Hyderabad is staring at a summer without ice-cream.
“Out of the 2,000-odd outlets of Scoops Ice Cream, about 8 or 9 are functioning as they stock milk and other essentials, The market and the distribution network has been disrupted and it will take time to recover,” says director of one of Hyderabad’s iconic brand Sudhir Shah.
A majority of small players in the ice-cream market are likely to go out of business as the lockdown has ‘gutted’ the industry in its most important quarter.
“The maximum revenue for the ice-cream sector is in first quarter and this lockdown has badly affected manufacturers and many in the unorganised sector may close down due to the losses,” says Anuvarat Pabrai of the Indian Ice Cream Manufacturers’ Association.
The ice-cream shelves in supermarkets have been stripped bare. Even the plain vanilla flavour has disappeared from shop shelves. A few ice-cream parlours are still functioning relying on online orders and takeaways. “Last year, we were impacted by an extended rainy season. This year, the pandemic has taken away the season from us. We will take at least a year to recover,” says Yadish Chander of Cosmos brand.
According to industry sources, the first quarter with the summer season is the most important one for the ice-cream sector accounting for 40% of the revenues.
The lockdown has affected movement of goods as milk is considered an essential commodity while ice-cream isn’t. “The distribution network within the State will recover faster but inter-state network will take much longer and will be a challenge,” says Mr. Pabrai, founder of the iconic Pabrai’s brand, which he started in 1985 with a small ice-cream shop along with his wife in Kolkata.
Even after the lockdown is lifted, it will take a couple of months for the manufacture and distribution to get streamlined. “Most manufacturers have finished ice-cream stocks. However, due to logistic bottlenecks, distribution will be a massive problem post-lockdown. Lack of drivers, vehicles and inter-state barriers will be some of the issues that will need attention. We expect it would take up to two months to recover normalcy,” informs Mr. Pabrai.
The impact on the ice-cream industry already has had a cascading affect on dairy industry.
“The consumption of liquid milk has fallen by nearly 60-80% and most of the milk is being used for skimmed milk powder (SMP) manufacture. The SMP market will collapse post lockdown. Ironically this will benefit the ice cream industry as prices of SMP had doubled by March compared to last year,” says Mr. Pabrai.
