Biryani boom drives surge in basmati rice demand across India
₹7,822 crore, saw its institutional business grow 24% year-on-year. LT Foods exports rice to more than 60 markets, including the US, Europe and the Middle East. BSE-listed rice processor KRBL Ltd, which sells basmati rice under the India Gate brand, said demand for bulk packs of basmati rice outstripped demand for consumer packs last fiscal.
The company defines packs upwards of 30 kg as bulk. “The bulk pack business for us has been growing quite significantly; I would say it's growing faster than the consumer pack business," Ayush Gupta, domestic business head, KBRL said in an interview. “This is fuelled by the southern states, because that's where the majority biryani consumption happens.
Post-covid, we've been seeing a growth of almost 20-25% year-on-year on our bulk packs business." Before covid, the company’s bulk pack business was growing 10% annually. Last fiscal the company reported a turnover of ₹5,385 crore; the domestic business reported revenues of ₹3,936 crore. It draws half its domestic business from bulk packs.
Gupta said that restaurants and catering businesses are driving up demand for basmati rice. “During weddings we do see demand for our bulk packs. This is true for markets down south, especially Kerala and Tamil Nadu, where biryani is widely served," he added.
Biryani remained the most ordered dish on food delivery platform Swiggy for the eighth year in a row last year, according to the company. Swiggy sold two-and-a-half biryanis per second in 2023; 2.49 million users made a debut on Swiggy with a biryani order. In 2023, biryani was searched 40,30,827 times on the platform.
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