As consumer demand shifts towards convenient, safe, and high-quality food products, Zappfresh has evolved from a fresh meat and seafood brand into an integrated food solutions company with capabilities spanning sourcing, processing, manufacturing, cold-chain logistics, aquaculture, and value-added foods. Backed by the expansion of Meevaa Foods and its growing presence in the frozen and ready-to-cook segments, the company is well positioned to capitalize on India’s rapidly evolving food market. In an exclusive interaction with Food & Beverages Processing Magazine, Prreya Aggarwal, Director, DSM Fresh Foods Ltd, shares insights into Zappfresh’s growth journey, its vertically integrated business model, commitment to food safety and innovation, and the company’s vision for building a future-ready, diversified food platform.
Zappfresh has evolved from a fresh meat and seafood brand into an integrated food solutions company. Could you briefly introduce the company and the key product categories driving growth today?
Over the past decade, Zappfresh has evolved from a direct-to-consumer fresh meat brand into a fully integrated food platform with capabilities spanning sourcing, processing, manufacturing, cold-chain logistics, aquaculture, and value-added foods. Today, we operate across multiple food categories through our brands Zappfresh and Meevaa Foods, serving consumers, retail partners, and institutional customers across India.
FY26 was a milestone year for us, with revenue crossing ₹220 crore and growing nearly 69% year-on-year, while EBITDA and PAT grew 91% and 59% respectively, reflecting the scalability and operational strength of our integrated business model.
Our growth today is driven by a diversified portfolio comprising fresh chicken, mutton, fish and seafood, alongside an expanding range of frozen, ready-to-cook, and ready-to-eat products. Seafood has emerged as one of our fastest-growing categories, supported by our aquaculture initiatives and farmer partnerships. At the same time, the launch of Meevaa Foods has enabled us to participate in the rapidly growing frozen and convenience foods segment, significantly expanding our addressable market.
In addition to our consumer business, our growing HoReCa and institutional partnerships provide a strong and diversified revenue base. Looking ahead, our vision is to build India’s most trusted integrated food platform, combining sourcing, manufacturing, technology, distribution, and food innovation to serve both domestic and global markets.
Fresh meat and seafood require stringent quality controls. How does Zappfresh’s vertically integrated supply chain help ensure hygiene, traceability, freshness, and consistency across its operations?
At Zappfresh, quality is driven by our vertically integrated farm-to-fork model. We source directly from farmers, process products in-house, maintain strict temperature-controlled operations, and deliver through a cold-chain network- ensuring traceability, consistency, and food safety at every stage.
Our strength lies in controlling the entire value chain, from sourcing and processing to packaging and delivery – supported by standardized processes, technology-led forecasting, and rigorous hygiene protocols. This not only ensures superior product quality but also builds long-term consumer trust.
With the addition of Meevaa Foods, we have further expanded our capabilities into export-grade frozen foods, manufactured in certified facilities and blast-frozen at -18°C to preserve taste, texture, and safety.
The organised fresh foods market is becoming increasingly competitive. What are the key differentiators that enable Zappfresh to stand out among established players in the fresh and frozen food segments?
The organised fresh and frozen foods market is expanding rapidly, but we believe long-term leadership will be defined by supply-chain control, operational discipline, and consumer trust.
At Zappfresh, our biggest differentiator is our vertically integrated model. Unlike traditional food businesses that rely heavily on intermediaries, we have built capabilities across sourcing, processing, cold-chain logistics, aquaculture, manufacturing, and distribution. This gives us greater control over quality, traceability, consistency, and margins.
A second differentiator is our diversified growth engine. We operate across fresh meat, seafood, frozen foods, ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat categories, while serving both consumers and HoReCa partners. This allows us to participate in multiple high-growth food segments through a single integrated platform.
We are also investing ahead of the curve through initiatives such as aquaculture partnerships, seafood backward integration, and the expansion of Meevaa Foods, which strengthens our presence in the fast-growing convenience foods segment. Ultimately, our focus is not just on selling food products but on building a scalable, technology-enabled food platform that delivers quality, trust, and profitable growth across categories.
The acquisition of Ambrozia Frozen Foods marks an important milestone in your growth journey. How does this acquisition strengthen your capabilities in frozen, ready-to-cook, and value-added food categories?
