To tickle your palate with the taste and aroma of your favourite biryani or the special rice dish you like, the retail sector will soon offer more choices in basmati rice.

The number of variants of the long, white, fine grain is on the increase in the domestic market. Pre-dominantly exported for sometime, rice traders and companies into basmati are now looking inward into the growing markets, especially retail chains.

Boasting of a turnover of Rs 1,300 crore, Best Foods Ltd., the specialised basmati rice player, has come up with five variants of the rice. Two are focussed on health and wellness—brown rice and organic rice, while the other three are premium, select and special, said Dr Aayushman Gupta, Business Director.

The retail boom and the changing consumer preferences have created opportunities to market the rice within India. “We have tied up with Spencers, Reliance, Big Bazaar etc and the new varieties with price points from Rs 60 to Rs 200, with special packaging to preserve quality and taste will be available,” he told news persons.

Best Foods is among the largest basmati players and has 75 per cent market from exports. It plans to grow the domestic market of basmati , which is approximately 7-8 million tonnes annually. The present growth rate is around 25-30 per cent, he said.

The company is in the process of firming up expansion plans, though the present capacities meet the demands. Best Foods sources basmati from different mandis and puts it through quality process at its Karnal plant before retailing it to distributors across India and overseas, Dr Gupta explained.

In India, at present, 90 million tonnes of nearly 4,000 varieties of rice are grown of which basmati accounts for less than 10 per cent. Best Foods, announced its entry into the Hyderabad market, which is the ‘ biryani capital' and has an off take of 4,000-5,000 tonnes. “We will tie up with distributors, retailers, hotels and institutions to familiarise our products,” Dr Gupta said.

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