Emami chalks out Rs 800-cr capex for four years

Launches 'Healthy & Tasty' edible oils nationally after achieving 18% market share in WB

Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) company Emami Ltd plans capital expenditure of Rs 800 crore for its agri tech business in the next four years for expansion in product portfolio and strengthen its presence in existing markets.

For its "Healthy & Tasty" brand edible oil alone, the company plans a capital expenditure of Rs 200 crore on marketing and promotion across the country.

While announcing the geographical expansion with national roll out of its premium "Healthy & Tasty" brand edible oils, Aditya Agarwal, Director, Emami Group, said, "The brand currently enjoys second largest sales with 18 per cent of market share in West Bengal. Apart from West Bengal, its smallest sachet packs with a price tag of Rs 5 and Rs 10 are also available in Karnataka and Odisha with an estimated annual turnover of Rs 600 crore. We are now looking to cloak Rs 5000 crore turnover in the next two-three years with national roll out."

The company introduced its "Healthy & Tasty" brand edible oils in Maharashtra, Delhi, National Capital Region (NCR), Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar on Thursday as its first phase of geographical expansion. In the second phase, however, the company plans to reach out to consumers in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand and the North Eastern states in the next one month.

The company currently produces 4000 per day of edible oils - soybean, ground nut, mustard seed, rice bran etc. - from its existing location at Haldia in West Bengal. Apart from that Emami has a production facility in Krishnapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, with a capacity of 1,200-1,300 tonnes per day.

Now, in order to support consumer demand, the company plans to set up a 500 tonnes per day of Greenfield mustard seed crushing facility in Jaipur with an estimated capital expenditure of Rs 100 crore. This unit is set to become operational in three-four months.

Apart from that, the company has already bought land for setting up an edible oil refinery in Kandla and is currently in advanced stage of talks for another refinery near Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT).

"Our attempt would be to create consumer awareness for the benefit for use of packaged edible oil in which we have added vitamin A, D and E to our existing brand 'Healthy & Tasty'. Our biggest fight is with lose oil which normally comes with lots of adulteration. Therefore, we plan to roll out our small sachet pack of Rs 5 and Rs 10 nationwide in few years," said Sudhakar Desai, Chief Executive Officer, Emami Agrotech Ltd, a subsidiary of Emami Ltd.