Food for thought

Jamnagar, March 18: In a major diversification move, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is planning a foray into the processed food sector.

The company has quietly made a beginning at Jamnagar through a little known company Jamnagar Farms Private Ltd (JFPL). This group company of RIL has planted commercial crop on 1000 acres.

Company sources said agri-processing would fit in well with its proposed foray into retail business.

“We are firming up a strategy to enter the retail sector. Within the next six months, we will take the proposal to the board,” a company executive said. It has earmarked a $750-million kitty for the retail push.

Born out of the necessity to create a green belt around the 33-million-tonne refinery here, the company has carved out a part of it to grow mango, cashew and grape among others.

Last year, the company had produced 300 tonnes of mango and made pulp out of 100 tonnes. “We employed contract manufacturing to process the mangoes and the produce was exported,” a Reliance official said.

While export will remain a focus area for the company, the produce from Jamnagar and other places would also find place in the retail outlets that the petrochemical major plans to set up across the country.

In the next three years, the company is hoping to produce 3500 tonnes of mango out of Jamnagar only. Spread over 450 acres having over 1 lakh trees, Jamnagar is already one of the largest mango plantations on a single location in the country. It is growing different varieties of mango with an eye on both domestic and international markets.

“We are in talks with state governments of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka for agri-business,” an official confirmed.

The Jamnagar experience ? where it has already invested Rs 10 crore ? will come in handy for the company to replicate it in other states.

It is employing all the latest technologies ? using treated waste water and drip irrigation system ? to grow mango in what used to be an arid land here. The rate of return from this business is likely to be 30 per cent on an annualised basis.

The research and development team is now looking at growing mango varieties that would bear fruit round the year.

Apart from mango, 29 other horticultural items have already been identified. In the long run, the biggest cash crop for JFPL would be teak wood, company officials said.