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Food & Beverage to India

Eligible businesses can apply for free support to export packaged and processed foods, and non-alcoholic beverages to India. Applications closed on Sunday 8 October 2023

Program dates

November 2023 to April 2024

Time investment required for participants: Approximately 12 hours in sessions prior to travelling in-market, not including optional activities or preparatory work your business may need to do outside of sessions.

Key event

AAHAR International Food and Hospitality Fair Delhi on 14-18 March 2024 in New Delhi, India

Why this market

India is poised to become the world’s 3rd largest economy by 2030, with a current market of nearly 1.4 billion customers. 

In India’s AU$400 billion food and beverage sector, opportunities abound for premium Australian products - perceived to be of high quality, safe and reliably available - also noting Indian consumer trends in health and immunity, strong vegetarian and vegan population, gourmet stores and e-commerce platforms with national delivery.

The Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (AI-ECTA) will enable Australian businesses to export to India by lowering or abolishing tariffs on a range of F&B products.  AI-ECTA enables 85% of Australian goods exported to India to enter without tariffs, and an additional 5% of exported goods will have tariffs eliminated in stages (DFAT Free Trade Agreement Portal).

For more information see: (Premium food and beverage to India - Austrade).

Participation requirements and success factors

Eligibility for the overall Program

  • Have headquarters in NSW
  • Have a valid Australian Business Number (ABN) registered for NSW 
  • Be export-capable and export-ready 
  • Have an employee number between 5 and 199 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees 
  • The product or service must be produced primarily in NSW
  • The product or service is achieving sales already
  • Have a website featuring the product or service
  • Be prepared to adapt the product or service for the new market
  • Be flexible regarding market-entry method
  • Have resources to support marketing and development for a new market
  • Be willing to travel to the selected market and/or to Sydney for events, and must cover own travel expenses

Note this program is designed for businesses who produce goods/services in NSW and own their own brand. This program is not for aggregators, traders, or businesses who sell services to exporters.

Additional eligibility requirements for this stream

  • Attend in-person at AAHAR Delhi 5-9 March 2024, and its associated in-market program.
  • The processed and packaged F&B items must have minimum shelf life of 6 months
  • Understand and be able to comply with Indian import duties and taxes (check your product on the AI-ECTA link)
  • Be able to dedicate staff to work on India market expansion.
  • Have a draft India Market Entry strategy or plan over a 3-5 year horizon at executive level
  • Production capability to support the new market
  • Ability to negotiate on export pricing

The ideal participant 

  • Will be able to leverage AAHAR’s focus on packaged and processed foods - for example agrifood, organics, fine foods, bread & bakery, coffee & tea, sweets, snacks, and dairy)
  • Have product in categories in high demand in India including:  processed dairy, plant-based alternatives to animal protein, whey protein concentrates and lactose-free and sugar free alternatives, health supplements, health drinks, superfoods, oils, vegan products, healthy breakfast cereals,  frozen seafood and frozen non-beef meat products
  • Are larger SMEs or those with more experience exporting or more serious eyes-open commitment to India, or have a 3-5 year multi-development plan
  • Brands seriously considering food processing and manufacturing opportunities in India

Businesses NOT eligible for this stream 

  • Products containing beef or beef by-products such as gelatin
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Horticulture products such as fresh fruit and vegetables

Applicants should not have previously participated in a Going Global Program to India

Curriculum

Introductory sessions 

  • Welcome session
  • Intellectual property protection

Market intelligence briefing 

  • Market briefing and subsector opportunities
  • Distribution channels
  • Doing business in India and Business culture and etiquette

Regulation and compliance

  • Regulatory requirements
  • Registration pathway
  • Packaging & labelling
  • FSSAI regulatory approvals, mechanisms for tradeshow sample imports, freight costs, supply side constraints, and product pricing in a highly-price sensitive market

Potential partner search and introductions

  • Participation at AAHAR Delhi with in-market assistance and logistical support from Investment NSW
  • Identification of potential partners
  • Targeted 1:1 business introductions
  • Engaging with prospective clients, partners, distributors and resellers
  • Market and site visits to understand the sector opportunity, scale and demand, sales channels (retail, e-Commerce, quick-commerce), competition and pricing

Ongoing advice and follow up

  • Ongoing support provided by dedicated Investment NSW staff

*note: the curriculum is subject to change

Previous India program attendee Coco & Lucas' Kitchen recommends the program. Check out a 2 minute highlight reel: https://youtu.be/Uyr3Rd90QIA

Apply

Applications closed on Sunday 8 October 2023

Applicants will be notified of the results around 23 October

Note:  Apply for your preferred market - you can apply for and participate in only 1 stream.