Aavin (Tamil Nadu Milk Producers' Co-operative Federation) is planning to enter the festival market in a very big way this year.
Official sources told The Hindu that for the first time, not only would it come out with a number of sweets but would also ensure that all its parlours supplied standardised milk throughout their working hours.
The sources said that apart from the routine items such as guava, date guava, mysorepa and gulab jamun, it planned to introduce cashew halwa, cashew cake, nuts halwa, chocolate burfi and badam milk cake.
As against 80 to 100 tonnes of sweets normally retailed by Aavin during the festival season, this year it would sell at least 150 tonnes of sweets in 250 grams, half a kilogram and one kg packs.
“The total cost of the sweets would work out to about Rs four crore,” the sources said.
The organisation also proposed to market the sweets aggressively by preparing special gift packs and approaching educational institutions, companies, etc.
The sweets would also be delivered at the doorstep. Special orders would be booked along 14 routes in Chennai. Similar arrangements would be made by the district unions also.
Besides, Aavin would release additional quantity of butter and ghee for the festival season in the city. “As against three tonnes of butter and an equal quantity of ghee retailed every day now, we would release even as much as six to seven tonnes of both these items depending upon the demand. Apart from milk, butter and ghee would be available through the 55 Aavin parlours between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m.all days. We are planning to extend the same facility to the franchisee outlets (including those run by the Women Development Corporation and the consumer co-operative societies) also very soon”, the sources said.
The Aavin parlour at the Chennai Mofussil Bus Terminus at Koyambedu would sell all products round the clock in a bid to help travellers.
Though Aavin would like to sell such products through its 164 Automatic Vending Machines (AVMs), the existing infrastructure would not suffice.
“With the current facility we can only retail milk, that too for a short duration, both in the morning and evening.” If these outlets were also to be used for selling other Aavin products, it would require a full-time attendant. “In the long run all the Aavin outlets will have all the Aavin products”, the sources added.
It was also planning to set up ice-cream plants at Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchi at Rs 20 lakh each. A 1,000-litre ice-cream-making unit will be added to the existing unit at Ambattur in Chennai. These units would produce ice cream of five flavours.
