Mar 12, 2020
Amul Tru to take on MNC rivals in fruit-based milk beverage market to introduce more flavours and expand geographic reach a year after launch
Having established a presence in the fruit-based milk beverages market over the past year, Amul is now going full-throttle to push its products in the MNC-dominated segment.
According to R.S. Sodhi, MD, AMUL, Amul Tru was launched last summer and has created a niche for itself. The product has been welcomed pan India and will have an extended geographical reach with more variants this summer, he said.
According of market analysis, the Fruit Flavoured Still Drinks (FFSD) market has a size of about 160 lakh packs per day, with ₹10 per pack, market value estimated to be at ₹5,800 crore annually. Till yester year, Amul maintained low from the category, which is dominated by other leading players such as Parle’s Frooti, Coca-Cola’s Maaza and PepsiCo’s Slice.
Nevertheless, Amul asserts its Tru is different in preparation from other FFSD products. According to Sodhi, the beverage contains a mix of whey protein and fruit juices, which makes it protein-rich. Amul Tru costs ₹10 for 180 ml per pack. Apart from PET bottles, Amul has also introduced carton packaging for the drink.
“We are procuring the juice concentrate and adding our whey (milk solids) to make the product. So it has fruit plus whey. It is a very big market in India. In the initial year, we have received good response. This season will improve our reach and expand this category,” declared Sodhi.
On making of AMUL TRU, Amul is focusing on making the final product while it sources readymade fruit-drink concentrate from its suppliers.
“This is a dairy product for us even as the fruit content in the product ranges from 20 to 40 per cent across the current four variants — mango, apple, orange and lychee. It has real fruit with milk. This will expand the entire beverages range. However, our mainstay remains milk processing. We are not into fruit processing,” said Jayen Mehta, Sr. General Manager, Planning & Marketing at GCMMF.
Taking tasks, Almond Branding has provided end-to-end brand building, packaging design and communication design support to Amul for its first FFSD products. Earlier, Almond Branding had launched the company’s other milk beverages including Amul Haldi Doodh, Amul Kadhai Doodh, Amul Irish Drink and Amul Pina Colada.