Ladakh Foods to expand portfolio  ( February '25,2004, HBL)

LFL currently supplies Leh Berry to the army as part of rations to troops deployed in high altitude areas, besides supplying to defence stores.

AFTER stepping into the territory of PepsiCo's Tropicana and Dabur Foods in the Rs 120-crore organised fruit juices category with its Leh Berry brand of seabuckthorn fruit nectar, Ladakh Foods Ltd (LFL) proposes to take on Hindustan Lever and Nestle.

LFL, a joint venture with Small Farmer's Agri-Business Consortium (SFAC) and the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (Nafed), plans to introduce jams, sauces and pickles within the course of the current year. According to Mr Varun Kumar, Managing Director, LFL, these products are currently in the research and development stage. All three products will be introduced under the Leh Berry banner and will comprise seabuckthorn as the common ingredient.

LFL's maiden product, Leh Berry fruit nectar, comes with a price advantage when compared with Tropicana and Real. While a 200 ml pack of Leh Berry comes for Rs 12 against Rs 15 at which Tropicana and Real are priced, one litre packs are priced at Rs 56 each against the Rs 65-72 price bracket which the competitors occupy. According to Mr Kumar, the company will continue to maintain a price advantage over competitors, even though its forthcoming flavours of juices (that of peach apple and mixed fruit) will be priced higher than that of Leh Berry's existing variant.

SFAC and Nafed hold 25 per cent equity in LFL, and the remaining equity is with Ladakh Foods. LFL has a packing tie-up with the foods division of Godrej Industries Ltd.

The company was set up in early 2002, while Leh Berry's production began in 2003. LFL's production facility in Leh, for fruit juice processing, has been set up with an investment of Rs 4.8 crore. The plant, set up with financial support from Exim Bank and ICICI Bank, has a processing capacity of 2,000 tonnes of seabuckthorn fruit juice and oil extraction per annum. According to Mr Kumar, Leh Berry clocked sales of Rs 2.5 crore in its the first year. With its proposed widened portfolio of products, LFL has projected sales of Rs 6-7 crore for December 2004.

LFL currently supplies Leh Berry to the army as part of rations to troops deployed in high altitude areas, besides supplying to defence stores and messes. In addition, the product is supplied to Air Sahara and Alliance Airlines, and talks are on for similar arrangements with the Railways.

The company has a technical collaboration with the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO).