Novozymes ramps up Indian presence
Novozymes has an established business in India with three sites throughout the country but now wants to gain a further foothold, expanding business in what it defines as an emerging market.
GS Krishnan, regional president of India for Novozymes South Asia, told FoodNavigator-Asia that there are current trends in the country that create suitable foundations for the success of new enzyme applications.
He said: “The changing lifestyle and increasing purchasing power is leading to a surge in the demand by a new generation of busy, urban Indians for quality products.”
“The middle-class is growing and so there is an increased requirement for ready-to-eat foods. People want a quick solution, rather than spending time making traditional foods at home,” he added.
Tailored for the Indian consumer
“We are specifically looking at local applications, flatbreads is one of them. We already have enzymes for sandwich breads but we are focusing on specific applications for local Indian tastes,” he said.
The company will be developing established enzymes; amylases, lipases, xylanases and proteases for these local applications.
Krishnan said that operations in India focus on the local domestic market. He added that “local food application is our priority.”
The company’s in-country research and development teams are currently focusing on identifying local requirements, he said.
Krishnan explained that eating habits and the way products are consumed differ in each region and knowledge of this is important to the success of application developments.
The company will be taking a two-prong approach to distribution, he added.
“We will work with local distributors but we will also deal directly with our customers because we want to provide specific solutions for their needs… primarily we will be working directly with some of the bigger companies and using local distributors to cater to the smaller market,” he said.
Krishnan said: “We will be working with existing, and some new customers, for our applications.”
