Snapshots of Food Industry News
ITC Ltd Acquires Sunrise Foods
ITC Ltd has acquired the shares of Sunrise Foods Private Ltd (SFPL) for Rs 2,150 croreon a cash-free, debt-free basis. ITC has acquired 100 per cent of the equity share capital of Sunrise. On acquisition Sunrise and its two subsidiaries, Sunrise Sheetgrah Private Ltd and Hobbits International Foods Pvt Ltd, have become wholly-owned subsidiaries of ITC. Sunrise will be entitled to contingent consideration of not more than Rs.150 crore after it achieves the mutually agreed upon operational and financial goalposts.
SFPL is a Kolkata-based family-owned company that has a spices business and is a market leader in eastern India with a brand legacy of 70 years. This acquisition will help ITC add to its portfolio in the fast-growing spices segment under its brand Aashirvaad, which has a presence in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The acquisition will scale up ITC’s spice business as it is looking to expand the spice footprint in the country.
Imagine Meats to Tailor-make Plant-based Meat Products
Riteish and Genelia Deshmukh’s venture ‘Imagine Meats’ offers plant-based meats. The actor couple will introduce customised products that will suit the Indian palate. Plant-based meat products are a developing space and brands like Veggie Champ, Vezlay and Gooddot are already in the business. The awareness about the benefits to health and environment that plant-based meats provide is what is seeing a surge in this category. Plant-based meats are in demand because they help to provide proteins to the many vegetarian food consumers in India. In the present COVId-19 situation, consumers are taking to plant-based meats as a safe alternative to animal meat. The other advantages are that the plant-based meats have high dietary fibre, low fat and no cholesterol. They also do not contain any growth hormones or antibiotics which could be present in animal meats.
India gets Its First Starbucks Drive-thru Store
India has got its first drive-thru store with Tata Starbucks opening one at Ambala Chandigarh Expressway, Singapura in Zirakpur. Tata Starbucks is looking to evolve as a brand and the drive-thru store will provide a new and meaningful experience to customers. The drive-thru format offers convenience for travellers on the go and those customers who want to receive their orders from cars. To introduce the drive-thru format and engage with potential customers,Tata Starbucks first launched a digital marketing campaign.Tata Starbucksand Starbucks Corporation operate about 187 Starbucks stores in 11 cities across India.
Hershey’s Sees Increase in Sales of Syrups, Spreads and Cocoa Powder
Hershey’s India has witnessed a sharp increase in the sales of its syrups, spreads and cocoa powder. The increase in sales has happened because of the increase in home-baking during COVID-19 pandemic. Sales of Hershey’s grocery portfolio in June nearly doubled against its average monthly run rate in the first quarter of this year. The grocery portfolio primarily consists of syrups, spreads and cocoa powder.
The company considers India a focus market and is working on the transformation of its portfolio and growth opportunity. Hershey’s India has also ramped up itse-commerce capabilities during the COVID-19 times. It has partnered with several food delivery apps such as Swiggy and Dunzo to home-deliver its products. During the pandemic the company witnessed volume buys and sale of larger packs as consumers reduced frequency of store visits. Since Hershey’s already had money-saving low-cost trial packs and larger premium packs, customers could pick them up easily. Hershey’s operates three brands in India, Hershey’s, Sofit and Jolly Rancher.
Cadbury Choclairs Gold Launches Variant Choclairs Gold Coffee
Cadbury Choclairs Gold, the centre-filled éclair has launched a variant Cadbury Choclairs Gold Coffee. The newest launchedinnovation is about flavours as it brings together the signature Cadbury taste and Arabica Coffee. Cadbury has a fine heritage of taste and Cadbury Choclairs Gold Coffee has been created to provide consumers a new flavour mixed with the old.As consumers are looking for unique eat experiences, the new product will strengthen the brand’s sweets portfolio.
Consumers will find the sweet treat irresistible with its combination of coffee and chocolate. Since the launch of Cadbury Choclairs or Cadbury Eclairs the category has successfully defined the gold standard for consumers by offering the perfect Cadbury taste in the eclair candy format. The new Choclairs God Coffee is priced at Rs 116 for a pack of 60 units and Rs 200 for a pack of 115 units. The product will be available at all modern trade, traditional trade and e-commerce platforms.
Cross Border Kitchens Plans Expansion
Cross Border Kitchens (CBK) – a multi-brand, multi-vertical food-tech company, has registered Rs 3.33 crore in revenue in FY19. The companyplans now plans to expand to five kitchen locations operating 13 unique brands by the end of2020.Launched in early 2019, CBK manages nine food delivery brands, across multiple cuisines including Indian, Western, Pan-Asian, and Specialty.Currently, CBK fulfils 10-12 thousand orders every month and it recorded a 20-25 percent increase in order conversions during the lockdown.Customers can access CBK’s offerings through each of its brand websites, apps, over the phone, and through aggregator partners – Zomato and Swiggy.
Presently it operates three kitchens in Delhi-NCR region and has two additional kitchens in the fit-out phase. In the next 18 months, CBK plans to have a multi-city presence while also expanding its brand portfolio to 22 unique brands and is scheduled to launch four of these brands in July. The company hopes to create 2,000 to 2,500 employment opportunities in that time. CBK has always believed in the multi-brand, multi-vertical model from the outset and in utilizing technology, culinary art, marketing, and operational excellence to deliver a memorable gourmet experience. This model enables it to be CAPEX efficient, scale fast, and significantly reduce overhead rate.
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