India’s food processing sector received a major boost on Thursday as Reliance Consumer Products Ltd (RCPL) and three Coca-Cola bottlers announced a combined investment exceeding Rs 65,000 crore, signaling strong corporate confidence in the industry’s growth potential. The commitments were unveiled on the opening day of the World Food India Summit, which is scheduled to run until September 28.Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, Chirag Paswan, said the summit is expected to witness MoUs surpassing Rs 1 lakh crore in total investments. “We anticipate signing agreements worth over Rs 1 lakh crore during this summit, reflecting the sector’s enormous potential,” he said, PTI reported.RCPL has pledged Rs 40,000 crore to establish integrated food manufacturing units across the country, including sites in Katol, Nagpur in Maharashtra and Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh. The initiative aims to develop India’s largest AI-enabled food parks, combining automation, robotics, and sustainable technologies. The investment is expected to support thousands of direct and indirect jobs while enhancing production capabilities nationwide.The three Coca-Cola bottlers – SLMG Beverages, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages, and Kandhari Group – will collectively invest Rs 25,760 crore to develop greenfield and brownfield projects in nine states, spanning Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Jammu. SLMG Beverages, Coca-Cola’s largest bottler in India, will contribute Rs 8,000 crore to the expansion, according to Paritosh Ladhani, joint managing director of SLMG Beverages.The Ministry has assured support for regulatory approvals to ensure smooth execution of the projects, which are targeted for completion by 2030. These investments are expected to create around 30,000 direct jobs and 3,00,000 indirect employment opportunities.RCPL, which emerged from Reliance Retail and is now a subsidiary of Reliance Industries, has grown rapidly over the past three years, generating revenues exceeding Rs 11,000 crore. At the August AGM, Reliance Industries director Isha Ambani said the company’s long-term objective is to become India’s largest FMCG player with a global presence.In addition to RCPL’s food and beverage plans, the company has acquired multiple consumer brands, including Tagz Foods, and launched house brands such as Campa, Independence, Alan’s, Enzo, and Ravalgaon, signaling its ambition to expand across diverse consumer categories.
