The biggest names shaping India’s food, retail and HoReCa businesses came together today at the 19th edition of India Food Forum 2026, hosted by IMAGES Group at the Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai. Taking place on September 22–23, the two-day forum is bringing together 3,000+ attendees, 500+ brands, 300+ industry experts and 100+ exhibitors, creating a common platform for the Retail, HoReCa and Tech Solutions communities.

Built around the theme “The Triple Bottomline of Food: Health | Sustainability | Scale,” India Food Forum 2026 is examining how the industry can balance consumer wellbeing and responsible growth with the need to build businesses that can scale. Day One set the tone with high-stakes conversations on changing consumer behaviour, food and grocery retail, brand–retailer partnerships, Bharat consumption, quick commerce, technology and the evolving routes to market.

Nikhil Behl, CEO – Food, IMAGES Group, in his welcome address, positioned the Forum as more than an industry gathering, saying: “India Food Forum is, at its heart, a meeting place for the entire food ecosystem — where brands, retailers, foodservice players and business leaders come together to discover, connect and create opportunities.” He added that the Forum was designed around a simple belief: “Business should happen here — a conversation should lead to a partnership, an insight to action, and a product discovery to a new opportunity.”

A Platform For The Next Phase of Food

Chairman (India Food Forum) Damodar Mall, CEO, Grocery, Reliance Retail, framed the wider transformation around the changing relationship between consumer desire and consumption. According to Mall, the Indian consumer has always been omnichannel, moving between stores, home delivery, e-commerce, quick commerce and other formats depending on the need and occasion.

He highlighted how quick commerce has shortened the distance between desire and consumption, while emphasising that convenience is only one part of the equation, with range, price, service, experience and trust continuing to influence consumer choices.

The larger opportunity, he noted, lies not in choosing one channel over another but in understanding how different formats can coexist and evolve to serve consumers better.

As India Food Forum moves into Day Two, the agenda will continue to bring together the foodservice, retail and technology ecosystem around emerging opportunities, innovation, sustainability, scale and the future of the Indian food economy.

With its combination of conferences, roundtables, fireside conversations, exhibition, networking, product discovery, food experiences, innovation and recognition, the 19th India Food Forum is positioning itself as a business platform for an industry that is itself rapidly changing.

The Consumer Reset Takes Centre Stage

The inaugural session, “The Great Consumer Reset: Reimagining How India Consumes,” explored how consumers are rapidly redefining expectations around choice, value, convenience, experience and relevance. Leaders from the consumer ecosystem highlighted the need for businesses to respond with greater agility, innovation, opportunity, relevance, curiosity, precision marketing and speed.

Hemant Malik, Divisional Chief Executive – Foods, ITC Ltd., pointed to the increasing role of science and nutrition in food innovation: “Food is becoming more science-led as consumers demand healthier, more functional choices, pushing brands to innovate across nutrition, ingredients, quality and everyday consumption.”

The discussion also highlighted a more nuanced approach to snacking and indulgence. Prashant Peres, GM, Mars Snacking, observed: “Consumers are becoming more mindful and intentional about what they eat, but they still want to indulge, creating opportunities for brands to make snacking healthier, smarter and more relevant.”

From a retail perspective, Rahul Nayak, CEO, SPAR India, noted that consumers are making choices that go beyond simple price or pack-size calculations: “Consumers are not simply optimising for pack size or price; they are balancing budgets, aspirations and category choices to maximise what they can experience and enjoy.”

From Transactions to Food Growth Partnerships

The session “The New Food Alliance: Building the Next Food Growth Partnership” turned the spotlight on an increasingly important part of India’s retail landscape — mid-sized and small modern retail chains.

While these retailers have invested in systems, technology and POS infrastructure, discussions highlighted continuing challenges around distributor service levels, fill rates, communication, visibility, data access and support from brands. The conversation focused on moving beyond transactional relationships towards partnerships built around data, assortment, category development and scalable growth.

