Lotte planning to invest Rs 550 cr to expand ice cream business in India

South Korean food major Lotte Confectionary is expanding its presence in India's ice cream market, Mint has reported. To this end, the company is considering investing Rs 550 crore over five years to boost the production of Havmor Ice Cream.

The report said that Lotte acquired the Ahmedabad-based Havmor Ice Cream Ltd for Rs 1,020 crore and has been trying to upgrade its facilities, systems, and staff since the acquisition. Speaking on the subject, Managing Director of Havmor Ice Cream, Komal Anand told Mint, "We have planned investments of Rs 550 crore over the next five years."

The company plans to develop a state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Maharashtra's Pune district, which is expected to become operational by June 2024. This plant is one of the key elements of the company's expansion plan in the country. Havmor operates facilities in the Ahmedabad and Faridabad districts and is working to expand its capacity as the demand grows, leaving its current production capacity inadequate. The planned investment is expected to help the company ramp up production lines at its existing units.

Anand was further cited in the Mint report as saying, "This investment covers the six new lines we put up in our Faridabad facility as well as the new lines that will come up in the Pune plant in 2024". The company plans to invest Rs 40-50 crore towards beefing up its deep-freezing facilities.

Moreover, the report stated that the company will expand its distribution network as Havmor plans to strengthen its presence beyond key markets like Gujarat and Rajasthan and reach high-growth areas such as Maharashtra and South India.

As things stand, Havmor has around 70,000 selling points across the country, serving most urban markets. The company services these selling points using its 300-400 outsourced refrigerated vehicles with temperature monitoring systems.