Emami to diversify into milk and breakfast cereals food business

The FMCG major, which launched its edible oil brand last month, is looking at a slew of food & beverage products


Emami Group, the Rs 2,500 crore fast moving consumer goods major, is cutting its teeth on food business. Last month, the Kolkata-based firm made its debut by launching the ‘Healthy and Tasty’ brand of edible oil.


But that’s only the beginning. While Emami recognises that its core business will remain personal care, it plans to foray into newer food categories like breakfast cereals and milk-based beverages.



Emami Group director Aditya Agarwal, says “We want to be a complete foods and beverages company, although we will take one step at a time.” The company will foray into the milk-based beverages market with the launch of chocolate granules, a milk-based beverage mix, under its brand ‘Chawanprash’. Chawanprash is a Rs 25 crore brand now.



The idea is to increase the consumer base by offering differentiated products in the Rs 1500 crore milk-based beverages market, which is reportedly growing at 15 per cent and is dominated by Complan, Horlicks and Bournvita.



“We are also test-marketing ‘Chocoprash’, a chocolate paste that consumers can use as a spread on rotis and breads,” Agarwal says.



According to market data, the penetration of Emami’s Chyawanprash in Indian households is just 2 per cent, and Emami feels that it offers a lot of potential to fill the market gaps by producing more variants. In the past few years, the company has also introduced ‘Amritprash’, a summer variant of Chawanprash which is traditionally consumed more during winters.



The Indian food market is worth approximately Rs 2,50,000 crore and value-added food products another Rs 80,000 crore ($22.2 billion). It is expected to double in another 10 years.



On edible oils, Emami is trying to tap the unorganised market through low unit packs (LUPs) besides creating space in the Rs 10,000-crore branded edible oil market. Demand for Mediterranean food such as pasta and pizza has risen in the country over the years leading to an increased demand for edible oil as a cooking medium.Though the market size is huge in India, the potential for branded products is tremendous as most of the 14 million tonnes consumption is sold in unpacked loose form and in small quantities as well.




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