Sector Report Biotechnology and Food Processing Industry (2009)

Presently, India is ranked among the top 12 biotech players in the world, and is the third biggest in Asia-Pacific in terms of the number of biotech companies. India has over 100 research organizations in the country focused on different areas of research in the biotechnology area.

The investments in this industry have been growing robustly over the past few years. Around 50 per cent of the total biotech market is shared among the 20 leading companies in the country. The export accounts for nearly 55 % . The report provides an overview and lists the 100 top players in India.

The Indian food processing industry contributes 9% to India’s GDP and grows by an average 4.1 % annually. Trends toward Lifestyle food, snacks etc. are growing with the increasing middle the class and urbanization.

Out of the country’s total agriculture and food produce, only 2 % is processed. The highest share of processed food is in the grains processing and dairy sector. Post-harvest losses are a major problem amounting to 10 – 20 %. It has been declared a priority to bring those losses down by various measures mentioned in this report.

Sustained by high agricultural output, international demand and a strong domestic market, the Indian food industry offers ample scope for investments in processing technologies, skills and equipment, packaging, refrigeration of frozen food and thermo processing.