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Time of India
03-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Ready-to-cook foods surge 58% as Indian consumers prioritise convenience
Convenience is driving a surge in demand for ready-to-cook (RTC) meals, with more consumers choosing them than ever. Notably, RTC is the only packaged food segment that has doubled in volume over the past two years, attracting 18 million new households. While overall packaged foods saw modest growth of around 8%, the RTC segment posted a sharp 58% rise in 2024, according to Kantar Worldpanel data. From dosa batters to curry and cake mixes, consumers are increasingly opting for convenience, with their yearly purchases in this category having doubled. The shift is being fueled by urbanisation, more dual-income families, and fast-paced, changing lifestyles. Even as RTC has surged, its cousin category, Ready-to-eat (RTE) foods, is quickly losing relevance. RTE, which includes products that can be served straight from the pack, (such as, heat and eat pulaos, heat and eat curries, where the packaged food just needs to be warmed before eating) has lost half its volume in the past two years. This underscores a greater interest towards semi-cooked options that offer convenience without compromising the home-cooked experience, compared to fully cooked meal offerings, K Ramakrishnan, MD, South Asia, worldpanel division, Kantar told TOI. "Convenience is king, but the landscape is evolving. Consumers want speed, but they also crave freshness, health, and control over their meals. Brands that innovate along these lines stand poised to capture the next wave of growth,''he added. Live Events Capitalising on the trend, packaged food companies are expanding their offerings. Ashu Phakey, VP and business head - frozen and fresh foods at ITC , said "There has been substantial growth in the overall RTC category in the last few years, given the heightened demand. In addition, the recent rise of quick commerce has boosted accessibility. In the last few years, we have seen Indian consumers increasingly add RTC products in their grocery basket. There are several factors, which are driving category traction such as, increase in disposable income, convenience, accessibility and innovation in the product portfolio. Also, consumers prefer buying RTC as it also cues fresh food made at home''. Just a couple of years ago, the convenience category made up a mere 5% of the packaged foods segment. Today, that share has climbed to 8%, a steady but significant expansion that reflects their growing foothold. Rajiv Kumar, vice chairman, Dharampal Satyapal Group said: "We have been present in the gourmet, ready-to-cook gravies segment since late 2023. These products tend to be more popular, as they cater to the consumer's desire to feel involved in the cooking process.'' (With TOI inputs)
Time of India
02-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Dosa to cake: 'Ready to cook' meals heat up
NEW DELHI: Convenience rules and consumers are now reaching for ready-to-cook (RTC) meals more than ever before. Interestingly, RTC is the only category in packaged food that has doubled in volume over the last two years, with an additional 18 million households jumping on board. While packaged foods witnessed single-digit growth of nearly 8%, RTC category recorded 58% increase in 2024, according to the latest data from Kantar Worldpanel. From dosa batters to curry and cake mixes, shoppers are not only embracing ease, but have doubled their annual trips to purchase the category. Urbanisation, the rise of dual-income households and a busy evolving lifestyle is driving the trend. Even as RTC has surged, its cousin category, Ready-to-eat (RTE) foods, is quickly losing relevance. RTE, which includes products that can be served straight from the pack, (such as, heat and eat pulaos, heat and eat curries, where the packaged food just needs to be warmed before eating) has lost half its volume in the past two years. This underscores a greater interest towards semi-cooked options that offer convenience without compromising the home-cooked experience, compared to fully cooked meal offerings, K Ramakrishnan, MD, South Asia, worldpanel division, Kantar told TOI. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Tinnitus: what this grandson discovered will surprise you Hearing Magazine Undo "Convenience is king, but the landscape is evolving. Consumers want speed, but they also crave freshness, health, and control over their meals. Brands that innovate along these lines stand poised to capture the next wave of growth,''he added. Capitalising on the trend, packaged food companies are expanding their offerings. Ashu Phakey, VP and business head - frozen and fresh foods at ITC, said "There has been substantial growth in the overall RTC category in the last few years, given the heightened demand. In addition, the recent rise of quick commerce has boosted accessibility. In the last few years, we have seen Indian consumers increasingly add RTC products in their grocery basket. There are several factors, which are driving category traction such as, increase in disposable income, convenience, accessibility and innovation in the product portfolio. Also, consumers prefer buying RTC as it also cues fresh food made at home''. Just a couple of years ago, the convenience category made up a mere 5% of the packaged foods segment. Today, that share has climbed to 8%, a steady but significant expansion that reflects their growing foothold. Rajiv Kumar, vice chairman, Dharampal Satyapal Group said: "We have been present in the gourmet, ready-to-cook gravies segment since late 2023. These products tend to be more popular, as they cater to the consumer's desire to feel involved in the cooking process.'' Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Time of India
26-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Ayurveda's FMCG share remains low despite rising household use
Ayurveda, India's traditional healthcare system, accounts for just over 1% of the country's overall fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) market despite leading companies launching hundreds of natural and herbal personal care products over the past few years. While 92% of Indian households purchased ayurvedic products in 2024-25 compared to 89% five years ago, the contribution of the segment to the total FMCG volume increased to 1.1% from 0.8% during the period, according to a new exclusive report by Kantar, consumer insights arm of WPP. Moreover, in 2024-25, sales of ayurvedic products by volume fell 1% year-on-year, its first decline ever, a sharp reversal from the high double-digit growth in recent years on the back of the meteoric rise of Patanjali, an Ayurveda-based brand by yoga guru Baba Ramdev and the Covid-19 pandemic-driven affinity for natural products. "Ayurvedic brands grew during the pandemic as consumers shifted focus on immunity. But most brands talk about natural ingredients and not many companies talk about ayurveda. In FY24, Patanjali drove the category growth and in FY25, their performance dragged the numbers down. While there are temporary hiccups, there is interest in the sector," said K Ramakrishnan, managing director, South Asia, Worldpanel Division. "While not falling under the traditional FMCG bracket, products with ingredients such as ashwagandha, triphala, shilajit are selling D2C (direct-to-consumer) and even on Q-Comm (quick commerce) channels, reaching the urban upper sections of society." Ayurvedic brands are those which use traditional principles and methods of ayurveda, while natural brands just add a few natural or herbs to their products. Dabur 's sales increased 3% year-on-year in 2024-25, Himalaya and Cholayil expanded 7.5% and 1.3%, respectively. However, sales of both Patanjali and Vicco fell 4% year-on-year, impacting the overall segment growth, said Kantar. "We have been taking steps to drive penetration of our healthcare brands and expanding the need state beyond immunity by getting into new areas like combating stress, digestion etc., besides expanding the consumer cohorts and increasing usage occasions. These have helped our key Ayurvedic brands maintain their momentum and record market share gains," said Dabur CEO Mohit Malhotra. He added that the company continued to add new products and offer age-old ayurvedic remedies in modern formats to better connect with the millennial consumers. Almost every household in India purchases at least one ayurvedic brand. with Dabur having the highest penetration (81%), followed by Patanjali (58%), according to Kantar. However, Patanjali, due to its presence across many categories, dominates with a higher volume share.
Economic Times
10-06-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Indians' grocery baskets grow bigger in FY25: Kantar report
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Popular in Cons. Products 1. Indians' grocery baskets grow bigger in FY25: Kantar report Indians made 156 shopping trips to grocery stores in FY25, unchanged since a year ago but the basket size increased in both value and number of packs, said a new report by global research firm they made a purchase once in every 56 hours or close to once in every two days, the average pack sizes have risen by 16%, indicating a shift towards slightly larger quantities. Also, the number of packs rose 13% or by 26 pieces translating into nearly 226 FMCG packs purchased on average compared to 200 packs in FY24. "This indicates confidence returning to the shopper. In addition to this, premiumisation continues, with moderate consumption growth, which leads us to believe that we would see moderate to strong growth in urban FMCG building up in the next quarters," said K Ramakrishnan, managing director, South Asia, Worldpanel Division. "If the macroeconomic factors remain favourable, we should also see rural recovery as we head into the second half of the year."Demand for daily groceries, household and personal products worsened to a two-year low in the March quarter. FMCG volume sales growth in Jan-March quarter was 3.5%, slowest since March quarter 2023. A year ago, the market had grown 5.5% in the same the slowdown is not universal. For instance, of the 22 stock- market listed companies that Kantar tracked, their volume growth rate was just 3.6%. However, the rest of the branded market is doing better at 3.9% and unbranded products have seen a significantly higher growth of 6.1% in the year."Commentary for unlisted players, including Indian subsidiaries of multinational corporations, D2C players, and regional brands indicates a slightly better performance, underscoring broader demand resilience," said Saugata Gupta, managing director at Marico , at an earnings call. "Data of some of the D2C and unlisted players do not get captured and the growth could be a tad higher," he monitors branded and unorganised products, including unpackaged voluminous commodities and the numbers reflect slower sales across categories and markets in the last many quarters. For most listed companies, urban markets account for anywhere between 50% and 70% of their overall sales and over the past year, inflationary pressures, low wage growth and higher housing rentals weighed on urban demand for daily groceries and goods companies have posted mixed volume growth trends. Hindustan Unilever posted a 2% volume growth, while Godrej Consumer Products volume was slightly higher at 4%. Tata Consumer's volume rose about 6% and Marico saw a 7% volume growth during the March companies have flagged a softness in demand amid shrinking household budgets, most predicted a strong recovery in this fiscal year."I am reasonably optimistic about the recovery happening. It's not going to be a hockey stick. We have seen gradual recovery, and this trend is going to continue into the next year as well," Varun Berry, vice-chairman, Britannia , told Delhi consumers consumed 240 kg of fast-moving consumer goods per year, double the national average while with '39,325 spent on FMCG, West Delhi consumers outpaced the entire country by twice as much. An average urban Indian household makes 128 visits to the shop to buy FMCG (excludes atta).The average Mumbai household visits 135 times for the same annually. But the households in the slum belt purchase FMCG in 233 visits. This corridor comprises localities such as Dharavi, Bandra East, Khar East, Santacruz East, Dawri Nagar, Prabhat Colony, etc., and purchases just 541 grams in every visit, the least among all metro clusters across ₹227 spent on every kilo of FMCG on an average, Southwest Bengaluru comprising RR Nagar, Mysore Road, and Kengeri is the most premium FMCG cluster among top metros. Average city level spend-per-kg of FMCG itself is a strong ₹211 in Bengaluru, while no other city has a per-kg spend of more than ₹195.
