Leh Berry to invest Rs 24 cr in Madhya Pradesh unit

Leh Berry, which has already established itself in the juice market of the country, is all set to expand its business by pumping Rs 24 crore in its existing processing plant in Madhya Pradesh. At present, the fresh juice market stands at Rs 650 crore.

Expecting a big boom in the market of juices and with the current annual growth of 45 per cent in overall market, the company had set up its new plant, said MS Dhanota, chief operating officer, Seabuckthorn Indage Ltd, said.

"At present, the processing is being done by Godrej with a capacity of 10 lakh litres per month but with the rising demand we have decided to start our own processing unit with three times more capacity," said Dhanota.

Without disclosing the name of the partner in the new venture Dhanota said talks were on with a Bhopal-based company for the packaging of the produce.

"The company to be contracted with is already an existing player who would be exclusive partners for packing," he added.

He said the plant would be operational in the next nine months but the final product would be made available in the next season only with the aim to capture 15 per cent of the domestic market.

"We are aiming to achieve the turnover of Rs 100 crore in the juice business as at present the company's financial position stands at Rs 35 crore," Dhanota said.

Talking about the export market, he said the potential is going and we are already exporting to 68 European countries.

The company is also in talks with Dubai and Europe-based firms to further expand in the export market and would be soon entering in 26 more countries after signing a joint venture with AMG group of London.