Review on the Strategic Marketing of Leading Edible Oil Brands

REVIEW ON THE STRATEGIC MARKETING OF LEADING EDIBLE OIL BRANDS IN INDIA

1. INTRODUCTION - EDIBLE OIL INDUSTRY IN INDIA AND ITS NATURE

India has the world’s fourth largest edible oil economy. In 2009 India ranked as the world’s largest importer of edible oils, displacing China. Each year, India consumes over 10 million tonnes of edible oils. Edible oils have a high penetration of 90% in India. However, per capita consumption of edible oils is around 17 kg per year. The Indian edible oil market is the world’s fourth-largest after the USA, China and Brazil. A growing population, increasing rate of consumption and increasing per capita income are accelerating the demand for edible oil in India which is a good sign for the edible oil marketers in India.

There is extreme variation in consumption of edible oil in India both in quantity and in the nature of tastes and preferences. The country’s top high income group which consists of 10% of the population consumes 30 kg of edible oil per capita and the bottom low income group which consists of 30% of the overall population consumes less than 5 kg of edible oil per capita. India is vast country and inhabitants of several of its regions have developed specific preference for certain oils largely depending upon the oils available in the region. People from South India and West India prefer groundnut oil and also have a preference for coconut and sesame oil while those in the East India and North India use mustard/rapeseed oil and most of the people from Northern plain India are basically hard fat consumers and therefore, prefer Vanaspati a term used to denote a partially hydrogenated edible oil mixture. Vanaspati has an important role in the Indian edible oil economy. Its production is about 1.2 to 1.4 million tonnes annually. It has around 10% share of the edible of the market. Newer oils, which were not known before they have entered the kitchen, like those of cottonseed, sunflower, palm, oils or its liquid...