Khet-Se Agriproduce India Pvt. Ltd., a 50:50 JV of Tata Chemicals Limited and Total Produce, Ireland (TOTAL PRODUCE) launched it operations today with its first state-of-the-art procurement and distribution facility for fresh fruits and vegetables at Malerkotla, Punjab. Khet-Se is a B2B cash and carry business for fresh fruit and vegetables sourcing, packaging and distribution across India.
Operations of its 1st such centre has been started today, which will cater to the requirements of Ludhiana and Patiala. This distribution centre has the facility of sorting, grading and packing of all fresh produce; 4 Ripening Chambers of 10 MT capacity each (to ripen fruits like Banana) and 4 Cold Storages of 25 MT each.
Speaking at the occasion Mr. Homi Khusrokhan, Chairman, Khet-Se Agriproduce India Pvt. Ltd. And Managing Director, Tata Chemicals Limited, said, “Being in the forefront of this exciting time provides us with an opportunity to innovate and create a new business model that will be a first of its kind in the country. There is nothing more satisfying for our business than the fact that it is contributing to the upliftment of the farmers and small retailers and enabling them to grow, not by handing out sops, but by making the basic tenets of their business self sustaining.”
Mr Eugene Caulfield, MD, Corporate Development, Total Produce, said, “Total Produce is honoured to be associated with such a fine organisation as Tata Chemicals. Tata Chemicals has strong links with Indian farmers with its sales of fertilisers, chemicals and other grower requirements through its network of Tata Kisan Sansar distribution centres throughout India. This will help Khet-Se have a big advantage in sourcing high quality fresh produce.”
Mr G.R Goves Chief Executive Khet Agriproduce India Pvt Ltd, added that Khet-Se aims to bridge the gap between producer and end consumer which will significantly increase efficiencies, improve shelf-life and reduce product loss in the supply chain. For this, it has already partnered with farmers to develop their skills to raise the quality of Indian farm produce through training on good agricultural practices. Similarly Khet-Se plans to partner with small retailers and help them in developing competencies to manage their business more effectively. He also said that the next Khet-Se distribution centre will begin operations in Mumbai in the next 6 months.
Khet-Se will be bringing about a change in the way the fresh produce category operates by targeting the small fruit and vegetable retailer through its conveniently located wholesale stores. It will only cater to registered B2B customers such as small retailers, organised retailers the institutional segments comprising of hotels, restaurants and caterers. Khet-Se offers the benefit of hygienically handled, high quality produce which is delivered absolutely fresh to its B2B customer segments.
About Total Produce
Total Produce is one of the leading operators within the European general produce sector. The group generates a turnover in excess of EUR 2 billion, has almost 3,900 employees and trades from more than 80 facilities throughout Europe with operations in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Italy, Holland, Belgium, France, the Czech republic and Slovakia. The company also has an operation in India. The group is comprised of the general produce business, which was demerged from Fyffes Plc on 30 December 2006. Shares in Total Produce were admitted to trading on the IEX and AIM markets of the Dublin and London stock exchanges on the 2nd January 2007.