Nestlé India CMD sees mega cities as pressure points

Nestlé India on Tuesday joined other FMCG majors in declaring that food inflation was hitting urban areas the worst while the demand was recovering in rural swathes, as it reported a one per cent year-on-year dip in its consolidated net profit for the second quarter of financial year 2024-25.

- AKSHARA SRIVASTAVA

"Pressure points" for the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector are now emerging from mega cities and metros, Nestlé India chairman and managing director Suresh Narayanan said on Tuesday.

"The market is facing muted demand as growth in the F&B (food and beverages) sector, which used to be in double digit a couple of quarters ago, is now down to 1.5-2 per cent. While the tier I and below towns and rural areas seem to be reasonably stable, the pressure points are coming from mega cities and metros...It is almost like we are operating in two Indias," Narayanan told reporters.

Parle, Dabur and Tata Consumer have already said that stress in cities dragged the overall growth down in the September quarter.