Japan's top egg producer ISE Foods keen to invest $275 million in Odisha

The firm seeks to build a complete, integrated ecosystem for egg production, with poultry farm, post harvest management, feed mill factory and skilling unit

Odisha’s food processing sector, one of the six focus sectors listed in its industrial policy statement of 2015, has got a major boost with a Japanese investment in the offing.

ISE Foods Inc, Japan’s leading egg producer, is in talks with state government officials to invest $275 million (approximately Rs 17 billion) on a slew of projects.

With an annual turnover of Rs 30 billion, the Tokyo-based firm is keen to develop a complete, integrated ecosystem for egg production, including a poultry farm, post harvest management, feed mill factory and facility for training & skill development. All the projects need about 100 acres of land.

To woo Japanese investors, the state government was contemplating developing an exclusive cluster for them, along the lines of one offered in Rajasthan. The government here has identified 600 acres of land on Bhubaneswar’s periphery. The land is proposed to be developed as a multi-product park where companies from Japan can set up their units. A delegation of key state officials had visited Japan in November last year to showcase its investor-friendly policies and the incentives on offer. The state government is prepared to review the wish list of Japanese investors and endow them with the necessary facilitation and support.

ISE Foods Inc had already signed a pact with the Union government prior to evincing its interest in Odisha. The company aims to work on supply chain integration including areas such as backward linkages with farmers, cold storage, solar and biomass-based renewable energy.

A delegation led by the company’s founder is slated to meet the heads of relevant departments in Odisha on April 30, said a source in the know.

ISE Foods carries out all processes from raising breeders, hatching eggs, raising pullets and layer hens to egg collection, packing and delivery.

Though Odisha has drawn some of the key players in the food processing policy, it has hitherto attracted only one investment in this space from Japan. Instant noodle maker Indo Nissin Foods Ltd, a subsidiary of Japan-based Nissin Foods Holdings is already having its presence in the state with a production facility at Khurda.

The Odisha Industrial Development Plan envisages that by 2025, the state will have Rs 198 billion investment in food processing, generating about 800,000 indirect and direct jobs.

Some of the major domestic brands are already operating at the Khurda Food Park on the city’s outskirts and availing the sops declared by the state government. Britannia Industries Ltd, Parle Agro and Anmol Biscuits are among the companies that have already sunk in investments at the food park.

For providing renewed impetus to the sector, the state government had rolled out the Odisha Food Processing Policy, 2016.

The Policy aims to increase the flow of investments in the sector across the value chain from farm to market, increase shelf life and reduce wastage of farm produce. It provides fiscal and non-fiscal incentives, infrastructure development, skill development and a cluster approach for development of the sector.