FICCI FLO, under the leadership of the 43rd National President, Ms. Puja Garg, organized an insightful session, “Building Export-Ready Food Brands,” discussing scaling women-led food and agro-based businesses for global markets. Dr. Sudhanshu, former Secretary of APEDA, provided a detailed overview of the technical export readiness pathway for women entrepreneurs.
He explained how India is a suitable place for producing different agriculture and horticulture goods due to its varied geo climatic zones. This is the reason that India exports a variety of goods overseas, such as rice, spices, marine products, tea, mangoes, and walnuts. Dr. Sudhanshu emphasized the importance of compliance with market-specific regulations, food safety norms, and the role of organizations like APEDA to start exporting food products globally.
He explained the process of obtaining necessary certifications like Import-Export Code (IEC) and Registration Cum Membership Certificate (RCMC) from APEDA and obtaining a FSSAI license to be export ready compliance. The discussion covered important aspects of export supply chain management, including packaging requirements, shelf life maintenance, cold chain management, and country-specific labeling requirements.
According to Dr. Sudhanshu packaging plays a crucial role in agricultural exports, needing to be both attractive and robust to maintain product quality during transportation and storage. The guest speaker covered payment terms and risk cover, highlighting Letter of Credit as a secure payment mode and recommending exporters to study various options available on the Ministry of Commerce website.
On the other hand, Mr. Desh Ratna, COO of Strand Commodities, shared practical insights from the global trade perspective, stressing the need for maintaining quality, consistency, competitive pricing, MOQ, margins, payment terms, scalability and understanding buyer requirements. He discussed the importance of sampling, building trust with international buyers, and calculating the risks involved in export transactions.
Overall, both speakers highlighted that moving from exporting commodities to building global food brands requires a focus on value addition, maintaining quality standards, and developing business models that cater to a global audience beyond the Indian diaspora. The discussion reinforced food businesses must think beyond the first shipment and build the systems
required for repeat orders, sustainable margins and long-term credibility in global markets.
Building Export Ready Food Brands webinar was hosted under the FLO Agriculture, Agro-Based & Food Processing Industry Initiative, led by Ar. Minal Jain with Co-Lead Radhika Gupta, in collaboration with the Exports Initiative, led by Swati Verma with Co-Lead Ritika Sarna