South Korea's Lotte to inject Rs 450 cr into Indian subsidiary Havmor Ice Cream

The investment includes a new production facility at MIDC Talegaon in Pune, Maharashtra.

Lotte Confectionary Ltd., which is one of the first-ever Korean-themed facilities in India, aims to create employment opportunities for over 1000 people during the investment period.

This investment decision comes four years after Lotte Confectionery Ltd. acquired Havmor Ice Cream for Rs 1000 crores in December 2017.

Havmor Ice Cream is one of India’s fastest-growing ice cream brands with a strong presence in more than 20 states and it operates 216 exclusive ice cream parlours in India.

Through sustained growth over the years, Havmor Ice Cream is all set to ramp-up its capacity and cater to the growing demand in the Indian market.

The planned MIDC Talegaon facility in Pune would have cutting-edge facility with high-end engineering and design innovation and will be the brand’s first ever Korean technology-based facility in India.

This facility will be made on a total area of 60,000 sqm leased from MIDC and will lead to a significant increase in its production capacity to meet future demand. The facility will be fully functional in 2024.

Sharing his thoughts on the announcement, Komal Anand, Managing Director, Havmor Ice Cream, said, “Lotte sees India as a strategic market & this investment decision demonstrates the confidence that the group has on the growth opportunity India has to offer.

“Revolutionizing the Indian palate with lip-smacking options that satisfy consumer demand has been at the center of our initiative. The company launched its global best seller ice cream Lotte World Cone in 2021 and the acceptance of this product has exceeded expectations.”

He added that the headroom to grow consumption is large given that the per capita consumption of ice creams is low when compared with other Asian countries.

With this facility we aim to expand our footprint & stem our position for the long run, said Anand.

Commenting on the investment, Choi, Chief Globalization Officer, Lotte Confectionery Korea said, “India is an important market for Lotte, and we are very excited to announce our first ever ice cream facility built with Korean expertise in manufacturing, supply chain metrics & processing in India. The new plant will be instrumental in strengthening and growing the brand’s reach in India.”

With the new facility, Havmor Ice Cream will generate employment opportunities for 1000 people from the communities around.

The facility will be an addition to Havmor Ice Cream’s existing manufacturing units in Ahmedabad and Faridabad.

(With UNI inputs)