The Hindu Business Line : Godrej launches breakfast cereal under Sofit brand

AFTER the success of its first health food product, Sofit soya milk, the foods division of Godrej Industries has ventured into the breakfast cereal market.

It has launched wheat cereals under Sofit, the umbrella brand for products containing soya. And on the anvil are more products containing soya and a host of juice and nectar variants.

The Godrej Industries' Foods Division Executive Director, Mr M.P. Pusalkar, told Business Line that the foods division expects to post revenues of Rs 230 crore this fiscal, a 15-per cent growth over 2003-04. "We are looking at launching several new products in the juice and nectar category, enhancing the health foods portfolio and consolidation of the edible oils business."

Besides the Sofit brand, the foods division also deals in `Xs' and `Jumpin' juice and nectar brands, Cook Lite and Godrej range of edible oils, Godrej tomato puree and bakery fats. The division was created within Godrej Industries in 2002 after the demerger of the erstwhile Godrej Foods as a separate company, which now trades only in oil.

On the company's decision to foray into a market that established players found it tough to make headway in, Mr Pusalkar said Sofit was a product fortified with soya and had been priced "competitively." "Today, there is increasing health consciousness among consumers and the benefits of soya are well known," he said.

The Rs 300-crore organised breakfast cereal market is dominated by Kellogg's, followed by regional brands such as Mohun Meakins and Bagrry's. Growing at about 10 per cent a year, the breakfast cereal category in India also includes such products as cornflakes and daliya. According to analysts, one of the prime reasons for the market's lacklustre growth is the Indian consumer's preference for Indian food for breakfast, besides extreme price sensitivity.

Mr Pusalkar said Sofit would be priced at Rs 30 per 200 gm; Kellogg's is priced at Rs 70.

Sofit is now sourced from a contract manufacturer and will be launched in the North since the region accounts for the bulk of the breakfast cereal market.

Mr Pusalkar said the company would focus on launching more products on the health platform, besides supplementing the two juice and nectar brands before summer arrives. He, however, declined to give further details of the new products being considered. Asked about plans for the edible oils business, he said the company was a "small" player and there were no plans now to expand this portfolio.

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