While international business accounts for only 3% of the turnover for some like HUL due to their very large domestic operations, it brings more than 20% of the revenue for companies such as Dabur, Emami and Marico. Unilever India Exports Ltd, HUL’s wholly owned subsidiary for exports to other Unilever companies globally, posted an 8% increase in sales at Rs 1,258 crore in the last financial year ended March 31, according to HUL’s annual report. Its net profit rose 14% to Rs 91 crore.
HUL’s total sales, meanwhile, grew at a tepid pace of 2%, weighed by weak domestic demand.
The company attributed the export growth to products in skin care, lifestyle nutrition, hair care and personal wash, driven by brands like Dove, Horlicks, Vaseline, Pears, Bru, Sunsilk, Glow and Lovely, Pond’s, Lakme and Lifebuoy. It’s not just basmati rice, traditionally a top commodity for exports from India, which is in high demand, said Angshu Mallick, chief executive at AWL Agri Business, India’s largest packaged edible oil company. Mustard and sunflower oil, atta, besan (gram flour), soya nuggets and poha (flattened rice) all are seeing strong demand in foreign markets, he said.
“We are just scratching the surface. The proliferation of Indian restaurants and popularity of Indian cuisines in the West is driving the exports. And it’s not just the Indian diaspora but even the local people (in foreign markets) are buying these,” said Mallick, predicting that exports could rise 50-80% this fiscal year.
While demand is strong, a push from the government through export-focussed programmes like production-linked incentive schemes (PLI) for the food processing industry and millet-based products are also helping boost shipments, industry executives said. The government in December said it had selected 73 companies for benefits under the PLI scheme for marketing Indianbranded food products in global markets.
AWL said in its latest annual report that its branded export business grew threefold in the past three years to cross Rs 250 crore in FY25. Godrej Consumer Products said in an investor presentation that the operating margin of its international business expanded to 17% in FY25 from 10% two years earlier.
Marico told analysts recently that its export business is scaling up fast and it posted 14% growth in constant currency terms (excluding the impact of currency movements) in FY25, compared with overall growth of 12%. At Dabur, exports grew 17% against a 1.3% expansion in consolidated revenue. ITC Ltd said in its latest annual report that the company is seeing “green shoots” in exports of biscuits, noodles and snacks while its Aashirvaad Atta is already the market leader in several countries. “ITC is also exploring strategic opportunities in proximal markets as a potential vector of growth going forward,” it said.
While a bulk of ITC’s foreign exchange earnings from export is still driven by agri-commodities export revenue rose 7% to Rs 7,708 crore in FY25 — its FMCG export is set to become the next growth driver. The firm said its FMCG products are now sold in over 70 countries. Exports of other consumer goods from apparel, jewellery and consumer electronics to automobiles have also grown last fiscal year.
