Snapshots of Food Industry News
Ananda Dairy Expects Rise of 30% in Turnover in 2018-2019
Ananda Dairy is looking to increase their turnover to Rs.2000 crores in 2019, which will be a rise of about 30 percent. In the current fiscal Ananda is likely to have a turnover of Rs.1, 500. The dairy company is expanding its retail outlets and product portfolio. They are likely to open 500 retail outlets in Delhi NCR, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. The outlets will be company owned and company operated. An increase in the number of retail outlets is expected to contribute 15 percent of the growth. Currently, Ananda has around 200 outlets in NCR and sells well over 50 products, mostly dairy, but minus ice-cream. While ice-cream is not on their product agenda, the company is likely to increase their portfolio of other value-added products.
Amazon is India’s First Foreign Food Retailer
Amazon Retail Pvt Ltd. has become India’s first foreign food retailer and will begin its pilot in Pune. They will provide grocery services and will be in direct competition with similar online grocery stores like Grofers, Bigbasket, Supr Daily, etc. In 2017, the e-commerce giant had received affirmation from the Indian government to invest $500 million in India’s food retail space. Wal-Mart’s plans to acquire 40 percent stake in India’s Flipkart is being seen as a reaction to Amazon stepping into the online grocery space.
Even though Amazon is the first foreign retailer in this space, it will need at least one quarter to be able to find its feet in the food retailing business in the country. Amazon has also launched Amazon Now, an app for food and grocery items to be home-delivered and it will also enable Amazon to be in direct touch with consumers. Currently, Amazon’s warehouses in India do not store food items which will be able to meet the demands of the Amazon Now app demand.
Global F&B Companies Want Stake in Voila F9 Gourmet
Voila F9 Gourmet, India’s largest home-grown commercial kitchen is drawing the attention of half a dozen Global F&B companies, which would like to have a stake in it. Voila F9 has appointed merchant bankers so as to be able to bring in the right strategic partners but has not revealed anything else. Voila F9 is headquartered in Hyderabad and here it caters to a number of technology firms. The commercial kitchen is spread over 60,000 square feet on a two-acre plot and can product 50,000 meals in a day. Valued at Rs.300 crore, the company has clients like Google, Facebook, Uber, Deloitte, DE Shaw &Co, Qualcomm, and Arcesium. Voila F9 has also catered during events like Sensation, IIFA, and IPL and even catered to PM Narendra Modi when he visited Hyderabad during the DGP’s conference.
Voila F9 Gourmet has been competing with global F&B giants for institutional cooking for a decade now. It earns almost three-quarters of its annual revenues from its contract catering business and one forth comes from its recently acquired banqueting business and convention centers. It has managed to draw attention from global players because it has shown good growth rates and EBIDTA (earnings before interest depreciation, taxation, and amortization) margins, which are in high teens. Voila F9 Gourmet has also chalked out a plan to expand into Bengaluru and Gurugram with an investment of Rs.10 to 15 crore per city.
Raw Pressery Launches Three Variants of Almond Milk
Raw Pressery has recently launched three variants of cold-pressed almond milk. The almond milk flavored with cacao, coffee, and turmeric contain no sugar, preservative chemicals or color. The almonds are also sourced directly from farms and are vegan and 100 percent lactose-free and so even lactose-intolerant consumers can have the nutty milk. The almond milk is available in 250ml bottles priced at Rs.100.
Fresh cacao nibs from South India are used to make the cocoa flavored almond milk, which has an earthy taste and does not contain surplus calories or sweetness either. The coffee-flavored almond milk contains Indian Arabica coffee which is used when it is roasted to perfection. Raw Pressey’s turmeric variant contains haldi doodh with powdered almonds and is also available as a golden latte without any dairy. Almond milk can be considered a health drink as it contains good fat which lowers cholesterol, keeps the heart healthy, has fewer calories and since it helps alkalise the digestive system, it reduces heartburn and acid reflux also.
