Bisk Firm to diversify into bakery segment
Kolkata, Dec 11 (UNI) SAJ Food Products Pvt Ltd, the makers of Bisk Farm brand of biscuits, today announced diversification into the bakery segment, eyeing for a 30 per cent market share in the eastern region in the first six months.
A unit of the Rs 350-crore Aparna Group of Companies, SAJ plans to set up its third plant at Siliguri and launch a retail chain by the next year with a total investment of Rs 100 crore, Managing Director Vijay Singh said.
At present, the company has two plants at Sankrail in Howrah district.
" The biscuit market in eastern India is around 18,000 ton, valued approximately at Rs 70-80 crore per month as against 50 crore of the cake industry. But the growth in this segment should be in double digits as opposed to branded biscuits, which is at seven to eight per cent, " Mr Singh said.
He said the cake industry in eastern India was largely being dominated by Monginis, Sugar and Spice and Kathleen. " But our aim is to capture 30 per cent share of this market in the first six months and take leadership thereafter, " he said.
The MD informed that the company was diversifying into festive cakes, rusks, cookies in eastern India over the next three months.
Director Arpan Pal said was manufacturing a range of 27 brands of biscuits. With the addition of a bakery division, it had targetted to take the turnover to Rs 300 crore in 2008-09 from Rs 75 crore in 2006-07 and Rs 125 crore, as expected this fiscal.
UNI