Parag Milk Foods soars 5% after commissioning Lactose Plant with a capacity of 40 MT per day

Parag Milk Foods Ltd., a leading manufacturer and marketer of dairy-based branded products in India, plans to add further value to its cheese and whey business through the introduction of high potential Lactose products, thereby expanding its Health & Nutrition portfolio.
The company stock gained over 5% in the intraday trade on Wednesday and around 3.08 pm, its was trading at Rs110.85 up by Rs5.4 or 5.12% on the BSE.
As one of the leading cheese producers in the country and with ambitions to grow the business further, the Company has ventured into whey protein powders, a by-product in the cheese manufacturing process.
The company established India’s first and only manufacturing facility to produce high quality whey protein and introduced various whey protein products in the market including “Avvatar”, a branded B2C product. Through the commissioning of the Lactose plant, the Company is now intending to add higher value to Whey Permeates that are generated during the filtration process of whey protein.
Whey Permeate contains a high concentration of lactose, a natural milk sugar with fat and minerals, that is normally sold as a substitute to Skimmed Milk Powder (SMP). Pure lactose, which largely consists of edible lactose used in confectionaries and food additives, and pharma grade lactose used by the pharmaceutical and nutrition industries, garners a higher value and has a vast potential for growth.
The company has therefore established state-of-the art facilities with a capacity to manufacture 40 MT of lactose per day. The company’s expertise in dairy ingredients has allowed it to create lactose that is ideal for multiple segments such as food applications, infant nutrition and clinical nutrition products.
Globally, the lactose market size stood at USD 1.2 billion in 2018 and is projected to grow to USD 1.5 billion by 2026, exhibiting a CAGR of 3.7% during this period. The Indian lactose market size is ~40,000-45,000 MT and is valued at INR 5,000 million (~USD 70 million), with a major part of the requirement being met through imports.
This provides a huge opportunity for import substitution for players like Parag Milk Foods Ltd. that has end-to-end manufacturing capabilities to tap into. The Company has a fully integrated value chain with control over key processes from procurement and supply chain to processing and distribution, maintaining highest standards of quality and delivery throughout.

Source : indiainfoline