The food sector in 2025 was marked by a sophisticated diversification into alternative proteins, a massive expansion in dairy processing, and a rigorous enforcement of food safety standards.
The Dairy Sector
The dairy landscape witnessed intense competition and capacity expansion, underpinned by the national launch of White Revolution 2.0 on September 19, 2025. This central initiative aims to increase milk procurement by dairy cooperatives by 50% over the next five years.
Heritage Foods: The company, with deep roots in AP, announced a ₹204 crore investment in September 2025 to set up a new ice cream manufacturing facility in Shamirpet, Telangana. This facility, expected to be commissioned by November 2025, reflects the rising demand for value-added dairy products.
Amul’s Entry: The cooperative giant Amul (GCMMF) aggressively expanded in Andhra Pradesh, inaugurating its new plant in Chittoor in August 2025.The new plant is designed to produce UHT milk and yogurt, challenging the dominance of private players and promising better procurement prices for local farmers.
Lab-Grown Meat
Hyderabad-based startup Neat Meatt, incubated at BIRAC’s Bio-NEST, exemplified the region’s emerging biotech frontier. In 2025, the company progressed from concept validation to bioprocess scale-up engineering for cultivated chicken and goat meat. Supported by the Department of Biotechnology’s BioE3 policy (launched Aug 2024), Neat Meatt partnered with the CMFRI (Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute) to develop lab-grown fish meat, isolating specific cells from kingfish and pomfret. This collaboration aims to position India alongside Singapore and Israel in the cultivated seafood market.
Global Food Events
The World Food Prize 2025 Laureate, Dr. Mariangela Hungria, was announced on May 13, 2025. She was honored for her pioneering work in soil microbiology and biological nitrogen fixation in Brazil, a theme that resonates deeply with Andhra Pradesh’s natural farming initiatives. In October, the FAO World Food Day (Oct 16) celebrated the organization’s 80th anniversary with the theme “Hand in Hand for Better Foods and a Better Future,” emphasizing the need for global collaboration in building resilient agrifood systems.
DAIRY & FOOD PROCESSING
September 2025
🔹 Telangana
- September 2025: Heritage Foods announced ₹204 crore investment for ice cream manufacturing facility in Shamirpet (commissioned November 2025)
October 2025
🔹 Andhra Pradesh
- October 2025: AP attracted ~₹12,000 crore food-processing investments including:
- Reliance’s ₹1,700 crore soft-drink plant
- Mother Dairy’s ₹430 crore fruit-juice plant (Anakapalli)
- Ace International’s ₹750 crore dairy facility
- Multiple FPO and dairy projects
December 2025
🔹 Telangana
- December 2025: Godrej Agrovet (Creamline Dairy) signed MoU for ₹150 crore investment in 40-acre dairy-processing unit.
– Raghunath
