Beyond the plate: Unpacking global potential and hurdles of India's food industry for sustainability

India's Food Processing Industry (FPI) plays a critical role in bridging agricultural production and consumer demand, with immense potential to contribute to global competitiveness and sustainable development. This review explores the current status of India's FPI, highlighting its rapid growth, policy support, and contributions to employment, export, and value addition. It also investigates how the sector enhances economic sustainability through forward and backward linkages, technology adoption, and global trade integration. Despite its growth trajectory, the industry faces several challenges such as inadequate infrastructure, fragmented supply chains, regulatory hurdles, and sustainability concerns related to environmental impact and resource inefficiency. Drawing insights from government reports, academic literature, and industry sources, the paper further discusses strategic solutions including public-private partnerships, digital transformation, farmer-producer integration, and investment in cold chain logistics. The study concludes that while India’s FPI holds significant global potential, achieving true sustainability will require multi-stakeholder collaboration, capacity building, and holistic policy execution. This paper offers a comprehensive understanding for policymakers, researchers, and industry practitioners aiming to unlock the full value of India’s food processing ecosystem in alignment with global sustainability goals.