India’s protein boom runs into a whey crisis as prices surge 4X, shortages loom

Hyderabad: As protein shakes, bars and high-protein snacks move from gym bags to everyday Indian diets, the country’s protein boom is colliding with a global supply crunch.

Geopolitical friction, a massive international demand wave and shipping bottlenecks are driving up the price of raw whey—the key ingredient in protein powders, bars and high-protein foods—squeezing margins for brands and turning daily protein goals into a heavier financial lift for consumers.

A by-product of cheese-making, whey has seen unprecedented price inflation over the last two to three years. According to industry estimates, whey concentrate, which averaged around Rs 700 per kg in 2023-24, is now trading at Rs 2,700. The more premium whey isolate has soared to as high as Rs 3,600 per kg from Rs 800 in 2024.


This comes at a time when protein has begun entering everyday diets, and the country has seen a surge in companies selling not only whey protein powder, but everything from high-protein breakfast bars and smoothies to meal replacements, beverages and snacks.

Companies such as The Whole Truth, Yoga Bar and Muscleblaze have increased prices of protein powders by 10-25% in the past few months to offset surging input costs. For some brands, the price hike is as much as 40% compared with 2023-24.

“For protein powders, whey is more than 90% of our cost of goods. We’re raising prices, dropping marketing spends, cutting all extraneous costs and still absorbing a large part of the impact so the consumer doesn’t have to," The Whole Truth cofounder and CEO Shashank Mehta told ET.

A kilogram of whey powder that was earlier retailed for around Rs 2,000 is now priced up to Rs 3,500, while whey isolate costs around Rs 4,500.

A scoop of protein powder costs around Rs 100-120 compared with Rs 80 in 2024, and brands expect it to go further up to Rs 140-150 in the coming months.

Nearly 90% of whey used by Indian brands is imported, mostly from Europe. Industry executives attribute the surge in price to a combination of geopolitical disruptions, global demand spikes and structural supply constraints. GLP-1 drugs, which are experiencing increasing popularity for weight management, are also a major contributor to demand.

"While awareness around protein has been rising across the globe, demand saw a sudden surge recently because of GLP-1 drugs, and doctors recommending high-protein diets to those taking these drugs," said Chirag Barjatya, founder of fitness coaching programme PFC Club.

Tejas Kulkarni, founder of whey protein startup TSA Tekk, said the price hikes for protein products barely covered the surge in input costs for companies. “But you can’t burden consumers immediately in a market like India,” he told ET.

Brands say they are unable to fully pass on costs to Indian consumers because the category is nascent, growing and highly price sensitive. As a result, industry executives say, margins have collapsed as brands try to protect market share.

“The input prices have gone up, but we have taken a conscious call not to punish consumers for what we believe could be a temporary commodity cycle. Our margins have taken some hit, but operational efficiencies and scale have helped offset part of the impact," Yoga Bar cofounder Suhasini Sampath told ET.

And it is not just the price of whey. The ongoing geopolitical tensions linked to the Iran conflict and Red Sea disruptions have also increased logistics and packaging costs. This impacts even players that sell alternatives like plant, or yeast protein.

Nikunj Biyani, cofounder of SuperYou, said while they haven't seen much of an impact in terms of input costs, rupee’s depreciation has worsened the pressure for import-dependent companies. “About 10-15% of the increase is just from the rupee depreciation. Packaging costs have also gone up 25-30%,” he said.

Brands like The Whole Truth and Yoga Bar, which also deal with inputs like dry fruits and cocoa for their bars and other products, face a double whammy. According to Mehta of The Whole Truth, prices have gone up by 70% for pistachios and 25% for cocoa, and he had also earlier flagged disruption in the supply of dates due to the closure of the Dubai port.

Beyond pricing, companies are increasingly worried about availability amid the demand-supply mismatch.

“There is a high chance that supplies get constrained. We are already getting those signals. Demand from the US and China is very strong, and those markets get serviced first,” Mehta said.

Suppliers are now asking for advance payments, increasing working capital pressures, Yoga Bar's Sampath said. Most companies typically hold around six months to a year of inventory, and brands say if things don’t improve, shortages could emerge over the next six months.

India will continue to remain heavily dependent on imports for whey because of low domestic production of cheese, and therefore the by-product.

Sampath said India could eventually build domestic capacity as protein consumption rises, but that is a long-term view.

“Amul is putting up a plant, and companies like Avvatar are manufacturing locally. But unless local whey manufacturing scales up, whey could become unaffordable in the long run,” she said.

Looking beyond whey

With costs spiralling, several companies are now exploring alternatives such as plant and yeast protein. Yoga Bar, for instance, is increasing its focus on plant protein.

However, the taste and texture of plant protein are yet to see large-scale consumer acceptance, fitness enthusiasts and experts said.

Many brands are also looking at fermented yeast, which is what SuperYou's protein powder is made of. Another route could be blends to balance the rising cost problem of whey and the taste/texture problem of plant protein.

“Whey remains the gold standard. Consumers are currently hesitantly agreeing to a 10-15% price hike, but any other price surge or supply shock in the next six months, people will look at alternatives and blends could be the way forward," TSA Tekk’s Kulkarni said.