The investment follows investments worth €20 million (Rs 213 crore) committed towards the country over the past five years. This was directed towards developing facilities including a fragrance research centre, a liquids laboratory, an advanced manufacturing centre for bars and packaging design capabilities, the company said in a release.
India is Unilever's second largest market after the US and one of its largest R&D hubs, employing more than 800 scientists, researchers, digital specialists and designers.
The company plans to develop its Mumbai facility into a product innovation centre, focused on consumer insights, product and packaging design, AI-led research, faster prototyping and scale-up capabilities. Its Bengaluru centre will continue to focus on science and technology research, digital capabilities and partnerships with academic institutions and startups, it added.
“India is a critical global R&D centre for Unilever. This investment will enable a more connected way of innovating, bringing together science, insights, design, digital technology, AI, rapid prototyping and scale-up capabilities,” said Richard Slater, chief research and development officer at Unilever.
Unilever will also invest €5 million (Rs 53 crore) over five years…