INDIA – Nestlé, Swiss multinational food, and drink conglomerate corporation, has revealed its plans to invest US$108.9m to set up a new food processing unit in Eastern India.
According to the company’s filing, this follows approval from the State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA)) as informed by the Indian Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha (IPICOL).
In response to analysts, a Nestlé India spokesperson said the company made an application for allotment of land in Odisha, for setting up the manufacturing unit.
“We are given to understand that State Level Single Window Clearance Authority (SLSWCA) has approved the proposal,” he said.
The filling also indicated that Nestlé which is also the largest F&B company in India, will be setting up a manufacturing plant to primarily produce packaged food items.
“The company plans to invest close to US$109.7m to set up the packaged foods plant and may employ nearly 800 people,” it said.
“The new factory will be the 10th manufacturing plant for Nestlé in India, which has been operational in the country since 1912.”
While Nestlé entered the Indian market with its baby formula products and used to import the products initially, it set up its first plant here in 1961 at Moga in Punjab.
With its sales growing rapidly in recent years, Nestlé set up its ninth plant in Sanand, Gujarat, last year with an investment of over US$85.3m to ramp up the local production of its hot-selling Maggi instant noodles.
These initiates are a part of Nestlé India’s US$31.6m capex plant that its Chairman and Managing Director Suresh Narayanan unveiled a couple of years ago.
“Over the years, we have delivered penetration and volume growth that was industry-leading for most of this period. Secondly, our portfolio is stronger than ever and Nestle leads in multiple categories that it is present in. And third, the pace of innovation is fairly active,” Narayanan said.
Narayanan’s endeavour to increase Nestlé’s production capacity is not without a rationale. During the Covid-19 period, its net sales grew at 11 per cent CAGR to US$20.4m.
However, despite the steep inflation in commodity prices, its net profit rose by 6.7 per cent CAGR to Rs 2,305 crore in CY22. Nestle follows a January-December financial year.
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