Pet food company, Mars Petcare India, has entered into an MoU with the Telangana government to expand its factory in the State with an investment of ₹500 crore.
The brownfield project will help meet the rising demand for manufactured pet food, create jobs, support ‘Make in Telangana’ initiative, promote State producers and fuel Asia-wide exports from the region, the company said in a release on Thursday. It, however, did not specify the timeline when the expansion will be completed.
The announcement on the investment followed a meeting the company leadership had with Industries and IT Minister K.T. Rama Rao. The Minister assured that the project will be considered for tailor-made incentives under the mega project category.
The company said that the plant’s capacity is to be expanded by adding a second dry extruder line. The project will also facilitate expansion of the packing line capacity, upgrade the utility system and the white space to support growth along with required extensions in utilities. It will augment capacity by almost 65 kilotonne to satisfy the demand not only in India but across Asia for dry pet food.
This investment will create more employment and up-skill the local manpower. The company intends to hire 180-200 people in different roles and provide them with on-boarding and training. With focus on gender diversity, significantly there would be more jobs for women.
Mars Petcare said it will continue to contribute towards the welfare of villages in Siddipet district and help grow local businesses from where raw materials will be sourced. Managing director Ganesh Ramani said, “We started our first manufacturing plant in Hyderabad in 2008. The expansion will help us keep up with India’s increasing demand and create multiple jobs for the local population.”
Assuring support for the company’s expansion project, the Minister said, “We would also like to have raw material sourcing agreements... looking at a partnership between Telangana and Mars Petcare for best business and social progress outcomes.”
