Economic Policy of India since 1991

    The Indian ice cream industry is one of the fastest-growing segments of the dairy and food processing sector. India has a low per capita consumption of ice cream of 400 ml whereas in the USA it is 22,000 ml and in China, it is 3000 ml.

    The per capita consumption of ice cream is low in India because it is a country filled with traditional sweets of more than 100 varieties. In developed countries, people have either pastries or ice-creams for dessert. In the era of Globalisation, the mindset of the people is fast changing. This is because multi-national companies have set up a number of ice-cream parlours, with a lot more varieties and flavours that attract the younger lot. Besides this, there are better delivery systems.

     The ice cream sector has great potential for growth in the country due to improvements in the cold chain infrastructure, increasing disposable income, and changing the lifestyle of the people. However, it is taxed higher with 18 percent GST while other dairy products in the same basket such as butter and cheese are taxed at 12 per cent.

     The ice cream industry has generated revenue of more than $1.5 billion in 2016-17. With the employment of 15 lakh people directly or indirectly, it is also considered one of the largest employers of the dairy and food processing industry.