Perfetti van Melle to increase Indian plant capacity
27 September 2010 – Perfetti van Melle is set to increase capacity in a plant in southern India, says the company’s managing director, Sameer Suneja, in the Hindu Business Line newspaper.
“Marketing efforts in the South have been paying off over the last two years and the current capacity of 17,000 tonnes would be hiked by more than 50 per cent.
The Indian branch of Perfetti van Melle, PVM India, manufactures brands such as Alpenliebe, Center Fresh, Center Shock, Happydent, Chlormint and Mentos. The company has also launched a variant of its bubblegum Big Babol called Fili-folly in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. It has also launched Mentos Gum.
The company’s total capacity at present is 70,000 tonnes, with production spread over three plants in Rudrapur (Uttarakhand), Manesar (Haryana) and Chennai. It also exports to other countries in the Asian region.
Suneja notes that the Indian market is growing at 12% per annum. Within this, chewing gums and éclairs are doing better than mints and fruit-flavoured candy. Hardboiled candy and lollipops are growing at a slower pace. “The future lies in innovating with high-value packs, pocket bottles and flip tops,” he concludes.