OdishaLIVE Bureau
Most fruit juice brands in the market do not use pure fruit extracts! To give Odisha public a taste of authentic fruit juice, a range of pure fruit juices ‘EHA’ has been introduced in the market recently.
These days the fruit market is very unpredictable. Over yield of fruit leads to flooding in the market and these results in wastage and distress sale by the farmers which fetches very low returns for them. Similarly, a decrease in supplies leads to price rise which pinches the pocket of the common man. When there is a bumper produce, often, the farmers resist harvesting and let it rot on the tree itself. Such a situation is quite regular in most of the sates in India and is particularly rampant in Odisha.
“We have always been told that lack of cold storage facilities in the state is the bane of fruit producers, wholesalers, dealers and retailers. But this is not wholly true. The fact is we need to focus and invest in food processing technologies and food processing plants,”said Odia agricultural entrepreneur Col Ashit Mahapatra in conversation with the Chief Editor of OdishaLIVE, Nilambar Rath. Now when we have woken up and have satrted to think of preservation of this farm produce; forward thinking entrepreneurs like Col Mahapatra are thinking of developing infrastructure and technology to use even the by-products of the farm produce.
Let us take the example of mango production in Odisha which is in no way less in comparison to Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh mangoes as far as quality and variety is concerned. Odisha produces 50 thousand tonnes of mangoes each year which includes varieties like Dasheri, Amrapalli, Totapuri and Baiganpalli etc.
“Since the state does not have adequate facilities to procure, pulp and preserve these mangoes, the farmers have to rely solely on the local fruit market to sell their produce. If we could develop the required facilities to extract the pulp of the fruit and package it aseptically, our mangoes would not be left to rot and it could compete in the international market”, says Col Ashit Mahapatra.
Col Mahapatra is the Co-founder of Milk Mantra Dairy Pvt Ltd which produces packaged milk and other dairy products under the brand name Milky Moo which is a very popular brand in Odisha. Right from the inception of the processing plant to aggregating the farmers and training them, from procurement of quality milk to its transportation and logistics, Ashit was instrumental in creating self-reliant farmers and a sustainable ecosystem.
In order to establish an agro-based industry, Col Mahapatra has now entered the food processing sector with his new venture – AgriLink Food Processing Private Limited. He is joined by his wife Sharmilee Mahapatra as the Co-founder and Director of Agri Link.
As the first product from the house of AgriLink, mango and lychee juice has hit the market.
“Eha is not made from concentrates and does not contain any preservatives” informs Col. Mahapatra.
Aseptically packaged, ‘EHA’ has a shelf life of 8 months. ‘Eha’is available in the market in the districts of Khurda, Jagatsinghpur, Cuttack, Puri, Ganjam, Gajapati, Kandhamal, Bargarh, Sambalpur, Jharsugudaand ten other districts. Col Mahapatra and his team target to reach more than 10,000 outlets in the first phase of their launch plan..
Today, most big companies have flooded the market with their juice brands, so how does ‘Eha’ stand in the competition? ‘Eha’ is a completely home grown brand promoted by Odisha based entrepreneurs and the product is fruit pulp based juice, answers Col Ashit Mahapatra. “We have used advanced processes of procurement and packaging for the juice and we will not compromise on the quality of the final product. Hence, I am sure that once customers taste it, they will return for more.Also, a 200 ml pack of the juice has been priced competitively at rupees fifteen only” Col Mahapatra adds.
“To make ‘Eha’ a healthier option that can be consumed without any guilt, we have added required amounts of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Aloe Vera. Right now, ‘Eha’ gives you Mango and Lychee juice; Pineapple, Jamun and Mosambi juice would be launched soon”, informs Agri Link Founder.
The main aim of Agro industrialist Col Mahapatra is to give healthy products to the customers, create the right market for the farmers and in the process make it a profitable and sustainable business for all the stakeholders. “As of now, we are focussing on horticulture and fruit growing farmers in the first phase” says AgriLink Founder, Col. Ashit Mahapatra.
‘Eha’ is currently being processed and packaged in a modern state-of-art production facility at Chittoor in Andhra Pradesh. “We are in the process of setting up a pulping unit and a processing plant in Odisha very soon. We are bringing out of state fruits for the moment though we are procuring the best available mango pulp from Andhra and lychee pulp from Muzaffarpur in Bihar, our primary objective is to procure fruits from the local market and encourage Odisha farmers to use modern farming methodologies to increase the quantity and quality of their horticulture yield”, says AgriLink Co-Founder Sharmilee Mahapatra.
Agri Link is in talks with farmers of leading fruit producing districts in Odisha namely; Cuttack, Mayurbhanj, Khurda, Dhenkanal, Angul, Koraput and Rayagada. In the coming years, the brand will also supply farmers with improved seeds, fertilisers and modern know-how to boost yield capacity of fruits in the state and turn fruit production into a booming business for the farmers.
In Odisha, mangoes and other fruits are grown but due to the unavailability of pulp extraction facilities, the farmers are unable to capitalise on the market potential of their produce. For this reason, farmers in Odisha are exploited by agents and fruit wholesalers.
Likewise, due to the market forces of increasing and decreasing nature, medium and small farmers are oftentimes affected. Hence, the setting up of Agri Link fruit processing plant in the near future bodes well for the farmers and fruit growers of the state.
Another important aspect is that the Indian food platter has now given space to juice. Hence the market for juice brands is opening up and would will grow in the future.
“Keeping in mind the increasing health conscious nature of the average citizen and his modern lifestyle where he prefers to have something nutritious and satisfying on the go during his busy schedule, we have launched ‘Eha’ to the market” says Col Mahapatra of Agri Link.
The juice that consumers buy from the market today is not of a pure quality, rather it is stripped as most them use concentrates and preservatives are then added to increase its shelf life. But ‘Eha’ is different in the sense that it is a pure fruit pulp-based juice. So,having provided a quality product to our consumer, we are sure that ‘Eha’ shall become a favourite amongst our customers” says Odisha’s new age Agri entrepreneur Col Ashit Mahapatra.
