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"We plan to quadruple capacity in 3-4 years"
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Wednesday, 19 October, 2016, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Harcha Bhaskar
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 Established in year 1997, Indo Bakels, a subsidiary of the Bakels Worldwide Group, has grown to become a group of 40 companies. The company has manufacturing facilities in all five continents and serves 120 countries.
The international technology adopted by the company specifically develops the products to meet the unique needs of the Indian market.
With various bakery ingredients products in its portfolio, the company serves the craft, industrial, supermarket, bread, pastry, cake and confectionery industry in India.
In an e-mail interaction with Harcha Bhaskar, Anup R Agnihotri, managing director, Indo Bakels Pvt Ltd, shared details on capacity expansion, distribution and new launches. Excerpts:
Tell us about Indo Bakel. When was it established? Where is the manufacturing facility located? What is its per-day production capacity?
Indo Bakels is part of the Bakels group of companies.
We develop, manufacture, distribute and technically support bakery ingredients for every market and product sector - craft, industrial, supermarket, bread, pastry, cake and confectionery - in India.
Our office is based in Mumbai, the financial capital of India, and we have a manufacturing facility at Khopoli (approximately 60km from Mumbai airport). We have the capacity to produce over 200 tonne of bakery ingredients per month.
What is the technology used in manufacturing of products? Are the technology and equipment made in India or imported? If imported, from which country?
We have a manufacturing facility producing world-class products. We have technological support from various group companies.
What are the various ingredients manufactured by you? What are their various applications?
At our manufacturing facility in Khopoli, we produce bread improvers, cake mixes, biscuit improvers, fruit-flavoured fillings and toppings, cake emulsifiers, bread mixes, etc.
Which companies, outlets, hotels and restaurants do you serve, and what are your products?
We are a B2B company serving most of the major players in the bakery industry with our ingredients. From bread manufacturers to cake manufacturers to large biscuit giants, hotel chains, supermarkets and standalone stores. We have 60 distributors across India, and our products are available in 100 cities across the country.
How is the need of each sector different from those of others? Accordingly, how do you customise your services and products?
We serve the cake, bread and biscuit segments by offering our customers with global insights and technical support. We have a team of application specialists who do joint projects with the customers and offer solutions which could fulfil their needs and fit into their systems.
What are the current trends witnessed by you in the bakery ingredients sector?
The bakery industry is growing very well in all the segments. People of looking for high quality products with a great taste and look, but they should be healthy as well. Consumers have started asking for sugar-free, gluten-free, multi-grain and multi-fibre products in all the bakery segments.
Compared to other countries, how big is India’s bakery sector? At what rate it is growing? How has it evolved over the years?
India’s bakery sector is growing at 10-12 per cent, but it is very small compared to the population base that we have in India. The industry is growing due to growing urbanisation, improved spending power of Indian consumers and exposure to global foods, tastes and cultures.
Now people are studying abroad, doing jobs there and coming back to India to establish their businesses in many different sectors, including bakery. It is helping the industry improve the overall quality, taste and global appeal.
What new product would you be launching in the coming 2-3 years? Who would be your targets for those products?
We would be focussing on products which are healthy and going to be easy to use by our customers. Our idea is to provide value to the industry. As a group, Bakels has been into bakery ingredients for over 110 years. It is important that we lead by example and stay ahead of the game.
Tell us about your technical staff. What kind of training process do they go through?
We have a 10-member application support team, which is trained two or three times a year by our global technical team.
Is there any expansion plan for the company?
We are growing at a healthy rate. Coupled with the launch of our new products, we have an aggressive growth plan to quadruple our capacity in the next three or four years.
Currently, what R&D is happening in the company? When is the output expected?
Most of our regional R&D happens in our Asia support centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We are working mainly on various cake mixes, which have been launched during this festive season. It includes egg-free vanilla and chocolate premixes, vanilla and chocolate premixes with egg, brownies, Choco Lava etc. This year, we would be launching 15 products.
Is the company into exports? If yes, to which countries and what products?
No. We serve only India. Our group companies, which have manufacturing sites across 40 countries, serve 120 countries. Indo Bakels is completely focussed on this market only.
What are your views on regulations for bakery ingredients in India? Do you have any suggestions?
I think we have a long way to go as far as regulations in India are concerned. The industry itself will have to take initiatives in this direction and offer safe products to the consumers.
As a key player in the industry, we take utmost care while introducing any product in the market in terms of the country’s regulations and the safety of consumers.
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