Chetan Damji Sangoi, CEO, Sarvodaya Supermarket, called for a more scalable partnership model: “Partnerships must go beyond bridging gaps; they should create scalable models that help retailers grow from one store to ten.”

For Rahul Khandelwal, COO, Weikfield, data can become a significant bridge between brands and retailers. “Brands and retailers must collaborate on data, turning shared insights into stronger category development, test markets and locally relevant products,” he said.

The importance of consultative selling was emphasised by Amitabh Singh, Senior Vice President, Patanjali Foods Ltd.: “Transactional relationships do not work long-term; consultative partnerships, backed by our own-store experience and data, help retailers build the right assortment.”

Prabhat Singh, Head Modern Trade, Dabur India Ltd., similarly called for both sides to invest in the relationship: “We need to move from transactional launches to a growth mindset, with both brands and smaller retailers investing in the journey.”

The Next Million Consumers and the Next Routes to Market

Beyond these two anchor conversations, Day One’s agenda broadened the lens to some of the most consequential questions facing food and grocery businesses. “Winning the Next Million Consumers” examined where future growth will emerge and how businesses can address increasingly diverse consumer cohorts beyond the traditional urban markets.

“AI-Powered Route-to-Market” explored the potential of technology to transform sales, distribution and retail execution, while “The FMCG Growth Dilemma” looked at the pressures facing brands as they balance growth, profitability, changing consumer expectations and increasingly fragmented routes to market.

The conversation then moved “From Shelf to Scale,” examining how brands can move from product discovery and distribution to sustainable growth. Another major focus was “Retail in the Age of Quick Commerce,” reflecting on how rapid delivery is reshaping grocery missions, consumer expectations, assortment and the economics of retail.

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India’s gourmet food market is seeing increasing investment across brands, retail formats and digital channels, indicating a gradual shift from niche consumption towards a more organised premium food ecosystem. In June 2026, Manam Chocolate raised $9 million to expand its retail footprint and institutional business, while Foodstories raised Rs 50 crore to scale its physical stores, digital operations and delivery network across key metros.

Digital platforms are also building more distinct premium-grocery propositions; Zepto, for instance, was reported in July 2026 to be preparing Select, a curated storefront focused on imported and higher-value food and grocery products. 

Together, these developments indicate that gourmet food is attracting investment not only at the product level, but across the broader retail and distribution ecosystem required to support scale. Festive gifting is where that change becomes particularly visible.

A Wider Range of Foods is Becoming Gift-Worthy

India’s festive food-gifting market has traditionally been concentrated around mithai, dry fruits and, increasingly, chocolates. While these categories continue to account for a significant share of festive demand, the product mix is broadening as consumers become more receptive to differentiated food formats and brands extend categories that were historically associated with everyday consumption into gifting. 

The shift is visible in the 2025 festive season. FNP reported a 30% increase in gift-hamper sales, while sales through quick-commerce channels grew nearly 50% year on year; IGP similarly reported around 40% growth through quick commerce. Grocery was also the fastest-growing category during the opening week of festive e-commerce sales, increasing 44% year on year, with gifting packs, sweets and beverages contributing to the increase.

Importantly, growth is being accompanied by category expansion rather than merely higher spending within established gifting formats. Regional packaged foods, premium snacks, bakery products and specialty beverages are increasingly being positioned for festive consumption alongside traditional categories. Sweet Karam Coffee, for example, reported a fourfold increase in gifting revenue during Diwali 2025 while taking a portfolio of South Indian sweets and snacks to consumers nationally.

Similarly, Farmley expanded its festive portfolio through makhana and curated nut-based assortments, while brands such as The Baker’s Dozen and GO DESi have broadened their participation in festive gifting by repackaging familiar products through contemporary presentation, differentiated ingredients and, in the case of regional food brands, a stronger emphasis on culinary identity and provenance.

This broadening has two implications for the food and grocery market. First, it increases the addressable festive opportunity beyond companies traditionally associated with sweets, chocolates and dry fruits. Second, it allows brands in adjacent categories to use pack architecture, assortment and premium formats to create a distinct gifting proposition without fundamentally changing the underlying product category.

