Through its cloud kitchens, ITC is building a portfolio of shorter shelf-life offerings and selling them through quick commerce platforms.
ITC is set to debut a collection of premium, freshness-focused packaged foods -- ranging from cookies and cakes to chutneys and namkeens -- to bridge the gap between mass-market snacks and fresh-baked quality.
Through its cloud kitchens, the company is building a portfolio of shorter shelf-life offerings and selling them through ecommerce platforms.
The initiative is being piloted in Bengaluru, home to ITC's food and food technology (food-tech) platform.
The fresh packaged food products range will be scaled up and the rollout will be in synergy with the company's food-tech expansion plans, said Hemant Malik, executive director, ITC, who is in charge of the company's foods and personal care businesses.
ITC's new fresh food range is unique in the FMCG industry, said Malik.
"We have been able to introduce innovative offerings in this space, leveraging the Cloud kitchen ecosystem that we have developed in the last few years."
"The recipes are developed by the group's Cloud kitchen team before being distributed through ecommerce platforms such as Blinkit and Swiggy.
"These cloud kitchens work as micro factories in an integrated hub-and-spoke model."
There are six cookies in the fresher range under Sunfeast Baked Creations and with a shelf life of 40 days, compared to most packaged cookies that have a shelf life ranging between six and nine months.
Fresher cakes have a shelf life of 30 days versus regular packaged cakes, whose shelf life varies from three to six months.
All these products are currently only on quick commerce platforms and being tested in Bengaluru -- the response from consumers has been encouraging, Malik said.
Chutneys (tamarind and pudina), sambar and namkeens could be next in line.
Aashirvaad chapatis -- they have a six-day shelf life -- are available in a few states in the South and will be expanded to other places.
The ready-to-cook chapatis are stocked in ambient conditions and ITC Cloud kitchens have been using them.
The food-tech platform has more than 68 cloud kitchens in five cities: Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune and Mumbai.
A range of cuisines is being offered under four ITC brands: ITC Master Chef Creations, Aashirvaad Soul Creations, Sunfeast Baked Creations and Sansho by ITC Master Chef.
"We are setting up a bulk preparation kitchen in the North for the food-tech business, to cater to Delhi-NCR for now.
"Once it's ready, we will be able to launch the fresh range for quick commerce in six to eight months," Malik said.
The latest strategy for fresher products reflects ITC's broader approach of building on institutional strengths while tapping into synergies across its businesses.
The food-tech business, in particular, is a convergence of these strengths, combining the hotels business's culinary expertise with the brands and production capabilities of the foods division to build scalable solutions.
Now, the experience of food tech is being leveraged to create the fresher range.
Malik noted that while there is clearly a growing consumer demand for fresher products, primary players in the segment are so far largely limited to local bakeries and regional brands, most of which operate at mass price points.
"We are keenly focused on making a difference in the fresh foods segment with unique first-of-their-kind offerings."
Premiumisation has been a key strategic thrust for ITC for some time now.
For the company, the category represents an opportunity to expand its premium portfolio.
With consumers showing a greater willingness to pay for premium offerings, the demand momentum is clearly building in this segment, Malik said.
"Our priority is to accelerate growth in the premium and super-premium segments through robust product innovation, consumer segmentation and omni-channel distribution strategies," he added.
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff
