Post Pandemic Lockdown - Outlook For Packaged Food And Beverage Industry

New outlook and pivot for the packaged food & beverage industry: The two months plus Covid Pandemic Lockdown period is a Disruptor for many industries including the Indian packaged Food and Beverage Industry. Due to the Covid Lockdown, changes in the Indian Consumers habits and their behaviour will result in the changes in demand and needs of the Indian Consumers are going to change in comparison to the pre-Covid Lockdown period. The changes will dictate the new norm and outlook for the post-Covid Lockdown Decade for the Indian packaged Food and Beverage Industry in the following ways:

- P. Rajan Mathews*

I. NEW AGE GRAINS / NUTRICEREALS WILL GAIN MOMENTUM:

Millets comprising of Sorghum (Jowar), Pearl Millet (Bajra), Finger Millet (Ragi / Mandua), Minor Millets i.e. Foxtail Millet (Kangani / Kakun), Proso Millet (Cheena), Kodo Millet (Kodo), Barnyard Millet (Sawa / Sanwa / Jhangora), Little Millet (Kutki) and two Pseudo Millets (Black-wheat (Kuttu) and Ameranthus (Chaulai) have high nutritive value as “Nutri-Cereals” for production, consumption and trade instead of Coarse Cereals. Quinoa is another new age Grain which has an incredible nutrition base and are considered better sources of fibre, protein, vitamin B, iron, and high levels of protein in comparison to other grains available.

II. Fortified and Biofortified foods will be the new Norm: Food fortification is one of the simplest and most sustainable public health strategies to address the challenge of micronutrient deficiencies. Bio-fortification is a cost-efffective and sustainable sloutions that uses conventional plant breeding and agronimic practises to increase the density of micronutrients such as Vitamin A, Zinc and Iron in staple foods such as Wheat, Rice, Pearl Millet, Maize Beans and other food crops.

III. The Rise Of Value-added Culinary Ingredients For Home Cooking: The new Home Cooking will also demand the intermediate Gravy mixes such as Red Tomato Gravy mix for Dal/lentils, vegetable, rajma and Chickpeas / Chole and paneer curries, White Gravy mixes for Mughlai dishes and paneer dishes and the Non-Veg Gravy mixes for preparing the Non-Veg dishes.