Nitta Gelatin Ltd (NGIL), which has introduced a nutritional supplement Gelixer Collagen Pep for bone and joint health, is planning to launch the product in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and other metro cities shortly.

In its efforts to reach customers directly, the company has revamped its Web site to make it more consumer-friendly so that the products are made available online.

Mr G. Suseelan, Managing Director, NGIL, said at a press meet here on Wednesday that the product, which is now available in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, had gained acceptance among common man and well received in the market.

The shifting of strategy from B2B to B2C has given the company a thorough understanding of the dynamics of marketing and consumer perception and behaviour, he said.

NGIL, a joint venture between Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation and Nitta Gelatin Inc, Japan, is perhaps one of the few government promoted companies in India to foray into consumer marketing by launching OTC products, he added.

New products

There are also plans to introduce few more new products before the end of the financial year 2011-12. The new products are targeted at those with Osteoporosis, sports men and women and dancers. Clinical studies are over and discussions are in progress with Sports Authority of India in this regard.

The company is also working out a formulation for bedsore, which will be available in the market only through prescription route. Reports of this product are positive after clinical trials, he said.

According to Mr Suseelan, NGIL has taken the lead through R&D to manufacture gelatine from other sources than from the conventional bones. He pointed out that the annual requirement of bones for the company is 40,000 tonnes and of this, 15 per cent was procured from Kerala and the rest from UP, Bihar, Haryana and Maharashtra.

The last six months have been tough for the company since raw material costs have increased substantially. Supplies of crushed bones and hydrochloric acid, which are the basic raw materials for producing gelatine, were erratic and this impacted production. However, the material prices have stabilised and the production is progressing as planned, he said.

The company has also started trial production of gelatine from fish scales as there is a niche potential for gelatine in the export market, he said, adding that the company hopes to close the current fiscal with a turnover of Rs 250 crore against Rs 210 crore achieved in the previous fiscal.

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