Retial Food Market & ICT

Retail Food Market and ICT


From 2006 – 2010, modern private retail chains in India achieved 49 percent growth rate.

 Supermarket revolution in 3 waves;


  • In 1960 – 70’s – Government retail chains
  • In 1970 – 80’s – Cooperative retail chains
  • In 1990 – present – Private retail chains (Reardon & Minten, 2011).

 Demand drivers include;


  • Rising individual incomes and rapid urbanization,
  • Shift in individual dietary patterns from carbohydrates to protein and vitamin-rich diets,
  • Increased intake of fresh veggies , fruits, meats, sea food, milk & dairy products,
  • Preference for processed and semi-processed foods and
  • Demand for constant supply of fresh and processed foods at economical prices.

 Success due to unique characteristics;


  • Driven by domestic capital investment,
  • Early presence in small towns & cities and diversification in small format stores, and
  • Early presence in poor and lower-middle class food markets (Reardon & Minten, 2011).

Information & Communication Technology (ICT)



India has 970 million telephone subscribers; 572 million subscribers are based in urban areas and 399 million subscribers live in rural areas.

  A break up of the subscriber base by mode indicates 944 million wireless subscribers, 27 million wireline subscribers and 267 million Internet/ broadband subscribers, of which 181 million used narrow band and 86 million, broadband (TRAI, 2015).

  Prepaid subscribers form around 88.9 percent and 95.71 percent of the total subscriber base of the CDMA and GSM segments, respectively (TRAI, 2015).

  Recent ICT trends in food and beverage retail sector include;


  • Sales of food and groceries currently account for more than two-thirds of all retail sales and the value of these sales is expected to nearly double to $686 billion by 2020 (Bhattacharjee, 2014).

  • $5 billion or 5 percent of total FMCG sales will be online by 2020, on the basis of survey conducted among 1,600 online users spread across 8 cities covering eight FMCG categories such as skin care, hair care, oral care, home care, infant care, male grooming, beverages and food (Economic Times, 2015).

  • Online purchases made through mobile phones in India have grown by more than 100 percent over the past two years, with the ability to shop on the go at 47.7 percent.

  • The growing availability of apps that makes it easier to shop (45.3 percent) and convenience (38.1 percent) have emerged as the most compelling reasons for driving smart phone shopping (Indo-Asian News Service, 2015).

Works Cited  


  • Bhattacharjee, N. (2014, November 27). Online grocers come up trumps in India's e-commerce boom . Retrieved March 15, 2015, from Business News, Reuters India Edition: https://in.reuters.com/article/2014/11/26/india-internet-retail-idINKCN0JA27A20141126
  • Economic Times. (2015, February 12). Indians to soon buy more FMCG goods online: Google. Retrieved March 05, 2015, from Times of India: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/tech/tech-news/Indians-tosoon- buy-more-FMCG-goods-online-Google/articleshow/46201234.cms
  • Indo-Asian News Service. (2015, March 05). Online smartphone shoppers rise significantly in India. Retrieved March 05, 2015, from The Economic Times: https://businesstoday.intoday.in/story/smartphone-shoppers-rise-significantly-in-indiasurvey/ 1/216563.html
  • Reardon, T., & Minten, B. (2011, October). Surprised by Supermarkets: Diffusion of Modern Food Retailing in India . Retrieved May 15, 2014, from Centre for Alleviation of Povertythrough Sustainable Agriculture: https://www.uncapsa.org/LIBRARYJournal_detail.asp?VJournalKey=874
  • Reardon, T., & Minten, B. (2011, September 23). The Quiet Revolution in India's Food Supply Chains. Retrieved March 13, 2014, from International Food Policy Research Institute: www.ifpri.org/sites/default/files/publications/ifpridp01115.pdf
  • TRAI. (2015, May 08). Performance Indicators. Retrieved June 15, 2015, from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India: https://www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/PIRReport/Documents/Indicator_Reports%20-%20Dec- 14=08052015.pdf
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