vegetarian foods.
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