The acquisition of Ambrozia Frozen Foods is a significant step in Zappfresh’s evolution from a fresh protein company to an integrated food platform. It provides us with an export-ready manufacturing ecosystem, strengthens our processing capabilities, and significantly expands our presence in the frozen, ready-to-cook, and ready-to-eat categories.
Through this acquisition, we have been able to accelerate the launch of Meevaa Foods, giving us access to a broader portfolio of value-added products and enabling us to cater to the growing consumer demand for convenient, high-quality food solutions. The facility’s multi-category manufacturing capabilities also allow us to innovate faster, scale efficiently, and serve both domestic and international markets.
Importantly, it diversifies our revenue streams beyond fresh meat and seafood, strengthens our margins through higher-value products, and creates a strong foundation for future growth in the rapidly expanding convenience foods segment. Ultimately, the acquisition aligns with our long-term vision of building a diversified, technology-enabled food platform spanning fresh, frozen, ready-to-cook, and value-added food categories.
Consumer demand is shifting towards convenience-led food solutions. What trends are you observing in purchasing behaviour, and how are these influencing your product innovation and portfolio expansion strategies?
Consumer food preferences are evolving rapidly, with convenience emerging as a major growth driver. Today’s consumers want products that are quick to prepare without compromising on taste, quality, hygiene, or nutrition. This trend is being driven by urban lifestyles, nuclear families, rising disposable incomes, and increasing demand for restaurant-quality experiences at home.
At the same time, consumers are becoming more conscious about food safety, sourcing transparency, and product consistency, particularly in categories such as meat, seafood, and processed foods. Trust has become as important as convenience.
These evolving preferences are shaping our innovation strategy. We are continuously expanding our portfolio across ready-to-cook, ready-to-eat, frozen, and value-added food categories through Meevaa Foods, while leveraging our integrated supply chain and manufacturing capabilities to maintain quality and consistency at scale.
The strong consumer response to Meevaa Foods reinforces our belief that convenience-led food categories will be a key growth driver in the years ahead. Our focus is on building a diversified food portfolio that aligns with changing consumption habits while continuing to deliver the trust and quality that consumers expect from Zappfresh.
Food safety and cold chain management are critical in highly perishable categories. Could you elaborate on the technologies, infrastructure, and quality standards that support your processing and distribution operations?
Food safety and cold-chain management are at the core of Zappfresh’s operating model. Given the highly perishable nature of meat, seafood, and frozen foods, maintaining quality across the entire value chain is non-negotiable.
Our vertically integrated infrastructure enables us to control critical stages including sourcing, processing, secondary processing, packaging, cold storage, and last-mile distribution. Products are processed in temperature-controlled environments, supported by standardized quality protocols and multiple quality checks before dispatch.
We also leverage technology across demand forecasting, inventory planning, cold-chain monitoring, and logistics management to improve traceability, reduce wastage, and ensure product freshness. This data-driven approach allows us to maintain consistency while scaling efficiently.
With the addition of Meevaa Foods, we have further strengthened our capabilities through export-grade manufacturing and blast-freezing technology, ensuring food safety, product integrity, and shelf-life without compromising on taste or quality.
Looking ahead, what are Zappfresh’s key priorities for domestic expansion, exports, and building a diversified food platform beyond the protein category?
Our growth strategy is centred around building a diversified, integrated food platform with strong capabilities across sourcing, processing, manufacturing, distribution, and consumer brands.
A key priority is strengthening our leadership in fresh proteins and seafood through deeper sourcing integration and aquaculture partnerships. We see significant long-term potential in seafood and are investing in initiatives that enhance traceability, supply security, and farmer participation across the value chain. At the same time, we are scaling our value-added foods business through Meevaa Foods. The ready-to-cook, ready-to-eat, and frozen food segments are benefiting from strong consumer demand, and our expanded manufacturing capabilities position us well to capture this opportunity.
On the domestic front, we will continue expanding our omnichannel presence, strengthening HoReCa and institutional partnerships, and increasing penetration across existing and new markets. Internationally, our export-ready manufacturing platform provides a strong foundation to expand across key markets in North America, the Middle East, and Europe.
Ultimately, our vision is to move beyond being a fresh meat and seafood company and build a future-ready food platform that serves evolving consumer needs across fresh, frozen, ready-to-cook, and convenience food categories. We believe the next phase of growth in the food industry will be driven by integrated, trusted, and scalable food ecosystems, and that is exactly what we are building at Zappfresh.
