Barry Callebaut looks to India for growth

Chocolate and cocoa products manufacturer Barry Callebaut has opened its new chocolate academy in India as it looks to capitalise on growth opportunities in the country.

The updated relocated Callebaut Chocolate Academy centre and sales office in Mumbai will offer chefs, culinary professionals and artisans across India the chance to train and experiment with a diverse selection of global gourmet chocolate products. This will include workshops, courses and demonstrations.

“We want to provide locals and visitors with the best chocolate making experience we can and we look forward to serving them even better in this state-of-the-art chocolate academy centre and sales office,” said Dhruv Bhatia, Barry Callebaut’s managing director for India.

“Barry Callebaut’s opening of our chocolate factory in Pune last year and now with the upgrading of the Callebaut Chocolate Academy centre in Mumbai, will enable us to be in a better position to capitalise on growth opportunities in India.”

According to market research firm Euromonitor, India is one the fastest growing confectionery markets globally (CAGR of 12% over 2015-2020). The average unit price in India grew by 8% in 2015 and premiumisation is set to fuel chocolate sales further in India.

Mikael Neglen, president of chocolate in Asia Pacific at Barry Callebaut, noted, “With significantly greater exposure to international brands and product premiumisation, we believe there will be increasing demand for our gourmet products in India and across Asia Pacific. The investment we’ve made into this new Callebaut Chocolate Academy centre reaffirms our commitment to the professional chocolatiers in this region.”

The Callebaut Chocolate Academy centre in Mumbai will be integrated into the company’s network of 18 other training centres worldwide. Around 38,000 professionals and artisans receive training at these chocolate academy centres every year.