MCF to invest Rs 500 cr in retail foray

Vijay Mallya-controlled Mangalore Chemicals and Fertilisers Ltd (MCF)has embarked on an agri project initiative with a twin objective of helping farmers use best farming practices and offer the consumer good-quality staples and vegetables.

“The project is aimed at providing comprehensive services to farmers that include farm advisory, soil/water management and nutrition management, aimed at improving the yield, quality and the returns to the farmer. The company will source the staples and vegetables from the farmers at prevailing market prices and supply them to modern retailers and other bulk buyers,” Vijay Mallya said at one of the UB Group companies’ AGM.

 

Addressing the shareholders of United Breweries (Holdings) Ltd recently, he said the company will sell the products under the ‘Navodaya’ brand name and market these across its operational territory in the states of Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

MCF, engaged in the manufacture of urea, DAP and other fertilisers, will invest close to Rs 500 crore in this venture over the next five years to establish the network that includes setting up of collection and distribution centres, processing, grading, packing and cold chain, said Managing Director Deepak Anand.

The company, which plans to set up 20 collection and distribution hubs, has already set up two centres in Hassan and Chikmagalur on a pilot basis. It has tied up with 2,740 farmers with an area of 4,716 hectares in these two districts. It is currently buying vegetables, potato, paddy, red gram, Bengal gram, maize, soyabean, onion and barley.

It has set up facilities for cleaning, grading, sorting the vegetables and cold storages to store. It is currently selling at Mangalore, Bangalore, Hubli and Davanagere.

“A large number of farmers in our country lack scientific farming practices. We have a large team of agricultural scientists in our company and through them, we will impart best growing practices to farmers and in return, buy back the produce from them and market it to consumers. With this not only the farmer gets benefited, the consumer also is assured of good quality produce,” Anand told Business Standard.