Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Friday, Apr 25, 2003
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Friday, Apr 25, 2003 |
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Marketing
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Strategy Nestle Purina to enter Indian pet food market Ratna Bhushan
NEW DELHI, April 24 HERE'S good news for pet owners. Purina, the world's largest pet food maker, is set to enter the Indian market, industry sources told Business Line. Ralston Purina was acquired by Nestle SA in 2001, and spun off as a separate company — Nestle Purina PetCare Company. Purina's leading products globally include Purina Dog Chow, One and Proplan, Friskies Cat food and Cat Chow, besides other specialised veterinary diet products, all of which have specialised variants. The Indian pet food market is estimated at 5,000 tonnes, and growing 10-15 per cent, according to industry estimates. While 30 per cent of this market comprises imported products, the remaining products are locally manufactured. Imported pet food products in Indian currently include Mars brand Royal Canine, Propack and Eukamba, besides other brands such as Eagle. Locally manufactured brands include Nutripet, which is being manufactured in Bangalore since 1983, Pedigree from Mars, and regional brands Champ and Robust, among others. Another global major, Mars, has already set up a pet food manufacturing facility in Hyderabad. According to industry analysts, the reason why the pet food market is now registering healthy growth rates is because home-cooked food is being substituted with branded pet food. "Indian pet owners have traditionally fed pets with home-cooked food. But the trend is rapidly changing in favour of branded pet foods, because these provide balanced diet and pets do have specialised nutritional needs," said an analyst. Purina, the global leader in pet foods, has almost a 27 per cent share of the pet food market worldwide. Nestle Purina has a research and development centre at St Louis, US. Purina has 75 years experience in developing worldclass pet foods. Nestle Purina PetCare company is based in St. Louis, Missouri. Nestle SA had acquired the pet care company for $10.3 billion. Nestle India's spokesperson was unavailable for comment.
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