US storage giant eyes tea sector business

The company started its operations in India last year, by supplying seed storage equipment to Bayer for about Rs 1 crore. Subsequently, it bagged several contracts for preserving Basmati rice in Punjab and Haryana.

Speaking at a press conference in Kolkata on Monday, Tom de Bruin, chairman, managing director and president, GrainPro, said last fiscal, the company achieved a turnover of $5 million globally, through its presence in more than 30 countries worldwide

In India, the company has opened an office in Kolkata, apart from its existing officers in Delhi and Mumbai.

West Bengal and the North east are of particular interest to GrainPro on account of the tea industry. Tea, being an extremely hygroscopic commodity, can turn stale due to an increase in humidity," said Ravi Verdi, chairman and managing director, B A Agro Hermatic Preservation Systems, the Indian company in-charge of marketing products by GrainPro. He also said the company was in talks with several tea estates for selling the storage facilities in West Bengal.

For storing food grains using traditional techniques like fumigation, the cost of preserving a tonne of food grain comes around Rs 450 per year. In case of GrainPro, the one-time cost for the same is close to Rs 800 per meric tonne.

The company usually provides containers, which enable the natural release of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, in food grains, which in turn enhances the shelf life of the grains.

Food grain wastage could be reduced from the existing level of an average 15 per cent of the total produce, to about 5 per cent by use of the technology provided by GrainPro, said Verdi. Apart from tea, paddy was another commodity of interest for GrainPro in West Bengal, he added.