Food retailers eyeing India would have been surprised to hear the BJP political party, tipped to lead the country’s next government, publish a tough stance on foreign investment in its retail sector. Nestle CEO Paul Bulcke hinted the food giant could be looking at further disposals and Wal-Mart said more affordable organic groceries would be available in the US after a tie-up with the recently-revived Wild Oats brand.
“BJP is committed to protecting the interest of small and medium retailers, SMEs and those employed by them” India’s BJP political party, tipped as the party set to lead the country’s next government, said it would reverse the easing of regulations allowing foreign investment in its multi-brand retail sector.
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“We are looking at our product and brand portfolio and analysing it through a sharper, stricter lens” – Nestle CEO Paul Bulcke indicated the world’s largest food company is continuing to scrutinise the future of parts of its business.
“Maintaining our long-term growth in this priority market for the company requires a significant increase in production capacity of key brands,” Romeo Lacerda, CEO of Mondelez International’s Russian arm, explains why the snacks giant is looking to build a new plant.
“We know our customers are interested in purchasing organic products and, traditionally, those customers have had to pay more. We are changing that” – Jack Sinclair, executive vice president of grocery for Wal-Mart’s US operations, on the retail giant’s listing of a range of Wild Oats-brand organic lines.
“We see further growth opportunities, especially abroad” – Richard Oetker, CEO of German food giant Dr Oetker, indicates the company’s optimism over its prospects.
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