How to Start Exporting Packaged Food from India — the Registrations, the Paper Trail, and the Pricing

Export interest usually starts with an inbound message — a diaspora retailer in Dubai or New Jersey wants your product. Then comes the discovery that exporting food from India is a stack of registrations, each from a different agency, and that quoting a price without understanding Incoterms can wipe out the margin on your first shipment. Here's the map.

The registrations you need before quoting anyone

Registration	Issued by	What it's for
IEC (Import Export Code)	DGFT	The basic 10-digit code without which no export clears customs. Online application against your PAN; usually issued within days.
FSSAI Central License	FSSAI	Export activity requires a Central license regardless of turnover — a State license is not sufficient.
APEDA RCMC	APEDA	Registration-cum-Membership Certificate for scheduled agricultural and processed food products. Needed for most packaged foods and for claiming APEDA-linked benefits.
AD Code registration	Your bank / customs	Links your bank account to the port of export so foreign exchange remittances reconcile.
GST (with LUT)	GST department	Exports are zero-rated. File a Letter of Undertaking to export without paying IGST, or pay and claim refund.

Category-specific extras: spices exports fall under the Spices Board rather than APEDA; tea and coffee have their own boards; and certain products need export inspection agency certification depending on the destination.

What the buyer's country will demand

Indian registrations get the product out; the destination's rules get it in. The big three for packaged food:

• USA: FDA food facility registration (your manufacturing facility, including your co-packer's), a US agent, FSVP importer requirements on the buyer's side, and US-compliant nutrition labelling (the FDA panel differs from FSSAI's format).
• EU/UK: Compliance with EU food law on additives and contaminants (aflatoxin limits catch Indian spice and nut shipments regularly), allergen labelling in the destination language, and an EU-format ingredient declaration.
• Gulf: Halal certification for most food categories, Arabic labelling (usually as a sticker approved by the importer), and conformity certificates per the destination's standards body.

Every serious buyer will also ask for a health certificate (issued for the consignment via FSSAI/EIC channels), a certificate of origin, and lab reports for the specific parameters their regulator cares about. Budget both money and 2–6 weeks of lead time for this on early shipments.

FOB vs CIF — decide what you're actually quoting

Incoterms define where your costs and risk stop. The two that matter for a first-time exporter:

FOB (Free on Board): your price covers goods, packing, inland freight to the port, and export clearance — the buyer arranges and pays ocean/air freight and insurance. Quote FOB when you're new; it keeps volatile freight out of your price.

CIF (Cost, Insurance, Freight): you additionally arrange and pay freight and insurance to the destination port. Buyers like CIF quotes because they're comparable; you carry freight-rate risk between quote and shipment.

The build-up looks like: ex-factory cost → + export packing (often sturdier cartons, sometimes different labels) → + inland freight and handling → + customs clearance and documentation charges → = FOB → + ocean/air freight → + marine insurance → = CIF. On the way back, remember exports are zero-rated for GST (with LUT) and check your product's RoDTEP rate — the duty remission is small (fractions of a percent to a few percent) but real margin at container scale.

First-shipment mistakes to avoid

Quoting from your domestic MRP. Export pricing starts from ex-factory cost, not from the MRP printed for the Indian market. Your domestic price embeds trade margins and GST that don't exist in an export quote.

Ignoring shelf life at arrival. Sea freight to the US east coast can consume 6–8 weeks door to door. A product with a 9-month shelf life arrives with 7 left, and a retail buyer who requires 75% remaining will reject it. This constraint alone pushes many snack brands to air freight (expensive) or reformulation for longer life.

Underestimating payment risk. First shipments should be against advance payment or an irrevocable letter of credit — not open credit to an importer you met on WhatsApp. ECGC export credit insurance exists for a reason.

Shipping domestic labels. A pack that is fully FSSAI-compliant can still be illegal on a US or EU shelf. Destination labelling is a product development task, not a sticker at the port.

This article is orientation, not trade compliance advice. Procedures and benefit schemes change with policy notifications — verify current requirements with DGFT/APEDA documentation or a CHA (customs house agent) before committing to a shipment.