McCain Foods to source 85% potatoes from Gujarat

Having made Gujarat its preferred destination, the Indian arm of the largest producer of French fries-McCain Foods will procure a lion's share of 85 percent of potatoes from the state.

McCain India aims to increase its supply of potatoes from Gujarat by four-fold in the next year.

"We have set up a potato processing plant in Deesa, in north Gujarat which will be functional by July following which we plan to even export to neighbouring countries," said to Jaideep Mukherji, country manager for McCain Foods India.

Currently the company has to import potatoes from other countries to India to meet their requirements. With the implementation of the unit, it will be the first year for McCain India to go into full-fledged commercialization.

The plant has capacity to process 30,000 tonnes of potatoes annually with an investment of Rs 70 crore.

McCain Foods is the world's largest producer of French fries and potato specialities and it is said that one in every three French fries consumed in the world is from McCain. It has an annual sale of over $6 billion worldwide.

The company promotes contract farming and it will buy potatoes from over 100 farmers spread over Anand, Borsad, Panalnpur and Deesa.

The area under cultivation is about 300 acres the harvesting season of which will start by March, Jaideep said.

While majority farmers of Deesa have shifted from Kufri Chandramukhi (KCM) to Kufri Badshah as the latter provides more yield, McCain has re-introduced the variety by implementing modern technologies like drip irrigation and sprinkler.

"Besides one does not need to have much gap between rows for tractors if he is using sprinkler. This will also increase the produce," said Devendra Kumar, Agriculture Manager for McCain Foods India. "From 25 tonnes we have accomplished 35 tonnes per hectare for KCM."

"McCain has tried over 13 varieties in Gujarat of which 3 have yielded favourably. Besides KCM, we have been successful with Kennebec and Shepodi variety," he further said.

Kufri Badshah is not suitable as it contains about 85 per cent water whereas for processed food 25 per cent solid is required, he revealed.

"Punjab and Himachal are ideal for growing seeds but for the quality of potatoes we want the long season of Gujarat and fog-free climate prove ideal," according to Jaideep. During the stop gap period, the company acquires potatoes from Punjab.

The company has its own research farms dedicated to refining the pracitise of agriculture and sharing new techniques and practiced with farmers.

As per a recent analysis carried out by the company across several parts including Agra, Farukhabad, Indore, Punjab, Hoogli, Ujjain and parts of West Bengal it was found Deesa had the highest yield.

Currently there are 2000 acres of drip irrigation in Gujarat for potato farming that have been introduced by McCain.