
Hindustan Unilever to acquire Adityaa Milk Brand Ice-cream
Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) has signed an agreement with Vijaykant Dairy and Food Products Ltd (VDFPL) to acquire their ‘Adityaa Milk’ brand ice cream and frozen desserts as well as the distribution network for an undisclosed sum. VDFPL will manage the business until the transaction is completed, and will continue manufacturing for HUL for an agreed period of time. The acquisition is in line with HUL’s strategy to strengthen its position in the rapidly growing ice cream and frozen dessert market in India and will complement their existing portfolio of Kwality Wall’s. Aditya Milk will bring its distribution network to Kwality Wall’s across Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, and Kerala. The transaction is subject to fulfillment of certain conditions and the parties will work together to complete this over the next few months.
Britannia Industries to Launch New Products
Britannia Industries Limited earns 70 percent of its revenue from its biscuits segment. They are now focusing on increasing their product portfolio in the non-biscuit categories.
Britannia’s market share in the biscuits category is supposedly 33 percent. As much as 70 percent of the revenue of the company comes from the biscuits segment and 30 percent from other non-biscuit food products. Britannia would like to make this ratio 50:50 but without affecting its biscuit business and so it is planning to launch new non-biscuit products. Britannia is planning to grow organically and is also on the lookout for acquisitions. Their Ranjangaon plant is almost ready and would be commercialised in a couple of months and the Mundra plant is already operational. Britannia is aiming to have control over the Indian sub-continent and Africa.
Maggi Attains over 60 Percent Market Share
Nestle India’s instant noodles brand Maggi has almost touched the pre-crisis levels as they have attained over 60 percent market share. However, volume-wise Maggi is still short of the pre-crisis levels as at that time Nestle’s Maggi dominated the market with a 75 percent share. Nestle understands that it will take some time to catch up to the pre-crisis volume. At present Maggi contributes around one-third of the total sales of the company which is around 30 percent. Maggi had been banned by Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in June 2015 for five months because the product allegedly contained lead beyond permissible limits. The popular instant noodle brand was back in the market by November 2015 after a brief legal battle.
Manpasand to Set-up 10 New Plants by 2020
Manpasand Beverages is planning to invest Rs.1,500 crore in setting up 10 new manufacturing plants in the country by 2020, as part of its efforts to drive volumes. At present Manpasand have six manufacturing plants across the country of which three are in Vadodara, and one each in Varanasi, Dehradun, and Ambala. They wish to have an additional 10 by 2020 to take the total to 16 plants. The Juice Maker now wishes to enter other segments like milk-based sugar-free drinks, glucose drinks, and protein-based drinks over the next three years so as to increase revenues and provide a significant boost to its growth trajectory.
India has only a six litres per capita consumption of cold drinks compared to USA’s 90 litres and so Manpasand would like to make more affordable products to flood the market with home-grown brands which should drive sales. The brand has also expanded its portfolio with its new nutritional drinks brand Siznal, through which the company is tapping into the rural market, where it is receiving the good response. India’s bottled water market is growing at around 20 percent annually and water is becoming a beverage of the future. Manpasand is planning to launch multiple facilities for packaged drinking water.
Swiggy Buys-out Delivery Platform Scootsy
Online food ordering and delivery platform Swiggy has confirmed its acquisition of the Mumbai-based on-demand delivery platform Scootsy. The acquisition has cost Swiggy about Rs.50 crore in the all-cash deal. Swiggy will now work to strengthen Scootsy’s curated restaurant network and help the brand expand to newer cities on the back of its own operational excellence and backend strength. Scootsy, an intra-city online service founded in 2015, will continue to operate as an independent app post the acquisition. Scootsy already enjoys loyalty from both its restaurant partners and the consumers but the added convenience and reliability and operational experience that Swiggy brings will provide a superior experience. The acquisition will also extend Swiggy’s existing network of 40,000 restaurants by adding more curated restaurants to it. Founded in 2014, Swiggy delivers food across 15 Indian cities with over 35,000 restaurant partners and 40,000 delivery executives.
Danone India Unveils ‘Protinex for Muscle Health’ Campaign
Danone India launched its new campaign, ‘Protinex for Muscle Health’, to establish the importance of protein for good muscles. The Protinex brand, which is a leader in the health food category, aims to spread awareness about the role of protein in our everyday diets with its new television commercial (TVC). The TVC has been made by Circus Elephant Agency and has gone on air recently. The campaign focuses on the importance of protein in maintaining better muscle health.
According to a study conducted by InBody, a global leader in body composition analysis and IPSOS, a majority of Indians suffer from poor muscle health and needed urgent muscle-mass gain. The study was conducted across eight Indian cities that covered 1,243 people where the respondents were a mix of working and non-working individuals between the ages of 30 and 55. Protinex is a trusted brand and India’s most prescribed nutritional supplement. It is scientifically formulated with the power of hydrolysed protein that caters to the nutritional needs of both adults and children. It comes in different flavours, like elaichi, tasty chocolate, vanilla and original. There is a special variant for diabetics and one for pregnant women called Mama Protinex.
Regional Khichdi Fest underway at Neel’s Outlets in Mumbai
The Regional Khichdi Festival, celebrating India’s national dish, is underway in Mumbai at Neel’s outlets in Nariman Point and Powai. The Khichdi Festival will continue till August 15, 2018, and customers will be able to sample nine variants of Khichdi. These include Venpongal from South India, Pahadi Khichdi from Uttarakhand’s Garhwal region, Kathiawadi Khichdi from Kathiawar, and Bisi Bele Bhaath. The health-conscious can opt for Bajre Ki Khichdi, Maharashtrian Khichdi, and Bihari Khichdi while the Non-vegetarians can have a platter of Kolambichi Khichdi and Karnataka Mutton Khichdi.
People and Appointments
PepsiCo’s CEO Indra Nooyi to Step Down in October
Indian American business executive Indra K. Nooyi will step down as the Chief Executive of PepsiCo Inc in October after 24 years with the company of which 12 years she served as the CEO. The Food and Beverage Company’s Board of Directors has unanimously elected Ramon Laguarta, 54, to succeed Nooyi, 62, as Chief Executive Officer. However, Nooyi will remain the Chairman of the company until early 2019.
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