FMCG companies, such as Britannia, Hindustan Unilever, ITC, Tata Soulfull, and Nestle, are investing heavily in value-added millet products, following the global trend towards these “Nutri-cereals” and the support of domestic policies.
As the United Nations General Assembly marks 2023 as the International Year of Millets, these domestic companies are using this opportunity to create new millet-based food products for children and infants, as well as snacks such as ragi chips and cookies for both sweet and savoury options.
The FMCG top guns are promoting the use of millets like jowar, bajra, and ragi by introducing a range of products including muesli, granola, upma, poha, noodles, and dosa mixes both domestically and for export markets.
Britannia has recently introduced ragi cookies and five-grain digestive biscuits under its NutriChoice brand. Meanwhile, Nestle India has a ragi-based version of its baby food brand, Ceregrow.
ITC will partner with 20 farmer-producer organizations to promote the supply of nutri-cereals through its Meta Market for Advanced Agricultural Services (MAARS) app. This will provide farmers with comprehensive solutions for the millets value chain.
Hindustan Unilever is rumoured to be launching a range of millet-based products under the GlaxoSmithKline brand.
True Elements, a company primarily focused on millet-based ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook breakfast and snack products were recently acquired by Marico. The company has a product range that is 65% based on millet and offers a variety of products such as muesli, granola, upma, poha, dosa mix, and khichri.
True Elements sources ragi and jowar through contract farming in Maharashtra and Karnataka, while ITC obtains nutri-cereals like sorghum, pearl millet, and ragi from farmers in Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.
In 2018, millets were rebranded as “nutri-cereals” and the government designated the year as the National Year of Millets intending to increase production and consumption.
Millets are primarily grown during the kharif season in rainfed areas as they require less water and fewer agricultural inputs compared to rice and wheat. The main millet-producing states are Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha.
