Ice Cream Companies hope for GST Rate Cut after Elections:

Ice Cream Companies hope for GST Rate Cut after Elections Ice cream companies are pushing hard to reduce the GST rate. They approached the President, who sent their request to the Finance Ministry. They also asked key officials in the Finance Ministry to lower the tax. Ice cream sold in shops or parlours has an 18% GST, but when served with meals in hotels or restaurants, it's taxed at 5%. The GST Council, which can change these rates, will meet after the new government is formed. "We request the GST Council to consider reducing the GST on ice cream and frozen desserts to 5% across the board. This reduction would lower prices and increase demand and consumption of ice cream in India," the Indian Ice-Cream Manufacturers’ Association stated in a representation to the Finance Ministry. They also noted that the average Indian eats only 400 milliliters of ice cream per year, while people in New Zealand eat 28.4 liters, in the USA eat 20.8 liters, and in Australia eat 18 liters. Ice cream companies say that ice cream is a dairy product. While milk has no GST, other dairy products like paneer, curd, lassi, yogurt, and buttermilk are taxed at 5%. Most of the stuff used to make ice cream comes from animals or farms and is either not taxed or taxed at 5/12%, while ice cream itself is taxed at 18%. This makes ice cream expensive. The association also says up to 40% of ice cream makers are small and unorganized. "If ice cream GST is lowered to 5%, many small players will start paying taxes instead of evading them. This will increase tax revenue for the government," they added. A report by the International Market Analysis Research and Consulting (IMARC) Group predicts that the ice cream market in India will grow from Rs.16,500 crore in 2021 to over Rs.43,600 crore by 2027. That's a big jump! The association said this growth will help farmers in rural areas and improve their lives. They plan to promote ice cream by highlighting its benefits for rural households and its health benefits. Now, over 2 million people work in various parts of the ice cream industry, including production and marketing. Additionally, there are more than 125,000 vendors who make a living by selling ice cream in key locations. The majority of sugar is consumed by the ice cream manufacturing sector, supporting around 50 million sugarcane farmers and many more workers. The Association emphasized that the livelihoods of these workers are closely tied to the ice cream industry.