India’s Nut Choices Only Scratch Surface But Puts it on World Map

While on a steady growth path, the Indian consumption of nuts and dry fruits got an unexpected boost due to the pandemic. As most businesses suffered and were trying to mitigate losses, a ‘health wave’ of sorts swept over the nation and led to a major increase in the alternative snacks category.

According to a report, consumption of dry fruits and nuts increased by up to 25% in 2023. This was the highest increase seen in the last five years, most of which is driven by non-brand products. In fact, branded players are said to account for less than 10% of the entire market share, presenting a significant opportunity for growth and expansion.

Dry fruits earlier were a gifting item that one received or sent during festivals, especially Diwali. The items were considered premium and were often kept refrigerated for long periods to be used sparingly. Today, over 73% of India’s urban population prefers to eat these healthier alternatives, especially foxnuts, with their daily tea or coffee.

This shift in trend and consumption is an indicator of the growing disposable income within Indian middle-class families. This increasing wealth allows Indian families to adopt healthier alternatives to traditionally unhealthy snacks, thus improving lifestyles. Another driving factor behind this change in eating habits has been the increase in lifestyle diseases like diabetes and heart issues.

India has traditionally been a snacking country. Tea or coffee is usually never consumed alone and simple climatic changes like rains trigger our instinct to begin snacking. This behavioural pattern has not been lost in the newer generations either. A recent study has shown that over 40% of millennials and 33% of Gen Z prefer to snack while socialising with friends, travelling or watching TV shows/movies.

The growing market has also led Indian consumers to look beyond common dry fruits like cashews and almonds to now begin experimenting with pecans and prunes. Even walnuts are being bought at a rate that has pushed India to one of the fastest-growing markets in the world for the nut.

Meanwhile, as Indians consume an increasing quantity of nuts and dry fruits, the demand is also for better quality products. Earlier, Afghanistan was a major exporter of dry fruits to India but has seen a decline in recent years as the quality reportedly does not match up to imports from the US. The Western superpower is now said to account for nearly 70-80% of the dry fruit imports of India with walnuts and almonds taking the cake.

Meanwhile, supply chain concerns like the Russia-Ukraine war and the disruptions in the Red Sea continue to plague the market even as more is being demanded from the Indian market.

Current predictions say that India’s market will most likely double to around $12 billion by 2030. With growth being recorded at over 18% year-on-year. While these are certainly extremely encouraging signs, we clearly have only touched the surface when it comes to how far the market can be. With a population of over 1.4 billion, only a small urban population is now starting to choose healthier alternatives.

All of this shows that the Indian nuts and dry fruits market potentially has a very bright future ahead. It is currently the fastest growing in the world and has been valued at over $6 billion at the retail level. Our gigantic population also ensures that even if a small percentage of our population begins to consume an item, we soon become world leaders. That is why, despite our nuts and dry fruits market being at a nascent stage, India ranks second in terms of consumption of dry fruits like peanuts, almonds and cashews. We also hold the third position for raisins, fourth for dried figs, sixth for walnuts and seventh for dates.

We are winning a race that we’ve barely started running.

By Deepak Agrawal, Co-founder and CBO, Proventus agrocom Limited (ProV Foods)