UKIBC signs an MoU with the Forum of Indian Food Importers on Trade and Business Cooperation
By Shubhi Mishra
To strengthen the UK-India Food and Drink trade and business relations between, the UK India Business Council is pleased to have signed an MoU with the Forum of Indian Food Importers (FIFI), an apex chamber of Indian food business operators.
Current opportunities for value-added food and beverages are generally limited to higher-income consumers in the markets. Their consumption patterns and preferences are shaped by the emergence of fine dining restaurants, cafes, quick service restaurants, supermarkets, processed foods, larger refrigerators, 24-hour television food channels, easier access, dual-earning households, larger disposable incomes, and the introduction of the convenience cuisines.
India’s population and economic growth are driving expansion in the organised and packaged food and beverage sector. By some estimates, the market size of the food and drink industry in India will reach GBP 325 billion by 2020, contributing around 14% of manufacturing gross domestic product (GDP), 13% of India’s exports, and 6% of the total industrial investment.
UK food and drink companies see India as a priority market for investment, but they currently face challenges in finding the right business partners and in understanding the regulatory requirements. Imported food products can be subject to multiple regulatory authorities that sometimes have overlapping responsibilities.
With a long term objective to assist the UK companies find specific trade partners, UKIBC has signed an MoU with FIFI, an apex chamber representing over 15,000 food importers, retailers, hoteliers, and other stakeholders in India, which provides a diligent informative data bank on food & drink trade in India and projects an efficacious knowledge network through its composite interactions with various government stakeholders, both at the state and union level.
Further, to promote the UK-India F&D partnership, UKIBC, and FIFI will work to find the right platforms to increase the visibility of brand UK, which may include participation at seminars, roundtables, trade shows, retail promotions, hospitality promotional events, and others.
With an objective to foster the Food and drink trade export from the UK to India, the UKIBC plans to organise its second trade mission later this year in alliance with FIFI. To know more about the trade mission details, please write to Shubhi Mishra, Lead – Food and Drink Policy, Advocacy, and Trade Promotion at Shubhi.mishra@ukibc.com.”
