FieldFresh targets turnover of Rs 500 cr

Field Fresh Foods (P) Ltd, a 50:50 joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and Del Monte Pacific India Ltd (DMPL), is targeting a turnover of Rs 500 crore in the next three years.

Also it will enter into agreements with thousands of farmers in the country for contract farming, including Punjab, for horticulture produce.

Further, the company announced today that it had been permitted by the Punjab government to directly procure fresh produce from farmers in the state. The company has set up a procurement facility in Ludhiana.

The chief executive officer of the company, Rohtas Mal, said, "We are targeting a business of Rs 500 crore in the next three years, and 30 per cent of it from exports."

At present the company is exporting fresh fruits and vegetables to key markets, including the UK, West Asia and Europe.

FieldFresh today launched its fresh produce pack-house in Ladhowal, Ludhiana, which was inaugurated by Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal. The company has invested about Rs 50 crore in the facility and plans to pump in Rs 5-10 crore.

The facility has three packaging lines with a capacity to handle 16 tonnes of various vegetables per hour and has a 500-tonne cold storage.

On the occasion, Bharti Enterprises Vice-Chairman Rakesh Bharti Mittal said, "This state-of-the-art pack house will provide the much needed strength to cold chain infrastructure in the state and help us better serve our customers in India as well as international markets."

Recently, the company undertook an initiative for its partner farmers in Punjab under which 80 of its partner farmers received the internationally acclaimed Eurepgap certification.

Mal added that the company had plans to rope in about 1,000 farmers under this programme by July next year. This is expected to provide a further boost to the export of fresh produce from Punjab to overseas markets.