Indore, Apr 3 — Prices of Indore’s popular namkeen have increased by ₹10 to ₹20 per kg as rising fuel and packaging costs, linked to the ongoing war in Iran, squeeze production in one of the country’s largest snack hubs.
The hike has been driven by a sharp rise in commercial cooking gas and plastic packaging materials, industry representatives said, adding that input costs have surged across the board.
“The conflict in West Asia has made commercial cooking gas and plastic packaging materials more expensive,” said Anurag Bothra, secretary of the Namkeen-Sweet Buyers and Sellers Welfare Association.
He said the price of packaging bags has risen from ₹190 per kg to ₹300 per kg, while the cost of reusable plastic containers has doubled. “Apart from this, the price of edible oil used to prepare the fried snacks has increased. Hence, the retail price of namkeen has increased by ₹10 to ₹20 per kg,” Bothra said.
Manufacturers dependent on commercial cooking gas have been the worst affected, with higher fuel costs impacting production.
Indore, which has around 1,500 small and large namkeen manufacturing units, generates significant domestic and export revenues, making the sector sensitive to fluctuations in input costs.
Industry representatives cautioned that prices could rise further if global crude oil and gas markets remain volatile.