ITC Enters The Dairy Whitener Market With Its Sunfresh Brand

ITC has entered the dairy whitener market with the launch of its new brand, Sun Fresh. The FMCG conglomerate aims to target the growing market valued at over Rs. 1,370 crore. The Sunfresh brand will provide direct competition to market leaders Nestle and Amul, with both companies owning a 85% market share. Recently, ITC has said that it intends to cross the Rs. 10,000 crore mark in its food business and with the launch of new products to various categories, the company aims to reach those lofty goals in the coming years. 

New Launch

ITC will launch the new dairy whitener brand in markets which generate significant revenue in this specific category – West Bengal, Kerala and North-East. The regions account for 60 percent of the total dairy whitener business in the country, with the North-East region providing nearly Rs. 30 crore in business due to milk-deficit in the region, according to Economic Times. Speaking about the launch of the second dairy product in its ever-growing portfolio, Sanjiv Puri, ITC executive director, said, “Our intention is to craft differentiated and value-added products in the dairy segment which would be hallmark of quality.” According to an ITC official speaking to ET, 65 quality tests are performed on Sunfresh Dairy Whitener to maintain consistent quality in every pack. 

Coping With Competition 

With the launch of Sunfresh, the company aims to target several categories in the dairy segment to compete with Nestle and Amul. Currently, Nestle Everyday holds 48 percent of market share in he dairy whiteners market, while Amul’s Amulya has the second spot with 38 percent. ITC aims to target this specific market which has a growth rate of nearly 6% per year. Speaking about ITC’s plans, B Sumant, president-FMCG business, ITC, said, “Our focus is on crafting value-added products in the dairy segment which would be superior and differentiated. We would soon enter few more categories in the dairy business.” The company first entered the dairy market with the launch of its brand Aashirvaad ghee. 

Planned Expansion

ITC’s Sunfresh will be manufactured in its own facility in Munger, Bihar and will be launched in the three leading dairy whitener markets in the country – North East, West-Bengal and Kerala. Further expansion of the product reach is planned in the coming months. The Sunfresh packaging formats will include sachets which will be available in Rs. 5 and Rs. 10 packs and as well as 200g and 400g packs.