Del Monte Partners Bharti FieldFresh

[rgiridhar]

Business Standard 29-Sep-07


EL Rothschild Ltd, an equal stakes partner of Bharti Enterprises in FieldFresh Ltd, has sold 40 per cent of its holding to Del Monte Pacific Ltd, an agro operations, processing, marketing and distribution company that operates in the Philippines, China and India.

The choice of Del Monte as a strategic partner reflects the changing retail environment in the country and FieldFresh’s intent to move on from just fresh produce exports to domestic processing and sales.

The company now plans to enhance its focus on the Indian market— a pointer to its logical integration with the Bharti-Wal-Mart retail chain, which is in the works.

FieldFresh will also be a key component of the retail chain’s proposed cash-and-carry operations, while also undertaking exports as and when opportunities arise.

Rakesh Bharti Mittal, vice-chairman, Bharti Enterprises, said the tie-up with Del Monte would allow FieldFresh “to emerge as a significant player in the processed and branded food products segment”.

EL Rothschild will stay in the company as a minority partner, holding around 10 per cent of FieldFresh equity. As part of the deal, FieldFresh has also decided to acquire Del Monte Foods India’s mango pulp and puree manufacturing facilities in India.

No financial details were revealed for the transactions. FieldFresh is a privately-held company. Bharti Enterprises will continue to hold 50 per cent in it. Rohtas Mal, chief executive officer, FieldFresh, said the transaction details were not in the public domain.

He confirmed that the acquisition of Del Monte’s Indian facility was “part of the transaction”.

FieldFresh, which started in 2005, had an initial investment of $50 million and planned to bring 20,000 acres under cultivation countrywide.

The move to rope in Del Monte Pacific comes after FieldFresh has had faced severe setbacks in its stated objective of exporting Indian fresh produce to European and West Asian markets.

[rgiridhar]

BusinessLine, Sept. 28

Bharti Enterprises and EL Rothschild Ltd on Friday announced that Del Monte Pacific Ltd, producers, marketers and distributors of premium food and beverage products, had bought 40 per cent stake in their joint venture, FieldFresh Foods Pvt Ltd. This will also make Del Monte the second largest stakeholder in the agri joint venture.

While Bharti will continue to hold 50 per cent in FieldFresh, Rothschild will become a minority stakeholder in the venture. FieldFresh was incorporated with a focus on linking Indian farm produce with the world and has been exporting fresh fruits and vegetables to key markets including the UK, West Asia and Europe.

The renewed focus of FieldFresh will reflect the changing retail environment and move from just fresh produce to food and beverage processing as well. Given the growing opportunities in the domestic economy, FieldFresh plans to enhance its focus through value-added products in the domestic market, including developing a comprehensive strategy to serve the market’s business-to-business (B2B) segment. The company will continue to cater to export markets.

Commenting on the announcement, Mr Rakesh Bharti Mittal, Vice-Chairman, Bharti Enterprises, said, “We look forward to having Del Monte Pacific as a partner in our agri venture, FieldFresh. Having created the basic building blocks of the business in the fresh produce category, we are looking at up-scaling our operations through processing and value-added products. Del Monte will bring to FieldFresh its immense strength and experience in the area of processing branded food products.”

“India is the second largest producer of fruits and vegetables in the world, but with an insignificant percentage of processed foods. Currently, about 20-25 per cent of fruits and vegetables are wasted due to spoilage. The potential in both fresh and processed segments is tremendous. We are excited to join hands with Bharti and Rothschild,” said Mr Joselito D Campos Jr, Managing Director, Del Monte Pacific Ltd.