Thailand-based group Charoen Pokphand Foods has told just-food it is negotiating to supply fast-food chicken chains in India after opening a new chicken processing plant in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.
Sanjeev Pant, senior vice-president of the food business of CPF (India) Pvt Ltd said: “This new plant has been established with an investment of around US$20m and is undoubtedly the best chicken processing plant in the country.”
Amid reports CPF was now talking to chicken brands in India, including KFC owner Yum Brands and McDonald’s, about supply contracts, he said: “CPF (India) is in discussions with many global chains to support their requirements, and we are expecting these discussions to fructify in the next few months.”
The company is also planning to launch a range of its own branded products in India, including chicken lines such as CP Frozen Chicken and CP Chilled Chicken.
CPF (India) has been setting up breeding farms, hatchery farms, broiler farms and feed mills across southern India since the 1990s. The setting up of the processing site in the city of Chitoor chimes with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s so-called Make in India deregulation policies, designed to encourage foreign companies to invest in the country.
