JK Agri Enters Organic Food Market
Eyeing US and European market for export
JK Agri Genetics (JKAG) has announced its foray into the production, processing and marketing of organic agri products. JK Agri Genetics, based in Hyderabad, is a part of $2.5 billion JK Organisation. Organic food division of the company has already appointed 200-300 farmers across the country under contract farming. This year the company is eyeing crops including spices, oil seeds, grains and pulses for organic production. Later on JKAG has plans to diversify into herbal and medicinal plants.
T K Manik reddy, deputy general manager (imports and exports) of JK Agri Genetics, says, ''We are in the process of identifying land and suitable crops. We are expecting the production to begin during June-July and the export containers will be ready by September.'' For now the company is only focusing at the US and European Union markets. ''We will be scaling up our organic farm production next year and we are looking at Japan also as a potential market,'' adds Reddy.
This year the company is looking at a turnover of Rs. 10-15 crore, but confident that this could reach to Rs. 300 crore in just five years. JKAG recorded revenues of about Rs. 80 crore in the last fiscal.
Presently, the company has recognized lands in Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Utranchal, Karnataka and Rajasthan for contract farming of organic products. Each of its contract farmers appointed by the company has an average of 10 acres of land. The company hops that the premium pricing of organic products, which is 10-20% higher than inorganic product, in the market abroad will help it to overcome the problems associated with yield.
