Mars sees India business more than doubling after Kellanova buy

Hyderabad: Mars expects its India business to more than double following its acquisition of Kellanova, its CFO Claus Aagaard told ET, as the global food and pet care major now looks to leverage its combined portfolio. Kellanova will not only help Mars strengthen its presence in salty snacks and breakfast cereals, but also expand its distribution reach in what Aagaard termed as one of its fastest growing markets. "India is clocking double-digit growth for Mars, and is going to be a significant fuel for growth over the next decade," he told ET at the launch of the company's new global capability centre in Hyderabad.

He added that Mars is seeing an acceleration in growth in India, with consumers buying more units as well as trading up. While consumer demand is showing signs of recovery across key markets, Aagaard said the improvement remains fragile, with a fresh wave of inflation driven by rising oil prices posing a risk to spending.

Mars completed its $36-billion acquisition of Kellanova in December 2025, bringing three billion-dollar snacking and cereal brands-Pringles, Cheez-It and Kellogg's-into Mars' portfolio, adding to its existing stable of six billion-dollar confectionery brands, including Snickers, M&M's, Twix, Dove, Skittles and Extra.


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In India, the expanded portfolio helps Mars tap into rising premiumisation, with the company betting on increasing household incomes and changing consumption patterns to drive growth rather than competing at the entry price points. Aagaard added that consumers increasingly trading up and shifting towards online and quick-commerce channels is driving growth for the company.

Kellanova's cereal business also gives Mars deeper access to stores and channels where its existing snacking portfolio has had a more limited presence. Aagaard said the company is also looking to build on the growing demand for healthier snacking options through Kellanova's breakfast portfolio, opening up opportunities to introduce more products catering to changing consumer preferences, including those with protein and vitamin benefits. In salty snacks, Mars sees Pringles as a key brand to scale in India.

"There are always some items catering to local tastes, and we want to continue to focus on that to improve the quality and the health score of the product where we can," Aagaard said.

Pet care continues to be a significant growth opportunity in India for the world's largest pet care company. In India too, Mars is the market leader with over 50% market share, with Aagaard still seeing significant headroom for growth. Seven in 10 pet parents in India are first-time owners, Aagaard says, pointing to the relatively early stage of category development. He expects an expanding pet population and rising household incomes to drive demand for packaged pet food.

The company, which sells Pedigree, Whiskas, Sheba and Royal Canin, estimates prepared pet food accounts for less than 10% of pet food consumption in India, highlighting the headroom for category expansion. Euromonitor projects India's pet care market to exceed ₹11,000 crore by 2031.

Pet ownership has continued to grow since the pandemic, with the company seeing adoption spread beyond metros into smaller cities and towns. Tier 2 and tier 3 markets are becoming increasingly significant as awareness of pet nutrition rises. Quick-commerce too, is emerging as an important channel for Mars to reach more pet parents.

The segment has also attracted new entrants including Godrej Consumer Products, Reliance Retail, Nestle and Wipro Consumer. However, Aagaard said Mars would not chase the lowest price points at the cost of product quality.