Dairy contributes 25% of India's food and beverage sector : NDDB Executive Director

New Delhi: India’s food and beverage sector is growing rapidly, backed by 180 million hectares of arable land, food processing valued at Rs 75 trillion, and food expenditure making up over 40 per cent of consumer spend, Seetharaman Raghupathi, Executive Director, National Dairy Development Board has said.

Dairy contributes 25 per cent of this sector, with India producing one-fourth of the world’s milk, worth ₹12 trillion. With 17 million farmers across 235,000 villages, 35 per cent of whom are women, dairy cooperatives return 75 per cent of the consumer rupee, channeling Rs 2.1 billion daily into the rural economy, he said.

He was speaking at the inaugural event of Anuga FoodTec India and Anuga Select India 2025 commenced at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai on Wednesday.

Initiatives like White Revolution 2.0, which aims to establish 75,000 new cooperatives by 2028–29, will further boost this growth, he said.

Several dignitaries including Majed Al-Otaibi, Charge d'Affaires of the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia; Zozo Binti, Head of Mission, D.R. Congo; H.E. Labane Gideon, Consul General of South Africa; Donnawit Poolsawat, Consul General of Thailand; Bastian Mingers, Vice President, Food Portfolio, Koelnmesse GmbH and Milind Dixit, Managing Director – India & SAARC, Koelnmesse Pvt Ltd attended the event.

India’s food processing & ingredients sector growing at 8.8 per cent CAGR, projected to double by 2030, while food-tech outpaces global benchmarks at 14 per cent CAGR. Food processing equipment market in India projected to reach USD 1.5 billion by 2033; packaging machinery to cross USD 6.6 billion by 2030, said a statement.

The expos expected 60,000 visitors across three days. Over 1100 exhibitors spread across 55,000 sqm of exhibition space covers the entire spectrum of food & beverage industry.

Participation from 65 countries to present cutting-edge innovations, with 30 per cent international participation.

Organized by Koelnmesse India, taking place from 20th to 22nd August 2025, the events are designed to drive South Asia’s F&B growth by championing innovation, facilitating international partnerships, and enabling opportunities for trade and knowledge exchange, said the statement.