Festive food gifting is therefore evolving from a relatively concentrated category into a broader multi-category consumption occasion, creating incremental opportunities across premium snacking, regional foods, bakery and specialty beverages.

What is Driving the Shift Toward Gourmet Food

Three shifts are reshaping how value is being created within India’s gourmet and festive food market. Product Quality is Becoming a More Tangible Basis for Premiumisation

Historically, premium food was often signalled through imported brands, elaborate packaging or higher price points. Increasingly, brands are differentiating through attributes that are embedded in the product itself; ingredient quality, sourcing, preparation methods, consistency and transparency. 

This is particularly visible in premium mithai, where players such as Gur Chini are placing greater emphasis on ingredient provenance, hygiene and formulation alongside contemporary presentation. Similar developments are visible in snacking, where brands such as Farmley are building differentiated offerings around cleaner ingredient profiles, nuts, seeds and makhana, while specialty coffee brands use origin, processing methods and certification to establish quality credentials.

The underlying shift is from premium as a presentation cue to premium as a product attribute- giving consumers clearer reasons to trade up within otherwise familiar categories. Indian Origin and Regionality are Gaining Relevance as Premium Cues

Gourmet food in India has traditionally been closely associated with imported products across categories such as chocolate, cheese, oils, sauces and preserves. While these continue to play an important role, Indian origin and regional provenance are increasingly being used to create differentiated premium offerings.

Araku Coffee is illustrative of this transition. Its positioning is rooted in origin and production, supported by organic certification covering 2,600 tribal farmers and 2,275 hectares in Andhra Pradesh, alongside access to buyers in Germany and Italy and a domestic marketing and sales agreement with Tata Consumer Products. Similar developments are emerging across categories: regional snacks are being taken to national consumers through organised brands, traditional sweets are being scaled through D2C formats, and Indian cacao is being used more explicitly within craft-chocolate propositions.

The implication is not that Indian provenance is replacing imported origin, but that the set of attributes capable of supporting a premium is broadening. Regional specificity, craftsmanship and production methods are increasingly creating value alongside international branding. For Indian food companies, this creates greater scope to premiumise domestic ingredients and culinary traditions rather than relying primarily on imported cues.

Premiumisation is Extending Beyond Indulgence

The festive gifting basket is broadening beyond categories traditionally associated with the occasion. Specialty coffee and tea, artisanal bakery, premium cheese, preserves and other gourmet pantry products are increasingly being incorporated alongside mithai, chocolates and dry fruits, enabling categories previously purchased primarily for self-consumption to participate more meaningfully in gifting. Hotel gifting portfolios illustrate the extent of this shift. In 2025, ITC Hotels offered formats ranging from focused mithai and chocolate boxes to its `21,999 Diamanté Collection, which combined sweets, Fabelle truffles, tea and festive keepsakes.

JW Marriott Hotel Bengaluru’s `10,000–`18,000 hampers included artisanal teas, single-origin coffee, truffle honey and aged cheese, while Roseate House New Delhi developed a `1,999–`3,999 price ladder by progressively widening the mix of beverages, snacks and gourmet pantry products.

The broader implication is that the market now has sufficient depth across chocolate, beverages, bakery, cheese and pantry categories to support differentiated gifting propositions across multiple price points. For brands and retailers, this expands both the range of products that can participate in festive demand and the flexibility to build assortments around different recipient profiles, occasions and spending thresholds.

Distribution is Evolving Around Gourmet as a Distinct Retail Segment

The growth of gourmet food is increasingly visible in how retailers and digital platforms are structuring their businesses around the category. Rather than simply adding a few premium SKUs to the broader grocery assortment, several platforms are creating dedicated gourmet formats, curated storefronts and specialised fulfilment models.

• Blinkit Gourmet: Piloted in select locations across Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Mumbai in 2026, with dedicated dark stores and an assortment spanning artisanal cheeses, breads, premium produce and other gourmet products.
  
