Snapshots of Food Industry News
Pizza Hut Identifies India as a Market for Future Growth
Yum! Brands’ Pizza Hut has identified India as a key market for its future growth. The company has plans to double their outlets in India to 700 in the next five years. The fast-food chain has recently opened another outlet in Mumbai which is Pizza Hut’s 9000th restaurant outside the USA. While Pizza Hut has a presence in more than 105 nations, yet they chose India for this milestone outlet because they feel India can accelerate global growth.
Pizza Hut presently has 350 outlets in India that are spread over 100 cities. The Indian franchise partners are Devyani International and Sapphire Foods India. Pizza Hut has seen growth in same-store sales for five consecutive quarters and so the potential to grow further is very much on the horizon. In the past 20 years, Pizza Hut has grown stronger in India and their present model of digital-centric delivery and modern open kitchen restaurants is likely to touch a chord among the new generation of Indians.
South Korean Lotte Confectionery to Buy Havmor Ice-Cream
South Korea’s Lotte Confectionery, the makers of Lotte Choco Pie, has made inroads into the Rs.5000 crore ice-cream market and has struck a deal with Havmor Ice Cream (HIL) brand for Rs.1020 crores. The deal has valued HIL at more than 2.5 times its 2016-17 turnover of Rs.400 crores as the brand has been growing at the compounded annual rate of 23 to 25 percent. Lotte Confectionery will buy 100 percent of the Ahmedabad based ice-cream brand and will acquire the plants, machinery and the staff of Havmor. The Managing Director of HIL Ankit Chona is also likely to continue as CEO-advisor and will see the merger through.
Lotte plans to expand its market from the north-west region to the whole of India. Havmor has its origins in Karachi, Pakistan but after partition, the company was set up in Ahmedabad in 1951. Havmor has grown into a company that boasts 150 kinds of ice-creams and has parlors in 14 Indian states. Their two plants in Ahmedabad and Faridabad manufacture 2.5 liters of ice-cream per day. Even after the takeover, Havmor promoters will continue to operate the signature chain of restaurants and eateries across Gujarat as also its signature concept café Huber & Holly. The original owners of Havmor, the Chonas will continue to own 40 Hav Funn ice-cream parlors run by Havmor Restaurants while the 115 franchise owned outlets will go to Lotte Confectionery.
Uflex Engineers Retortable Spouted Stand-up Pouch for Beverages
Uflex Packaging has engineered the first Indian retortable spouted bottom gusseted stand-up pouch for cold beverages on the request of Jo’s, a leading snack brand in India, who wish to market a new cold beverage. The foil based, 4 tier gusset stand-up pouch has a specialized retort sealant layer to withstand sterilization at high temperatures. The pouch offers a shelf life of 6 months at room temperature and so there is no need for cold chains/refrigeration during transit, at the point of sale or in consumer homes.
The pouch has been fitted with tamper locked special grade PP spout that will withstand the retort application without causing leakage at the seams. The cap is interlocked with the shoulder of the spout and the cap lock breaks when the cap is opened for the first time, so it is absolutely tamper-proof. Uniflex has also given it a profile shape for differentiation and is being seen as a convenient alternative packaging to the PET bottles. Uniflex took three months to design and develop this retortable pouch for cold beverages. The company is getting a good response from other brands and are capable of bringing out many other aesthetic variants. The Uniflex retortable pouch will not only add value to the products but the sustainability factor is also a big draw.
Kohinoor Foods Introduces ‘Green Grown’ Organic Products
Kohinoor Foods Ltd known best for their basmati rice brands has introduced ‘Green Grown’ range of 100 percent certified organic products. The ‘Green Grown’ range of products has been created keeping in mind the features of ‘Satvik’ food which is abundant in ‘Prana’ and is considered the universal life force energy, required for healthy living. ‘Green Grown’ has been developed to cater to the growing demand for organic foods worldwide.
Kohinoor considers their Green Grown’ range of organic products a unique initiative. Here ‘Satvik’ corresponds to food that is produced with natural manure and nutrient compounds are retained by doing farm crop rotation at regular intervals. They aim to make products that can be termed whole foods that are natural, fresh and which provide life force energy to the consumers for good health. ‘Green Grown’ is Kohinoor Foods’ next step in their journey in food processing and manufacturing. Kohinoor’s basmati rice, ready-to-eat curries, meals, simmer sauces, cooking pastes, spices, seasonings and frozen foods are used by millions of consumers in 65 countries.
People and Placement
Chandrakant K Joins Chevon Agrotech as Head of Sales and Marketing
Chevon Agrotech Private Limited has announced that Chandrakant K will be joining their company as Head of Sales & Marketing. Chevon Agrotech is a leading integrated frozen food company and as head of sales and marketing Chandrakant will be responsible for developing new business opportunities for Chevon’s expansion into global markets. Chevon recently received a substantial funding from Singapore-based investment management firm, Greenfield Advisory. The company has used the capital to develop new products, launch marketing campaigns and ramp up their domestic and international distribution. Chandrakant has nearly 11 years of experience in the food and retail industry, having worked with McCain Foods. He will put his industry expertise, market understanding and winning attitude to help Chevon Agrotech sustain its global success.
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