Srinivasa Farms to invest in startups, enter allied business

Srinivasa Farms Pvt. Ltd, a poultry company, plans to set up a family office under its delisted group firm Srinivasa Hatcheries Ltd. It seeks to invest in startups and pursue a collaborative growth model to enter into allied businesses such as retail, processed foods and agri-businesses, besides ready-to-eat and ready-to-make products.

The company is also aiming to double its revenue in the next three-four years.

After delisting in 2015, Srinivasa Hatcheries transferred its poultry business to Srinivasa Farms and holds assets such as old farms whose value is increasing. “This company will remain a family company and will invest in start-ups like agri-businesses,” said Suresh Chitturi, vice chairman and managing director of Srinivasa Farms.

In the September quarter, the company had raised ₹150 crore from the International Finance Corporation, the private sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, to fund its expansion.

“Over the next 3-4 years we will invest over ₹300 crore in doubling our capacities and extending our retail footprint and getting into allied businesses,” said Chitturi. The company is looking to raise additional funds through debt and internal accruals, he added.

Srinivasa Farms had in 2017 ventured into retail with eight stores in Andhra Pradesh. By 2022, the company will have 300 stores in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Chitturi said. It could be an omnichannel model with an online component, in which the firm will partner with an e-tailer for enabling online ordering and deliveries.

In the past year, it has also announced plans to launch a poultry-focused mega food park in collaboration with Malaxmi Group in Prakasam district of Andhra Pradesh.

The company is trying to get manufacturers of ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook products, like biryani, curry mixes, packaged omelette and juices, to set up base in the food park. The company’s retail footprint will help sell these products under a joint collaboration model, said Chitturi.

In 2017, Srinivasa Farms joined hands with US-based poultry firm Hy-Line International to expand globally. In 2016-17, it recorded revenue of ₹750 crore.

Chitturi, who is also the vice chairman of the International Egg Commission, is engaged with global bodies such as World Organisation for Animal Health and World Health Organization.

According to a 2017 study in the journal, Environmental Health Perspectives,based on random tests on 18 poultry farms in India, 87% of the birds tested for meat consumption had super germs, which are capable of thwarting all but the most potent antibiotics, said a Bloomberg report.

According to the National Action Plan For Egg And Poultry—2022, published by the central government’s department of animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries, the poultry sector in India was valued at about ₹80,000 crore in 2015-16.

Source:-https://www.livemint.com/Companies/0TQA3KPDLsKapnjXW5YbMJ/Srinivasa-Farms-to-invest-in-startups-enter-allied-business.html

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