• Zepto Select: Developed as a dedicated premium-grocery storefront focused on imported, gourmet and higher-value food products.
  
• Flipkart Minutes Gourmet / Amazon Now Gourmet Picks: Both platforms have introduced curated gourmet sections, indicating that premium food is increasingly being treated as a distinct assortment within rapid-delivery grocery.
  
• Swiggy Instamart: Operates a dedicated gourmet assortment alongside its broader premium grocery portfolio.

Offline gourmet retail is evolving in parallel. Nature’s Basket has expanded its Artisan Pantry luxury-grocery format, focused on categories such as artisanal breads, gourmet cheeses, specialty condiments and premium imports, while simultaneously strengthening digital delivery and loyalty. The company’s Elysium membership programme crossed 5,000 members within six months, indicating that premium grocery retailers are increasingly combining curated physical retail with recurring digital engagement rather than treating gourmet as a store-only proposition.

Taken together, these developments suggest that gourmet food is moving from being a sub-set within general grocery to a more deliberately managed retail vertical. For brands, this creates more defined routes to market; for retailers and platforms, it provides a higher-value assortment capable of increasing basket size, improving customer retention and differentiating the overall grocery proposition.

As participation increases, however, the requirements for differentiation are also rising. Descriptors such as artisanal, small-batch and locally sourced are becoming increasingly common, making product-level attributes – including sourcing, ingredient quality, distinctive formats and consistency – more important in sustaining premium positioning. For gifting-led brands, the concentration of demand around the festive period also places greater emphasis on inventory planning, packaging capacity and execution during a relatively short selling window.

What Festive Gifting Reveals

Festive gifting provides a concentrated view of the broader changes taking place across India’s gourmet-food market. The widening range of products entering the gifting basket, growing investment in specialised retail formats, dedicated gourmet propositions across digital platforms, and greater emphasis on sourcing and product differentiation collectively point to a market that is becoming broader and more organised.

These developments should not be viewed independently.

Festive demand creates a high-value occasion for brands and retailers to introduce differentiated products and build premium assortments, while the expansion of gourmet retail and distribution is making these products more accessible across the year. Together, they are increasing both the range of gourmet products available to consumers and the number of channels through which they can be discovered and purchased.

For India’s food and grocery industry, festive gifting and the wider expansion of gourmet retail are therefore two manifestations of the same underlying shift: a growing market for differentiated, higher-value food products across categories, price points and consumption occasions. The festive season remains one of its most visible expressions, but the increasing investment around brands, retail formats and distribution indicates an opportunity that extends beyond the gifting calendar.

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The second store comes as FreshTerra builds on the initial response to its flagship store, where private-label products have already contributed over 55% of sales. The early traction is providing the company with insights into consumer preferences, product categories and the role of experience in food retail, as it works towards establishing a 12–15-store presence across Delhi NCR by FY28, before expanding into other key urban markets.

Founded by Arvind Mediratta along with co-founder Ambuj Narayan, Elixiir Foods is building FreshTerra around a food-first approach to organised retail, with a focus on freshness, wholesomeness, transparency and quality.

The brand has already built a community of 5,000+ loyal customers with a very high repeat purchase rate, reflecting the quality of its products and customer experience. Its private-label range has been particularly well received, with ghee, cold-pressed oils, Khapli atta, exotic dry fruits and nuts, and snacks emerging as bestsellers and consistently flying off the shelves. FreshTerra also reports an average order value that is nearly twice that of app-only grocery players, underscoring stronger customer basket sizes and engagement.

The company is also building its retail network through a cluster-led model, with stores supported by a farm-to-store sourcing setup and technology-enabled supply chain. Its delivery app extends the store experience to customers’ homes, enabling products to be freshly made, carefully packed and delivered from the same store, while FreshTerra’s proposition remains centred on food, quality and transparency.

