Coca-Cola Bottlers to Invest Rs 25,760 Crore in Food Processing

Three Coca-Cola bottlers in India are committed to invest Rs 25,760 crore (USD 2.96 billion) to enhance the country's food processing infrastructure. The investment plan was announced today after the three firms signed memoranda of understanding (MoUs) with the Ministry of Food Processing Industries. 

The investment comes from SLMG Beverages, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages which is Coca Cola's wholly-owned subsidiary, and the Kandhari Group of Companies.

The investment will fund a combination of both greenfield and brownfield projects across nine states: Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan and Jammu.  

"Coca-Cola India and all the other bottlers, including SLMG Beverages, have signed an MoU worth Rs 25,760 crore with the food processing industry," said Paritosh Ladhani, joint managing director of SLMG Beverages.

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According to industry officials, SLMG Beverages, Coca-Cola's largest bottler in the country, will invest Rs 8,000 crore. The investment is expected to generate at least 30,000 direct jobs and around 300,000 indirect jobs, stimulating significant growth in allied industries and regional economies. 

The MoUs will facilitate the implementation of projects supported by the grant. Investment work on projects is expected to start this year and will be completed by 2030 and the government has pledged to provide the necessary regulatory support to expedite clearances. 

Coca-Cola is expanding its production, supply chain and employment base in India, which is now the company's fifth largest market worldwide. India has become a priority market for Coca-Cola.