Indian multinational congolomerate Mahindra & Mahindra, known primarily as an automobile manufacturer, is to launch its own fresh fruit brand in November as it looks to build itsagribusiness division, opening up the possibility of new growth for imported produce in what remains one of the world's most promising consumer markets.
According to a report in The Economic Times, the Mumbai-based company has already tied up deals for the Saboro brand – the name means 'taste' in Spanish – with leading Indian food retailers including Godrej Nature's Basket and Heritage Foods, and is said to be in discussions with Reliance Fresh.
The first products to emerge as part of the Saboro range will be apples from Kinnaur in the northern Indian region of Himachal Pradesh, which will be rolled out to 15 outlets in the city of Hyderabad.
Other items set to be included in the range during phase two of its roll-out will be bananas, mangoes and grapes – the latter are already exported by Mahindra's fruit business subsidiary Mahindra Shubhlabh Services – while the group is also understood to be looking at importing citrus and pears from South America, kiwifruit from Australia, counter-seasonal apples from the US and China, and exotic fruit such as dragon fruit, passion fruit and star fruit.
'Consumers want consistent quality, backed by a trusted brand and are willing to pay a 5-10 per cent premium,' said Ashok Sharma, chief executive of Mahindra's agri and allied business.
K Ravindranath, a fresh produce marketing executive at Heritage Foods, told the newspaper: 'The Indian fruits and vegetables market today is faced with a challenge of delivering continuous and consistent quality fruits to the consumers.
'As a retailer our biggest struggle today is to deliver this consistency, for which we have to check every lot that comes to our stores. With Mahindra, we can be sure that a consistent product experience will be delivered to our consumers.'