Tatas Would Like to Have Paper Boat to Boost Tata Global Beverages
The Tata Group has approached some key shareholders of Hector Beverages that owns Paper Boat brand to buy the company in a bid to extend its portfolio. Tata Global Beverages Limited is looking to bring a spicy change to their portfolio with offerings other than tea, coffee, and water; as the company would like to dig deep into the food and beverage space. Hector Beverages was founded only in 2010 but already it has been successful in commercializing Indian drinks like aamras, aam panna, and jaljeera. Tata feels that the Paper Boat brand is a good option because the brand has already created a name for itself in the Indian market. However, presently the talks are only exploratory and in the very initial stages. While the Tata Group has already zeroed in on dairy as a new portfolio extension they have also included beverages and healthy snacks as areas for future growth.
Gourmet Investments Looking for Expansion in PizzaExpress Outlets
Gourmet Investments Pvt Ltd (GIPL) owned PizzaExpress is going all out to capture a share of the Indian market. GIPL is looking to invest Rs.4.5 to 6 crores per outlet of PizzaExpress. They would also revamp all existing outlets so as to have an ‘a chic yet understated ambiance and will have a design that will pay homage to the fashion industry.’ Each venue will have a different design as the design will be inspired by its locality and other local influences. The company has launched the ‘Project Series and they would like to see their outlets refurbished especially in Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Pune, Bengaluru, and Goa, which are their key markets. They could also change PizzaExpress from a single brand multi-unit operation to a multi-brand multi-unit operation.
After the successful launch of The Bandra Project and The Runway Project by PizzaExpress in Mumbai, The Runway Project in Delhi’s Select Citywalk is intended to take forward the hyper-local experience along with couture-inspired flavors. Later GIPL is likely to enter the Bengaluru market in a big way. Much like Mumbai outlet, the Delhi outlet will focus on pizzas, salads, and desserts with an inclination towards fresh produce, local ingredients but with global inspirations. PizzaExpress was established in 1965 in London and operates over 550 restaurants across 14 countries. The brand was launched in India in 2012 in partnership with Gourmet Investments Pvt Ltd, a company promoted by the Bharti Family Office.
Parle Products Aims to Double Turnover in Next Five Years
Biscuit and confectionery maker Parle Products is getting all geared up to double its turnover and cross Rs.20, 000 crore in the next five years. Parle Products is a privately held company and its present turnover is a little over Rs.10, 000 crore. As part of its growth strategy, the company will expand its product portfolio and turn into a total food company and fill the gaps in its product line. The company is expecting the staples and snacks segments to be the growth drivers in the coming years. The company will see its growth coming through the organic channel rather than through acquisitions.
Presently Parle has snacks, bakery items like cakes and rusks, a premium chocolate segment on their portfolio and they have also recently ventured into staples such as pulses and have launched five varieties of packaged pulses in the two states of Maharashtra and Karnataka. The Company is also looking at several other categories of foods and whenever an opportunity presents itself they will aim to turn into a total food company. Parle Products sells through retail but with its innovative offerings, it is tapping into the institutional markets like hotels that buy in bulk. Parle is also expecting its Platina range of premium products like hiding & Seek Milano, Mexitos and Simply Good, to show growth by 25 percent in next three years in the biscuits segment. Platina range presently adds 65 percent of its total fold.
Yakult Danone India to Expand Presence to Sixty Cities by 2018-19
Probiotic drink-maker Yakult Danone will enter Tier II and III cities so as to expand into 60 cities by the next fiscal. Currently, it has a presence in 40 cities across 12 states in the country. Since its entry into India in 2008, the company has had only one product, its flagship Yakult original, and now just a few days ago they have added Yakult Light to the portfolio. In 2017 the company sold 1.86 lakh bottles per day in India. In January they have increased their manufacturing capacity to 2.7 lakh bottles a day in their only existing facility in Haryana. Presently they feel the Haryana plant is sufficient to fulfill the demand in India. However, they do not rule out building another facility in India in future if the production reaches beyond 7-9 lakh bottles per day.
The company, which has been clocking a 20 percent CAGR over the last five years, also has a direct selling distribution channel – Yakult Ladies System – with 260 women at present and plans to scale it up. They also plan to purchase more and more refrigerated vehicles and appoint more sales staff so they can distribute their products to more Kirana stores and more outlets in different cities. Yakult Danone India is a 50:50 Joint Venture between Japan-based Yakult Honsha and Groupe Danone of France. Yakult is a global probiotics leader and they would like to focus on probiotics products first even though they also offer functional foods. French dairy major Danone recently exited the dairy business in India to focus on its nutrition business.
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