Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL), once the heartbeat of India’s FMCG growth story, is losing steam in the very categories that once powered its dominance — food, beverages and nutrition. Even as the Sensex nearly doubled over the last five years, HUL has delivered barely 10% returns, weighed down by sluggish performance in its Foods & Refreshment division and the fading pull of legacy brands such as Horlicks, Boost, Bru and Kissan.
India’s food market, meanwhile, has moved on — toward protein mixes, cold brews, gourmet snacking, and regional-first brands that are winning over younger households.
Foods & Refreshment: Stuck in Neutral
In FY25, HUL’s Foods & Refreshment segment — home to its most iconic food brands — posted flat growth. The slowdown spans almost every aisle of the pantry:
Horlicks and Boost, acquired through HUL’s high-profile GSK Consumer buyout, saw mid-single-digit volume declines.
Bru and Lipton faced price cuts due to softer tea and coffee cycles, with coffee volumes dropping sharply in double digits.
Kwality Wall’s, a strong performer in earlier years, battled weather disruptions and uneven demand.
Nutrition — once expected to be the next billion-dollar growth engine — no longer commands automatic loyalty. Parents are experimenting with protein supplements, millet mixes and newer “clean label” nutrition formats, causing Horlicks to lose the cultural stronghold it held for generations.
Why India’s Palate Is Shifting
Analysts say the food slowdown is not merely a pricing problem. It reflects a deeper rewrite of Indian consumption behaviour.
Consumers who once filled their kitchen shelves with Kissan, Lipton and Horlicks are increasingly gravitating to modern alternatives:
Youth are replacing malt-based drinks with whey blends, ready-to-drink protein, functional beverages and energy mixes.
Coffee drinkers are moving toward artisanal roasters, cold brews and instant speciality brands that offer sharper flavour profiles.
Tea buyers are favouring regional, organic and wellness-based blends from emerging brands with hyper-local positioning.
Ice cream consumption is shifting toward artisanal formats, keto-friendly cups, and premium gelato bars sold via quick-commerce.
This is where challenger brands — from Blue Tokai to Sleepy Owl, Slurrp Farm, Country Delight, Epigamia and dozens of regional labels — are nibbling at HUL’s share. Their agility, modern branding and digital-native positioning are particularly effective in high-growth metros and mini-metros.
“Premiumisation Fatigue” Hits HUL’s Food Portfolio
For a decade, HUL rode a premiumisation wave. Today, that wave has flattened.
In staples like tea, coffee and spreads — categories that once promised smoother value uptrading — buyers are instead seeking value-for-money or specialized premium, but not the mid-premium mass brands HUL dominates.
Analysts say consumers are “trading away”, not trading up. Horlicks, once synonymous with nutrition, now competes with new-age health-first products that better match urban wellness trends.
Home Care Shines — But Can’t Carry the Load
Even as the food and personal care engines lose heat, HUL’s Home Care division — powered by Surf Excel, Rin and Vim — remained the only segment to grow meaningfully, posting a 5% revenue rise in FY25 and strong double-digit volume expansion after price cuts.
But detergents and dishwashers cannot compensate for the stagnation in Foods & Refreshment, a segment critical to the company’s long-term India strategy.
Can HUL Reclaim Its Food Mojo?
Under CEO Priya Nair, HUL is rebuilding its food strategy through:
Sharper segmentation in nutrition and beverages
Modernizing legacy brands like Horlicks and Kissan
Greater push in quick commerce
Affordability-led packs via the 5% GST shift
Early signs of recovery have appeared, but analysts remain cautious. The company is positioned to grow steadily — just not at the breakneck pace its valuation once implied.
The Bigger Question for India’s Food Landscape
HUL’s challenges spotlight a broader shift: India no longer swears by the brands it grew up with. Horlicks may still sit in millions of homes, but it is no longer the uncontested champion. Bru and Lipton are present in every kirana store, but they do not dominate urban conversations. Kwality Wall’s is iconic, but premium and artisanal ice creams are creating new loyalties.
The FMCG giant is far from losing relevance — but the food and beverage market it once ruled with ease has become crowded, demanding and uncomfortably dynamic.
HUL is still India’s largest consumer company. But in the kitchens, cafés, cloud kitchens and food baskets of modern India, the spoons are stirring in new directions.