Britannia Ind to set up Odisha plant this fiscal

Britannia Industries Ltd (BIL) will start production of bakery products at its upcoming manufacturing facilities in Bihar and Odisha (Orissa) a in 12-18 months, managing director Vinita Bali said on Friday.

“These will be large plants and we are looking to start operating them in over next year or a year and half,” Bali said, adding that the company would be investing Rs70-90 crore over the next year.

Britannia has been investing as much annually for last 5 years, she said.Bali was in Mumbai to announce the launch of a new diabetic-friendly biscuit the company is launching under its NutriChoice brand.

The company, which has effected a mix of price hikes and grammage reductions on its products over the past two years, is not ruling out further price hikes.

“We do it (price hikes) all the time. Prices of sugar, wheat and milk continue to go up. But our brands command a premium in price by 8-10%,” Bali said.

The company, which recently de-listed itself from the Calcutta Stock Exchange, said however that it would continue to manufacture from Taratala in Kolkata. “We are not shutting the plant in Taratala and we continue to produce products there,” Bali said.