The report said that the increase in fast food restaurants had spurred investments in chicken processing facilities, and this was driving improvements throughout the chain, as suppliers were working with foodservice to ensure sustainable supplies. There has also been a decline in the traditional wet markets, which had previously dominated the Indian poultry industry.
Pawan Kumar, an analyst at Rabobank’s Food and Agribusiness Research and Advisory team said: “Processing capacity may grow by 50% in just the next two years.”
“The industry has huge potential to grow, not only from domestic consumption but also from a trade perspective,”
“Chicken processors’ own retail shops are a good distribution channel for ensuring an outlet for meat products not absorbed by quick service restaurants and for encouraging consumers to shift from the wet market to the retail market,” Kumar said, although admitting that changing consumers’ consumption habits would be a slow process.
“However, the industry still needs to address the large share of wet markets, awareness of hygienic meat consumption, volatility in input and output prices, and increasing industry standards to an international level in order to participate in global trade,” he said.
However, changes at a policy level would be necessary to help the drive the transition to a more modern industry.