Time of India
09-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Indians' grocery baskets grow bigger in FY25: Kantar report
Indians made 156 shopping trips to grocery stores in FY25, unchanged since a year ago but the basket size increased in both value and number of packs, said a new report by global research firm Kantar. While they made a purchase once in every 56 hours or close to once in every two days, the average pack sizes have risen by 16%, indicating a shift towards slightly larger quantities. Also, the number of packs rose 13% or by 26 pieces translating into nearly 226 FMCG packs purchased on average compared to 200 packs in FY24. "This indicates confidence returning to the shopper. In addition to this, premiumisation continues, with moderate consumption growth, which leads us to believe that we would see moderate to strong growth in urban FMCG building up in the next quarters," said K Ramakrishnan, managing director, South Asia, Worldpanel Division. "If the macroeconomic factors remain favourable, we should also see rural recovery as we head into the second half of the year." Demand for daily groceries, household and personal products worsened to a two-year low in the March quarter. FMCG volume sales growth in Jan-March quarter was 3.5%, slowest since March quarter 2023. A year ago, the market had grown 5.5% in the same quarter. But the slowdown is not universal. For instance, of the 22 stock- market listed companies that Kantar tracked, their volume growth rate was just 3.6%. However, the rest of the branded market is doing better at 3.9% and unbranded products have seen a significantly higher growth of 6.1% in the year. "Commentary for unlisted players, including Indian subsidiaries of multinational corporations, D2C players, and regional brands indicates a slightly better performance, underscoring broader demand resilience," said Saugata Gupta, managing director at Marico , at an earnings call. "Data of some of the D2C and unlisted players do not get captured and the growth could be a tad higher," he said. Kantar monitors branded and unorganised products, including unpackaged voluminous commodities and the numbers reflect slower sales across categories and markets in the last many quarters. For most listed companies, urban markets account for anywhere between 50% and 70% of their overall sales and over the past year, inflationary pressures, low wage growth and higher housing rentals weighed on urban demand for daily groceries and staples. Consumer goods companies have posted mixed volume growth trends. Hindustan Unilever posted a 2% volume growth, while Godrej Consumer Products volume was slightly higher at 4%. Tata Consumer's volume rose about 6% and Marico saw a 7% volume growth during the March quarter. While companies have flagged a softness in demand amid shrinking household budgets, most predicted a strong recovery in this fiscal year. "I am reasonably optimistic about the recovery happening. It's not going to be a hockey stick. We have seen gradual recovery, and this trend is going to continue into the next year as well," Varun Berry, vice-chairman, Britannia , told investors. INDIAN METROS South Delhi consumers consumed 240 kg of fast-moving consumer goods per year, double the national average while with '39,325 spent on FMCG, West Delhi consumers outpaced the entire country by twice as much. An average urban Indian household makes 128 visits to the shop to buy FMCG (excludes atta). The average Mumbai household visits 135 times for the same annually. But the households in the slum belt purchase FMCG in 233 visits. This corridor comprises localities such as Dharavi, Bandra East, Khar East, Santacruz East, Dawri Nagar, Prabhat Colony, etc., and purchases just 541 grams in every visit, the least among all metro clusters across India. With ₹227 spent on every kilo of FMCG on an average, Southwest Bengaluru comprising RR Nagar, Mysore Road, and Kengeri is the most premium FMCG cluster among top metros. Average city level spend-per-kg of FMCG itself is a strong ₹211 in Bengaluru, while no other city has a per-kg spend of more than ₹195.