Arvind Mediratta, Founder, Elixiir Foods, said, “The response to our first store has given us valuable insight into what consumers are looking for from their food-shopping experience. We are seeing that customers are willing to engage more deeply with food when freshness, quality and transparency are made visible. Our immersive theatre room experiences, guilt-free private label snacks, and the meat & poultry section have emerged as our biggest sellers and are leading repeat footfalls. Our average order value on the app is also 60–70% higher than that of other app-only players, reflecting the depth and breadth of our food-first offering. With our second store at Elan Epic, we are taking the learnings from our first location and building on them as we expand across Delhi NCR. Our ambition is to create a food-first retail platform that brings fresh produce, protein, dairy, staples and everyday food essentials together, while delivering five-star quality at WOW prices.”

Ambuj Narayan, Co-founder, Elixiir Foods, said, “As we expand FreshTerra, we remain true to the fundamentals of freshness, quality and trust, while building the business one store at a time with a clear focus on strong unit economics. Each store is designed to bring together a food-first retail experience with the convenience of technology and our omnichannel capabilities, allowing customers to discover products in-store and access the same range from home. At the heart of it all, however, is the food itself and the quality of the experience we create around it.”

With the opening of its second store, FreshTerra will continue its rollout across Delhi NCR, with plans to establish 12–15 stores by FY28. The company will focus on building a strong regional presence before taking its food-first retail model to other key urban markets.

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The new brands complement Reach 3Roads’ diverse tenant mix. It adds further depth to its growing portfolio of retail, wellness, dining, entertainment and everyday conveniences. Their presence will strengthen the destination’s appeal as a place where visitors can shop, dine, unwind and connect. At its core, SQR brings a contemporary approach to menswear with refined wardrobe essentials and versatile everyday apparel.

Meanwhile, Café By Soul expands the destination’s dining mix with a setting designed for casual meet-ups, conversations and leisure. Its addition brings another social and dining option to Reach 3Roads, complementing the destination’s existing F&B offering.

Ishwin Singh Hora, Director, Reach Group, said, “Our vision at Reach 3Roads is to create a contemporary lifestyle destination that brings together relevant retail, dining and leisure experiences for the evolving needs of today’s consumers. As we continue to strengthen our retail and F&B mix, we remain focused on partnering with brands that bring distinct propositions and complement the character of the destination. The addition of SQR and Café By Soul is a natural extension of this approach, with SQR adding a contemporary menswear offering and Café By Soul enriching our café and dining mix. Both brands bring new experiences for our visitors while benefiting from the opportunity to engage with Reach 3Roads’ consumer base in Gurugram. We believe these additions will further strengthen the destination’s brand mix while supporting the brands in building greater visibility and connecting with their target audiences.”

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Available in Magic Masala and Pudina, Avvatar Popped Chips are non-fried and offer 10 g of protein per 30 g pack, priced at Rs 60, with no added sugar, no palm oil and no preservatives. The products are available on the Avvatar website, Quick-Commerce, Vending Machines and General Trade and Modern Trade.

Akshali Shah, Executive Director, Parag Milk Foods Ltd., said, “This launch marks an important step in Parag Milk Foods’ evolution from a dairy-led company to a broader nutrition-led food business. We see a significant opportunity to take our expertise in dairy and protein and build it into categories that are increasingly relevant to the way consumers eat today. With Avvatar, we are extending protein beyond traditional nutrition formats and into everyday consumption occasions, including snacking. Our ambition is to build a holistic protein ecosystem that brings together nutrition, convenience and accessibility across formats and lifestyles. Entering snacking is therefore not simply an extension of our portfolio; it is a strategic step towards creating a larger, more contemporary food and nutrition business with protein at its core.”

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Lindt’s signature items include the LINDOR ‘Pick & Mix’ experience, inviting visitors to curate their own personalised chocolate selection from over 25 varieties of LINDOR flavours, some of which are exclusive to this boutique. Apart from that, the store will also carry Lindt’s signature chocolate tablet brands – EXCELLENCE; that offers a suite of dark and high cocoa intensity flavours from 70% up to 90% and EXTRA CREAMY, a range of velvety smooth milk chocolates. 

