ITC to pump in Rs 150 cr for foray into snacks biz

New Delhi, Mar 14: ITC Ltd's Food Division today expanded itsproduct portfolio with the launch of 'Bingo' snacks and said it willpump in Rs 150 crore over the next two years.

ITC, country's leading cigarette maker, aims to grab 25 per centmarket share of the Rs 2,000 crore organised market in the nextfour-to-five years.

''We have already invested Rs 60-70 crore for our foray into thesnacks segment. In a couple of years we will be investing Rs 150 crorefor the foray,'' Mr Ravi Naware, Divisional Chief Executive, ITC foodsdivision said at a conference here.

The launch of Bingo in 16 flavours represents ITC Foods' fifthmajor line of foods business after staples, biscuits, ready-to-eat andconfectionery businesses.

Major companies like Pepsi India and Britannia Industries Ltd alsoexist in the organised snack foods category which is growing at a rateof 30 per cent.

Mr Hemant Malik, Head (Marketing), ITC Ltd, talking about themarketing plans for the product, said ''The new brand will leverage theretail and marketing expertise of ITC Foods to establish reach acrossthe target markets.'' ITC's Bingo brand will initially sell varietiesof potato chips and finger snacks priced at Rs 5 and Rs 10 per pack.

Demand is growing on rising incomes, a preference for packed foods and the expansion of modern retail, he said.

Bingo has been strategically timed around the cricket world cup toleverage the tremendous popularity that such leisure and cocktailsnacks will find among cricket lovers in the country.

The organised snacks category is sub-divided into the traditionalsegment (bhujia and chanachur), Western segment (potato chips andcheese balls ) and the newly established finger snacks segment, whichis an adaptation of traditional offerings to the western format.

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