Nestlé invests big in R&D centre for India

By RJ Whitehead,15-Nov-2012

Nestlé CEO Paul Bulcke and 

Minister  Tariq Anwar 

mark the occasion

Understanding India’s consumer food trends is never an easy job, and with this in mind, Nestlé has opened its first research and development centre in the country. It will use the new facility to generate a better knowledge of the market, tastes and people.  

The centre, which will specialise in Asian noodles and Indian cooking, will focus on developing highly nutritious, affordable products in smaller serving sizes for lower income consumers.Researchers will gain expertise in the use of local ingredients and culinary traditions – work Nestlé expects to be a source of new ideas for products.The company, which directly employs 7,000 people in India and sells its products in around 4m outlets, has invested CHF50m (US$53m) in the centre, which is located in Manesar, close to Nestlé India’s headquarters in Gurgaon.“This R&D centre will help us gain insights into local consumers’ eating habits and taste preferences, as well as give us greater expertise in using and processing local ingredients to develop products for India and beyond,” said Paul Bulcke, Nestlé’s chief executive, at the facility’s inauguration.”

Tapping into a global network

Johannes Baensch, Nestlé’s global head of research and development, said that the company’s Indian R&D operation will work closely with our other such facilities across the world. It will also nurture local talent, with Nestlé set to recruit the majority of its employees from a regional pool of science and engineering graduates.“They will be part of our global workforce, sharing knowledge with their colleagues worldwide, and have opportunities to work with our R&D operations in other countries,” Baensch added.

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