“World St. is envisioned as the social and cultural heart of Worldmark, a vibrant, walkable destination that brings together some of the world’s most loved brands and experiences. Our focus has been on curating a dynamic mix that resonates with professionals, travellers, and the city’s evolving lifestyle aspirations. We are proud to have welcomed multiple India-first outlets at World St., and with Lindt & Sprüngli opening its first boutique retail store in India here, we further strengthen this proposition, making World St. a go-to destination for distinctive dining and lifestyle experiences in Delhi,” shared SK Sayal, MD & CEO, Bharti Real Estate.

Spanning around half a kilometre across 4, 5 and 6 Worldmark, and covering approximately 2,60,000 sq. ft. of gross leasable area, World St. is a vibrant pedestrian-friendly promenade lined with global cuisine, alfresco dining, green courtyards, art installations, and street furniture.

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Each recipe has been developed and tested with Ochre’s community of professional mixologists, promising balanced flavours and easy preparation at home. The mixers are available in 200ml glass bottles and travel-friendly pouches, with each bottle yielding four cocktails (Rs 347). The range is now available for purchase on the Ochre Club official website (www.ochreclub.com), e-commerce platforms, and through Ochre’s existing offline distribution network.

John Royerr, Founder of Ochre Spirits, said, “We are thrilled to open the doors of Ochre Club, our foray into cocktail mixers. Launching with The Classics felt right; the drinks people already love, made the Ochre way. But this is more than a launch for us. Ochre was built to be India’s craft house of beverages, one house for every great drink an evening can ask for, and today that house reaches the consumer’s doorstep for the very first time. The journey has just begun.”

By FY28, Ochre Spirits plans to have Ochre Club available in 300 towns and over 3,000 retail, modern trade, and off-trade outlets, with digital and quick commerce channels projected to contribute more than a third of Ochre Club’s overall revenue. The company expects the mixers and adjacent beverage portfolio to add over Rs 37 crore to its business, supplementing the growth target it has set for its spirits division.

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Investors include Ashok Chokalingam, COO of Amrut Distilleries; Robert Sellares, from the founding family of Don Q Rum; Ishank Gupta, former AB InBev Director and Founder of Humyn Labs; the founders of Malt Society Arabia; and HomeLane founders Srikanth Iyer and Tanuj Choudhry.

The capital will be deployed towards distribution expansion, brand-building initiatives, and strengthening the company’s sales and operations capabilities. A key focus will be expanding into Mumbai and broader Maharashtra. Having started in Pune only in January 2026 and with Mumbai just getting started, Marmalade is already on track to reach Rs 5 crore in annualised revenue run rate in September 2026. The company is targeting Rs 15 crore ARR by December 2026, representing 3x growth in under four months across just two cities.

Founded by Udit Mediratta and Surojit Bhattacharya, Marmalade is building flavour-forward, easy-drinking spirits for the new generation of legal-drinking-age Indian consumers. Its first brand, Brightside Craft Whiskey, was launched in Pune in January 2026.

Commenting on the fundraising, Udit Mediratta and Surojit Bhattacharya, Co-founders of Marmalade, said, “Gen Z is expected to account for nearly 40% of India’s drinking population by 2030. Yet, much of the category still speaks to an earlier generation, with products and brands that have not kept pace with changing tastes. We created Marmalade to close this gap, with Brightside as our first expression of what a new-gen Indian spirits brand can be. This funding will help us take that vision to more consumers and build some of India’s most loved drink brands.”

Commenting on the investment, Sujeet Mitra & Ganesh Iyer, founding Partners at H5 Investments and Malt Society of Arabia, said, “The most compelling consumer brands bring together a strong team, a product that solves a real problem and a brand that people remember. Marmalade has that combination. Brightside makes whiskey more approachable for a new generation, while its distinctive brand and thoughtful packaging allow it to break through a crowded market. Udit and Surojit have the experience and ambition to build enduring alco-bev brands, and we are excited to support their journey.”

