Food Industry This Week – New Markets & New Product Introductions

Snapshots of Food Industry News

Fabindia to launch herbal tea in China

Fabindia is going to enter China with their herbal tea category by next year once they have the regulatory approvals. The Indian herbal tea is manufactured by the Lucknow based Organic India which makes organic food and supplements and Fabindia has 50 percent stake in it. Organic India makes green tea and herb infusions which have relevance in the Chinese market. Organic India sells products across the country through their 25 stores, general retailers as well as Fabindia outlets.

As part of their process the company has hired a Chinese consultancy firm to study the potential market for Indian Ayurvedic products in China. Since there is a string of companies trying to sell their tea in China, Organic India is taking the help of the consultancy firm to strategize their entry into China. Tata Global Beverages already manufactures and markets green tea and other value added tea products to China in partnership with Zhejiang Tea Import & Export. Organic India products are already being exported to 35 countries in the US, Europe, Middle east and Africa.

Food start-up 48East raises US $5,00,000

48East, the Bengaluru-based food start-up, has raised USD 5, 00,000 in a Pre Series A funding from Al Dhaheri family. The Joseph Cherian and Nabhojit Ghosh owned food start-up delivers fine Asian gourmet food at affordable prices. Since there is an increasing demand for their food the start-up will use the funds to set up more kitchen units, expand delivery area, enhance logistics and ramp-up technology and marketing. 48East has five decades of culinary expertise across Quick service restaurants (QSR) management, food manufacturing and curated gourmet food.

The company currently operates two kitchens in Indiranagar and Marathahalli and processes over 100 orders a day and are likely to expand into others areas across Bangalore. The company has dynamic ideas and an experience rich team which give it the potential to capture an increasing share in this category. The Al Dhaheri family has stated that the start-up has demonstrated impressive growth within one year of its inception. Earlier in August 2016, 48East had raised US $2, 50,000 in a round of angel funding from Agra-based ACPL exports.

Future Consumer Ltd launches new flavours of aloo bhujiya

Future Consumer Ltd markets a number of packaged snacks under the Tasty Treat banner and has launched four new variants of aloo bhujiya under this banner. The latest range of Tasty Treat aloo bhujiya has an international twist and the four flavours are named Peri-Peri, Wasabi, Barbeque and Schezwan. Since Indians love this snack and carry it with them on their travels abroad Tasty Treat has created an innovative fusion of International and Indian tastes. Consumers are likely to enjoy this unique experience especially as aloo bhujiya has not seen any new flavour launches in recent years.

Future Consumer Limited has created these variants to cater to the fast-moving consumer generation. It is likely to offer some competition to categories like chips, potato wafers, nachos, etc. and is targeted at consumers who prefer international flavours as part of their daily food. Tasty Treat offers on-the-go-snacks and its wide range of products include categories like ready-to-eat snacks, beverages, wafers/biscuits, sauces, frozen snacks and more.

Ruchi Soya Industries shares surge after tie-up with Patanjali Ayurved

After the recent tie-up with Patanjali Ayurved, Ruchi Soya Industries saw a surge of over 17 percent in their share value. An agreement has been signed for refining and packaging edible oils. Ruchi Soya will process and package the crude oil provided by Patanjali Ayurved as per their specifications. The scrip rose 16.34 per cent to settle at Rs.29.90 on BSE. At NSE, shares of the company jumped 17.28 per cent to end at Rs.30.20. Ruchi Soya currently has the largest edible oil refining capacity in India and has 13 facilities. Its leading brands include Nutrela, Mahakosh, Sunrich, Ruchi Star and Ruchi Gold. It is also the country’s leading agriculture and food FMCG with a turnover of USD 4 billion.

Cofco India to enter the branded wheat flour and maida segment

Cofco India, the fully-owned subsidiary of global agro-major Cofco Agri, plans to enter the branded wheat flour and maida segments but only after they have strengthened their foothold in the edible oil market. They recently entered the premium branded edible oil segment and plan to expand its oil portfolio first by launching cotton seed, mustard and sunflower oils in the coming financial year.

Cofco acquired the global agriculture business of Noble Group for USD750 million in 2015 including its Indian arm. Noble Agri had a strong presence in the Indian agriculture trade market and was one of biggest bulk importers of edible oils. It had also established 1,400 metric tonnes edible oils refining plant in Kandla, in Gujarat, in 2013. Cofco has managed to sell around 60,000-70,000 tonnes of oils every year since 2014, when it launched its first mass segment edible oils brand ‘Nutrilive’. Haldiram Sweets, Parle, Britannia are the companies to which Cofco sells edible oils in bulk. The company plans to get the oilseed extraction, processing and packaging done through third parties and identifying them is taking time because of strict quality control parameters.