Leveraging the edible oil market buoyancy in the country, Hyderabad-based refined oil-seller Saraiwwalaa Agrr Refineries Ltd (SARL) is exploring new opportunities in high growth categories in the edible oil segment like rice bran and mustard oil as well as the branded food segment by launching atta, rice and foodgrain.
Talking to Deccan Herald, SARL Director Anjani Kumar Gupta said the company has established a footing in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, besides Karnataka and Maharashtra. “Once we stabilised in these states along with Chhattishgarh and Madhya Pradesh, we can solidify our presence nationally. Our international entry will be focussed on the S A Global Trading, a 100 per cent subsidiary set up to market rice in Singapore, Indonesia and other South East Asian countries,” he said.
Gupta said the group also has a strategic marketing tie-up in Dubai through New India Food Stuff for rice exports to the Middle East nations. “Going forward, we will also explore opportunities in South Africa for rice products and thus expand our global footprint,” he said.
SARL, led by its flagship brand Naturralle and 72 variants under different brands, is targeting a turnover of Rs 3,000 crore over the next three years.
“The Naturralle Refined Sunflower Oil, the best quality and value for money product from the company, is rich in Omega 6 and Vitamins A, D and E. We have registered an annual turnover of Rs 2,000 crore for fiscal 2014,” Gupta said.
The consumption of edible oil in the country was at 18.1 million tonnes for the fiscal 2014 and is expected to increase to 23 million tonnes by 2019-20 growing at 4 per cent per annum.
Oil consumption
“The current sunflower oil market in India is over Rs 180 billion. There is a huge growing demand for sunflower oil in India as consumers are getting more health conscious and alert about their health. Sunflower oil contributes 11 per cent of the total edible oil consumption in the country and is steadily growing at a rate of 10 per cent per annum.
When asked about the challenges of the industry, he said that besides challenges like high operating costs and less capacity utilisation, edible oil companies have faced the heat of procurement cost of oil and economic pitfalls.
The company expects revenue projections for 2014-15 at Rs 2,150 crore. Currently, the breakup of sales revenue for branded, institutional and value-added fats and bulk/loose oil are 40:20:40 respectively.
SARL is a Rs 2,000 crore company with asset base of Rs 250 crore. SARL has already invested Rs 50 crore in the last five years towards brand building activity.
On further expansion plans, Gupta said SARL is open to looking at forging strategic partnerships or buyouts to increase its presence across the country.