Brightside Craft Whiskey was developed in partnership with Amrut Distilleries and renowned Master Blender Ashok Chokalingam. The whiskey combines fine malts and grain spirits with a distinctive blend of botanicals.

Its bottle features a built-in meter that tracks pours and shows how much whiskey has been consumed and how much remains. The bottle also features an interactive peel-to-reveal label, which the company describes as a world-first innovation in the alcoholic-beverage category.

Positioned in the mass premium whiskey segment at Rs 1,750 for a 750ml bottle in Maharashtra, Brightside aims to occupy a whitespace in the market between Rs 1,500-Rs 2,200, where there are limited good offerings.

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The newly launched store offers consumers access to a wide assortment of over 2,000+ thoughtfully curated products across everyday grocery and wellness categories.

Commenting on the launch, Gaurav Manchanda, Founder & Director, Nimida Group, said, “The launch of these two new stores marks another important step in our journey of building a stronger and more accessible retail network for conscious consumers. While digital and quick commerce have transformed how people shop, we believe physical stores continue to play an important role in grocery, particularly when consumers are seeking trust, discovery and the confidence to make better choices. Every store allows us to bring our philosophy of responsible retail closer to more households, while also creating a more meaningful consumer experience. As we work towards doubling our store network by 2027, our focus will remain on building a network that makes worry-free, quality-led choices accessible to more consumers across markets.” 

The new stores house a wide range of categories including organic fruits and vegetables, clean-label staples, cold-pressed oils, bilona ghee, toxin-free personal care, baby care essentials, healthy snacking options, vegan products, natural beverages, wellness supplements, and plant-based nutrition.

Consumers will also have access to leading conscious brands such as WellBe Foods, OSH Homecare, Vanam Milk, Two Brothers Organic Farms, Conscious Foods, Urban Platter, Mezame, Heapwell, Gladful, Radico, Juicy Chemistry and Flying Kombucha, among others. 

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The company is introducing nut powder as a food format that can become “part of the plate,” extending the use of nuts beyond traditional spreads and standalone nutrition products. Its range includes peanut, almond, cashew, pistachio and sesame powders, with applications across smoothies, oats, yoghurt, baking, snacks and other food preparations. The products are also intended for foodservice applications, giving the category relevance across household consumption and commercial food preparation.

While nuts are already established in Indian diets, powdered nut formats remain relatively less developed as a mainstream food category. Botenz will therefore focus on developing familiarity with the format across everyday food and foodservice applications, alongside building its distribution and market presence.

As part of the expansion, the brand plans to scale up production to meet growing demand, while building a distribution network that reaches approximately 1,200–1,500 outlets across India over the next five years through regional distributor partnerships, alongside its digital and foodservice channels. This India rollout is also part of a broader chapter in Botenz’s global growth story, as the company builds its footprint across new markets worldwide.

Commenting on the company’s plans, Prashanth Nagaraj, Co-Founder & Managing Director, said, “Indian consumers have long valued nuts as part of their everyday diets, while growing awareness around cleaner labels, natural nutrition and convenience is shaping how people make food choices. We see an opportunity to take this familiarity with nuts and translate it into a more versatile, accessible format that fits naturally into modern eating habits. This belief led me to co-create Botenz in India, with the ambition of building a strong category around nut powders and making India a meaningful part of Botenz’s global growth over the next five years.”

Commenting on the company’s international journey and its plans for the Indian market, Elad Lavi, Co-Founder & Global CEO, said, “India is strategically important for Botenz not only because of the scale of the market, but also because it offers an opportunity to build a strong local foundation for our international growth. As we enter the market, our priority is to establish the right partnerships across retail, distribution and foodservice, while developing a deeper understanding of local consumer and business needs. We believe the experience we build in India can help shape our approach to other markets and create a strong foundation for Botenz’s next phase of international expansion.”

Beyond India, the company also plans to expand its export business across international markets, with a five-year target of reaching approximately Rs 40-50 million in export revenue across markets including the UAE, Europe and the USA. Its five-year ambition is centred on building a strong India business alongside an expanding international footprint.

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