Reforms in the Indian retail sector announced recently could provide an opportunity for Dutch companies in supply chain management, said Alphonsus Stoelinga, the newly appointed Ambassador of the Netherlands to India.

“If you look at the supply chain in India, there are a lot of losses of fruits and meats. In the Netherlands we have very specialised services for optimising and securing, what I call, the supply line systems. If big investors like Walmart or Carrefour come into India, they will have to cater to or have somebody else cater to the needs of the market efficiently. I think what this will mean for the Netherlands is that all big retail companies and investors in Indian retail will have enormous interest in the supply chain,” the Envoy told the Business Line in an exclusive interview.

The Envoy said Dutch companies getting into supply chain management, “will be fantastic for everybody. Because then the consumer will win, the investor will win, the farmers will win and India will win,” he said.

The Ambassador was of the opinion that investments from the Netherlands were unlikely to flow directly.

Stating that there had not been many inquiries by Dutch companies since the retail reforms were announced, the Envoy said there was a constant investment stream between the two countries.

“There are 150 Indian companies in the Netherlands. The biggest are Tata Steel and Tata Consultancy Services. On the other side, we have Shell which is building an enormous research and development centre in Bangalore. Philips is already in India,” he said.

> ashwini.phadnis@thehindu.co.in

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